Imagine being without electricity... - Page 5

mistriTsquirrel · ‎07-17-2010

This thread is really making me think. I've made it through winters without a furnace (small heater only) and summers without air conditioning. I can go without a lot of things. But I can't imagine being completely without electricity or access to clean water for an extended period of time.

"Heartburn Can Cause Cancer" -- www.ecan.org

on the bay · ‎03-09-2010

Once, my son and 3 dogs and I were out of electricity and water for almost 5 days.

The water went off when the electricity went out-(it was a sump pump thing or whatever they called it).

This was during a huge storm.

We had flash lights and had filled the tub with water and we had enough water.

I have to say we did pretty well. We made it like we were wilderness camping-played cards under the flashlights, ate whatever wasn't melted, laughed a lot. It was a good adventure even with water pouring thru one of the bedroom ceilings.

I will say though, leading into day five, we all of a sudden weren't having such fun anymore and were so ready so happy, and thankful when we saw those lights come on!

And unlike so many from these hurricanes, our home was still standing when the lights came back on.

It is hard to imagine how awful it must be for so many right now.

I just went outside early this morning to see what was going on with the wind and rain and I have never heard rain like that ever! We are lucky Irma is a tropical storm here but still, it was like a huge orchestra playing rain coming down in sheets and I thought imagine what those in the cat 1-5 experienced for many more hours very scary.

"If you walk the footsteps of a stranger, you'll learn things you never knew. Can you sing with all the voices of the mountains? can you paint with all the colors of the wind?"

Lipstickdiva · ‎03-10-2010

I wouldn't want to do it.

I'm very lucky that we've never been without power for more than a day or so. But in bad snowstorms, I've had co-workers, friends and relatives without power for several weeks.

I guess in the grand scheme of things, not having power is the least of concerns. I'd rather have no power than have my house destroyed completely or totally flooded.

Bri36 · ‎02-20-2017

I've never lost power for days.

Yes, it's an inconvenience; but it's better than losing my home and all my belongings.

We have a generator now. My main concern with losing power is my basement flooding and not having air conditioning.

beckyb1012 · ‎03-09-2010

Three days due to a winter storm out in the country with no neighbors. Water went off the first six hours I got electric back for several hours. I was pulling my hair I was so ready to clean my house from camping in the living room with the fireplace.

At least in the ice/snow storm our deck in the back yard became a place to keep food items, way below freezing. Still nothing compared to what Florida is going through.

"Live frugally, but love extravagantly."

proudlyfromNJ · ‎05-01-2010

Our power goes out in every little storm. We have a well, so no water when that happens. We bought a generator years ago. Just about everyone of our neighbors has one.

jackthebear · ‎03-11-2010

@Susan Louise wrote:
and having no clue as to when it will be turned on...will it be in just a few days? weeks? or months? What would you do if you have no clue and nobody could give you a rough timeline?

I mean, it's not like you can just get a deli number...

I'm just thinking of all the folks that left to be safe (I praise them). But then I think of all the things they will face when going home. Even for those with not much damage, 'roughing it' without the basic comforts is a shock to the system for more than just a few days.

Everything in the fridge/freezer needs to be thrown out, no air conditioning, and in most cases no water.

Well, if 70-75% of the entire state is in the same boat, finding the 25-30% of anything that has electricity is surely a major stress factor to just get the basics.

I know for me, I would keep busy cleaning up debris and would be grateful for the books we have for at least a way to keep busy without tv/entertained.

Then I think of those who go from being at a place with all the comforts of being able to take a hot shower, food electricity several miles away then to go home and you can't do anything. Would you try and go back to where you were or just say at home in the dark unknown situation?

So, what would be your plan of action?

we did it with the 2 storms of 5/6 years ago, first time muddled thru, 2nd borrowed generator----

luckily have gas stove

now we have stand by generator

jackthebear · ‎03-11-2010

@Nightowlz wrote:
No fun with no power after an ice storm.
We are seriously thinking about installing a Generac & or Solar Panels.

have both

solar panels usually sell the power back to the electric co and you get a $$ back

generac kicks in as soon as the power goes off

lulu2 · ‎03-09-2010

@NYC Susan wrote:
During and after Hurricane Sandy, I lost power four times. Each time it came back, I had no idea how long it would stay on, and each time we lost it, I didn't know if it would come back. I was alone for quite a lot of that time, and it was terrifying. My son (a few towns over) got hit much harder, and had no electricity for several weeks, and I have many friends who were in the same situation. Lots of people in my area moved elsewhere temporarily.

This was a few years ago, but it's all very fresh in our minds.

We were displaced for 9 months after Sandy. The Halloween before Sandy we were hit by a freak storm and lost power for days. We purchased a generator but Sandy destroyed it. Once again we have a generator and since Sandy (thankfully) can count the times on one hand we've used it. (and only for short periods at that)

WenGirl42 · ‎07-05-2012

@software wrote:
@Kachina624 wrote:
I often wonder what people do who depend on 24/7 oxygen from a concentrator. They can use the bottled oxygen but a tank only lasts about 4 hours. You'd have to have a huge supply on hand and most people don't. Oxygen suppliers aren't even willing to deliver a huge supply. I think I'd be out looking for a electric company employee if I was in that situation.

They either have to make arrangements to move to a place with power or get a generator.

The company that delivers the oxygen and/or maintains the concentrator works with the local power compay when outages occur so that their customers are top priority in getting power restored. If that's not possible, they can work with local resources to get patient needs met including pretty constant delivery of the tanks for as long as necessary. But yes, best for everyone if the patient has a generator with an automatic power switchover.