California Power Outages (high winds and fire danger)

[clean]

The primary power company in California is shutting off power in some areas in an effort to prevent fires like those that happened last year. 
Some areas have been warned that they could be shut down for the next 5 days!  No power for FIVE DAYS!!
I have a small generator, but no way do I have enough gas to go for five days!  AND if the area is out of power for five days, that does not bode well for gas stations that need power to pump gas! 

Anyone in the area who can comment? 

Could YOU go five days without power at your house? 
Imagine all of the businesses that will shut down, the sales that will not be made, the profits that will not be earned, the bills that will not be paid.... IF California is the 7th largest economy in the world, even this small area of power outage (relative to the entire state) do not bode well for avoiding the next recession!  (or do I just think too much)?

I live in a hurricane zone and have considered a generator.  IF I had gas service, I would be more likely to get one, but my lot is so small that I dont really have the room for a generator and a 'big ass' propane tank that would be needed to run it for an extended time.
 

[Parasaurolophus]

We went without power for nearly three weeks in the ice storm of '98.

Ration out your power usage, and only use it for whatever's absolutely essential, like potable water if it depends on a pump. Otherwise, I guess you could hook up your fridge every once in a while, or your stove for one giant meal. Go to bed when the sun sets, wake up when it comes back. And in the meantime, read, play games, do all the essential day-to-day survival stuff.

[fourhats]

I used to live in the countryside, and the power went out regularly. We were lucky to have a wood-burning stove for heat, and a gas stove for cooking. We couldn't flush the toilet (electric pump for that), so when I thought the power might go out, I filled the bathtub (clean it first!). That way there was plenty of water for cooking, flushing the toilet, and washing oneself and dishes in sinks. We kept those camping lamps, which were safer than candles. Have a little transistor radio for news and updates, and gas up your car. Open the fridge and freezer as little as possible.

[ciao_yall]

It's like living in a developing country.

What is pathetic is all the $$$ PG&E made over the years, and the lack of investment in updating infrastructure. With all the new technologies out there to generate power locally, why do we still generate it way hundreds of miles away with a hydroelectric dam 100 years ago, across wires that pass through dry brushy chaparral and forests?

[simpleSimon]

People who live in places like Florida experience hurricanes and power outages every hurricane season.  Those outages can go well beyond 5 days.  The key is to prepare.  Stock up on your medications, lanterns/flashlights, batteries, generators (portable or whole house), water, ice, food, etc.  There is a website called https://www.beprepared.com/ that sells emergency/survival kits for all kinds of natural disasters (or a zombie apocalypse) and they range in price from $79-$250+.  Some kits are for your home... others you may keep in your car.  You don't have to buy an entire kit; you may buy specific items that you know YOU will need.  Amazon also sells various kits.  Most of us in the U.S. are fortunate to have access to emergency preparedness.  Whether or not you choose to prepare... or how well you prepare... is up to you.  Personally, I have been without power for 10 days one year... and 14 days another year from natural disasters.  After those experiences, 5 days sounds like a luxury. 

[mythbuster]

    My mother lives in the Bay Area and I have lots of friends in the region. It's truly nuts. UC Berkeley has cancelled classes because of this. The Caldecott tunnel may be closed because it has no lights! Now they have managed to keep the lights on in San Francisco and most (but not all) of Silicon Valley, but Napa is totally in the dark. The SF Chronicle  has an article today about everyone trying so salvage their winery weddings this weekend.
   The part that makes everyone's blood boil is that they are doing this because of predicted high winds. No winds yet, not even a breeze. Oh and once it's over it may take longer than 5 days to get the power back on, as PG+E has to inspect the lines! Now there's an argument for going off the grid if I ever saw one.
   I now live in Florida, so I am ready for multiple days without power due to a hurricane. It can be done- not fun, but very possible.
   What I would love is for all the Dem candidates to use this as an excuse to talk about infrastructure and regulation. How we need to invest in it, how this what your taxes can and do pay for, at all levels.

Just remember, the Enron scandal started with rolling brownouts in CA. By the end of it Arnold the Terminator was the governor.

[Anselm]

This might be a good time to go on a vacation if you can get time away from work.

[the_geneticist]

These hot, dry winds happen here every year.  Shutting off the power as a "preventative measure" is something new.  Folks had minimal to no time to prepare.  The economic losses will be HUGE if the power stays off for that long.

As to the original question, I could go for 5 days without power.  But that assumes I can charge my electronics at work, buy ice and water at the local grocery, and shower at the gym.  We have a gas stove and camping gear so we can cook.  But we'd have to toss most of the food in the fridge and freezer.  And my poor little aquarium fish would likely die of cold shock.

[pigou]

Could YOU go five days without power at your house? 

I'd take a trip out of town, because the city is clearly going to shut down. How do you buy groceries when all the registers are down? I guess with this being announced, stores can organize their own power generators, but what a mess.

If this were an issue more than once, I'd relocate. I have a UPS backup at home that runs all electronics for about an hour and I live in a big apartment building with its own backup power generators -- they actually jumped on during a brief local power outage. If you live in a house, you can spend $600 on a power generator and keep your lights on. Bonus points if you buy it from a store with a 30 day return policy...

[Hegemony]

What are the hospitals doing?  Do they have their own generators that will last for five days?

[clean]

But that assumes I can charge my electronics at work, buy ice and water at the local grocery, and shower at the gym.  We have a gas stove and camping gear so we can cook.  But we'd have to toss most of the food in the fridge and freezer.

Is anyone in the area to report?
My expectation is that there will NOT be gas available as the stations will not have electricity to pump gas.  NO ice because no one can make it, and even if they could, would the registers work?
What about the grocery stores?  Were they aware of this possibility? (What did they do with their refrigerated/frozen foods?)

I live in a hurricane zone. I grew up in Florida so I have been through many hurricanes.  While I think that my parents were out of power for more about 5 days once, I have never been out of power more than 3 days.  Besides, I knew that the storm was on the way and was able to take necessary measures.

Currently, I dont have a freezer anymore.  (the kitchen fridge/freezer doesnt have a lot, and mostly it is veggies anyway, certainly less than $50 in danger!)  These days, IF a storm threatens the area, I make reservations for several days at least 150 miles away. I would not make a good pioneer and plan to 'weather' the storm while on a "hurrication"  (hurricane vacation). 

I do have a small generator that would power a window AC or the kitchen fridge, and I have enough gas tanks to go for 3 days.  I also have a small camper, and that is why I have the generator, and most likely, IF I were forced to be in a California like situation, I would just move into the camper.  HOwever, that presumes that I had enough notice to fill my gas tanks ahead of time!!

I presume that campus would close if we were out for days, but I dont know how we would use our 'learning management system' without power! 

A few times in the last few years, our city water service has gone down for a few days.  The stores had plenty of bottled water, and you could use the water to flush and such, but not for food or washing.  Even with electricity, Many Many restaurants closed as they could not prepare food or clean.  I could only imagine what the area would be like if we were without power!

At least in Florida, gas stations near the highways are required to have generators!  When storms are present, the state steps in to make sure that stations near the highways are supplied with gas.  SO in FLorida, anyway, I would suspect that people with generators could refill, though the lines would likely be long!

Best... I bet the Disney would have power!! so that would be my 'go to' evacuation zone, if I was in Florida! 

[ciao_yall]

My assistant's house backs up to a hospital. She had power while most of the rest of her neighborhood did not.

She was kind of disappointed actually - she seemed to have been looking forward to the adventure of it all.

[Thursday's_Child]

What are the hospitals doing?  Do they have their own generators that will last for five days?

Not a specialist, but years of observation support an assertion that hospitals and other critical infrastructure are - if the grid in their area is properly set-up - a 'hardened' area that is also the last to be turned off and the first to be repaired/turned on.  They also, if properly managed and equipped, have generators with enough fuel for at least 3 days plus back-up systems for water-purification & I'm not sure what all else.

[Aster]

In Florida, a new rule was put into place last year mandating that all nursing homes maintain emergency power sufficient for minimum A/C comfort for a multi-day period (I forget the actual number).

This law was put into place after a recent hurricane resulted in nursing home deaths due to prolonged power outages.

There has been much complaining about this law by the nursing home businesses in the state.