WRITING IN THE DARK -- thoughts about the power grid

Empty shelves in a grocery store in West Seattle before a local 10 inch snowstorm hit. Photo courtesy of Klem Daniels.

As I write this, I am in the dark. I am typing this on my laptop computer, which is disconnected from the internet (no Wi-fi), but still works, as it is on 50 percent of its battery.

I am in the dark, because the power is out. My own Wi-Fi is off, because the electricity that runs the Wi-Fi router is off. On my computer’s Wi-Fi data screen there are no routers on in my area. Even the local City Wi-fi repeater is off.

Aside from the fact I am typing on a 2016 computer, and aside from the fact my Sangean PR-D5 radio is modern and my LED flashlight is modern, it is like living in the 17^th Century.

Here in Seattle we have had a rare snowstorm, and once again, we are getting a taste of what may happen when the Big One hits.

And, just two hours ago, the power went out. Who knows how long it may take for it to come back on. Like I mentioned in a previous blog post – it took 30 hours last time.

As I wrote previously a few weeks ago -- a small windstorm blew through here, and in my region we were out of power for 30 full hours. Just three miles away the lights were still going – that is how close I live to civilization. I’m not out in the sticks by any stretch.

But as I observed then, the fact I went 30 hours without electricity during a small blow was in indicator that when the Big One hits, we here in the Seattle region are screwed.

The Big One, of course, is the big 9.0 Earthquake that is destined to strike off the coast, which will shake for four to five minutes at a strength under which no one will be able to stay standing up after it hits. We will all be literally on our knees.

But that isn’t the entirety of the problem.

What happens next? It won’t just be 30 hours without power. It may be 30 days. Or even 30 weeks.

Back to our big snowstorm. Here in Seattle snow is fairly rare, and big snowstorms are even more rare. When they hit, usually it is accompanied by cold weather, and the hills, the highway chokepoints, and the ice all combine to make traffic come to a virtual standstill.

In the mid 1990’s we had a snowstorm that made my little station wagon car look like an igloo.

Once I cleared off much of the snow, I drove home from work O.K., as the car was a stable ride.

However, it took me one full hour to go two and a half miles through downtown Seattle, because of jack-knifed semi-trucks and buses. Then I drove another 50 minutes at a slow pace through packed snow to get home.

Traffic and snow in Seattle do not mix.

So, when the recent snowstorm was on the way to hit Seattle, the people here – knowing that traffic would be impassible once the storm hit – all went to the grocery stores to stock up on food and necessities.

Some stores in the area were virtually devoid of food on the shelves. I saw pictures in social media of the spectacle. It was amazing. In the news an hour ago they said some stores still had some empty shelves here and there. Trucks were getting through, albeit with some difficulty.

My Sangean PR-D5 switched automatically to battery power when the power went out, and worked quite well while I was writing this blog post. These radios are OK on batteries, but in a long power outage you'd want a couple extra sets of C's to run one.

Fast forward to now. The power is out. If it were out for more than a day – how would anyone buy food? Debit cards won’t work. Nothing will work.

Imagine the power being out for a week, with roads in the area impassible, not because of snow, but due to collapsed bridges, and broken roads -- from an earthquake. The grid will be down not just because of a few wires being down, but collapsed towers, and landslides and the like.

The stores will be without food for longer than just a day or two.

They will be out of food for weeks perhaps. And gasoline? If the pipelines are shut down, and with bridges out, gasoline and diesel supplies will be low.

Like I said in my last blog post – when the Big One hits, we’re in big trouble.

And if an EMP attack, or some sort of cyber attack on our power grid – or a Carrington Event hits – the nation will receive a monstrous wake-up call.

My message to anyone reading this post: prepare ahead of time. If you live in earthquake country, stock up on necessities – food, medical supplies, blankets, batteries, adequate flashlights, and the like. In the rest of the country, think about the power grid. What if something happens that cuts electricity for a month or more?

Some food, like ramen, or dry soup mixes, or oatmeal, is relatively cheap. It may not be the most nutritious, but it is indeed food, and would stave off starvation. It only takes water to boil it.

Think about your water supply. Do you have a river or creek nearby that can supply water if needed? Perhaps you use bottled water. Do you have enough, even for a week?

It is best to think about such things before disasters happen.

As for information, right now I have no internet. My cell phone has 50 percent on its battery and internet access through my network on the cell phone is laboriously slow. So all I have is radio.

Sony ICF-38 -- an excellent disaster radio. Unfortunately, they are no longer made. But Sony does make a couple smaller models that are probably very good disaster radios -- and other manufacturers also have some good ones, too. 

Right now, my trusty Sony ICF-38 AM-FM portable radio is still running on the batteries that were in it during the last power outage. Between then and now I have used it several times to listen to while falling asleep. So far, I estimate it has been running on the same set of AA’s for over 50 hours. It may hit 70 hours or more before the AA’s are finished.

A radio is a necessity if the power is out for longer than a week. Your cell phone’s battery will die, and then your charger will die. If you can’t buy gas, that will not be an option for charging a phone, much less a computer.

Information is vital. That is why I always have a good radio in the house.

These are the things that go through my head as I sit here in the dark.

Now I am going to go out for a walk in the dark – in the snow – then I will probably hit the hay early, as there is little to do in the dark and the cold, but sleep.

Addendum: this time the power was only out for 7.5 hours, which was tolerable. But still it was a wake up call -- our modern, tech-based society runs on the electric grid. Disasters can, and do, happen. My Sony ICF-38's batteries finally died last night while I was listening to Coast To Coast AM -- the AA's had lasted about 70 hours total. I still think that a good radio is a good investment for anyone who wants to be prepared for disasters and weather-related grid problems.
CBC 12-14-2019