Power Outage - Are You Prepared?

September 13th through September 18th we were without power at my house here in Houston due to the arrival of Hurricane Ike. (hundreds of thousands of people still don't have power 12 days later) To say we were unprepared for this prolonged power outage is an understatement. So, I thought I would write a little post here to talk about power outage and what you can do to be prepared.

I realize that you can't prepare for every possible situation. I mean who has things like rations for food and water and an electric generator just ready to go, right? But a power outage is something that is pretty common across the United States and something that is pretty easy to prepare for.

I did a Google search for "power outage preparation" and got results that was mostly information from a TON of different power companies containing suggestions. So, I'll sum up for you here.

If you are having a power outage (that you didn't know was coming) you should do the following:

1. Call your Power Company to report the outage.


2. Turn off all appliances. Avoid opening your refrigerator or freezer. That way the food stays cold for longer. (more on this later)


3. Turn off all but one or two lights. Seeing lights come on signals a restoration of power to the power crew.


4. Stay away from downed outdoor lines. Assume all lines are live. Touching them, an object in contact with them, or even the ground near them could seriously injure or even kill you.


5. Know the symptoms of hypothermia, and hyperthermia, and take extra care to keep children and the elderly safe.


6. Have a plan for where to go in case of an extended outage. Leave your house if necessary.

If you know that you will likely experience a power outage in the near future (you know, because something like a hurricane is heading right for you) there are steps you can take to prepare. An emergency kit is a VERY good idea. You can get one of those plastic storage bins at Target or Wal-Mart and fill it up with the supplies that you will need. Then you can just store it away in the attic or garage or a closet until you will need it. Here is a list of things that should be in your kit:

• A flashlight, battery-operated radio (or television) & fresh batteries. Always keep the batteries separate until you are ready to use them.


• Candles & matches. Better yet, have one of those Wickman Refillable Butane Torch Lighters with the long stems for lighting both candles and your natural gas stove (if you have one) from a distance.


• Easy to prepare food items. Purchase items that don’t require much cooking - canned or instant soups, stews or chili, packaged freeze-dried meals, and protein or breakfast bars are good to have on hand.


• Gas camp stoves, lanterns or barbecues. NEVER use a camp stove or barbecue indoors! Be sure to use any lanterns on a flat, stable and non-flammable surface. Make sure to have extra fuel for cooking outdoors.


• Ample supply of essential prescription medications and over-the-counter drugs. During a storm, road travel may not be possible for several days. And the pharmacy might not have power either!


• First aid kit. Make sure that all of the supplies are filled ready to go.


• Games. Board games and cards are fun and handy to pass the time.


• If you have a baby - extra diapers and other infant care items. Formula is a MUST if you are not breastfeeding and your baby is transitioned to milk especially if the refrigerator is unpowered for a long time (say 6 days or so *wink*) It never hurts to have a can on standby.


• Extra pair of glasses, hearing aid batteries, extra wheelchair batteries, oxygen, medication, catheters, food for guide or service dogs, or other special equipment you might need

And those are just the emergency supplies.

Everyone has a pantry full of food that is deemed "non-perishable". That means that it can last for a long time without refrigeration. If you know you could be without power for several days to a week or more make sure you have plenty of foodstuffs. Additionally you want to have a few things on hand that you may not necessarily have thought of. Take the telephone. This day and age, everyone has a cordless phone, right? When I was growing up we had those pesky phones that were attached to the wall. What a bummer. But you may want to consider having at least one of the phones in your house a non-cordless phone. That way, if the power is out but the phone lines are working, you can still make and receive phone calls. It came in handy for us!!

If you know an outage in coming, MAKE SURE YOUR GAS TANK IS FULL! If you "ride out" the storm but don't have any gas, you won't be able to leave if you later decide to. Here in Houston, gas lines were from 1-4 hours long after the Hurricane. Since over 2 million people were without power you can see why. Related to the car, make sure if you have an automatic garage door opener that you know how to disengage it so you can manually open and close the door.

In order to keep your food in the fridge for longer, turn the refrigerator and freezer up to the coldest settings and refrain (as much as possible) from opening them. (We did this but the food was still only good for about 2 days. Then we threw over $200 in the trash.)

• Frozen food - If your freezer is full, food will stay frozen for about two days. If it is less than half full, food will stay frozen for about one day. Cover the freezer with blankets, quilts or sleeping bags to further insulate the freezer and help food stay frozen longer. After power is on check any food that is discolored or smells spoiled. If in doubt, throw it out.


• Refrigerated food - To avoid losing the cold air in your refrigerator, don't open doors unnecessarily. Meat and fish spoil quickly at temperatures above 40 degrees F. Other quick-spoiling foods include milk, custards, creamed foods and any foods containing mayonnaise or eggs. Cooked and cured meat will keep for several days in a closed refrigerator. Hard cheeses keep well, even at room temperature. Again, if in doubt, throw it out. You might also try placing bags of ice in the refrigerator, or place food in a cooler or ice chest.
  

Lastly, make sure everything is charged. This includes your cell phones (which may be your only way to communicate), laptop computers, and mp3 players. We ended up using our mp3 players to listen to the radio. (You can't do that with an ipod) The Monday after the storm, the big mall downtown was open. Since texting was the only way to communicate and most people had no access to news, people littered the floor of the mall plugging in their electronics. It was kind of funny. Another good thing to have is a car charger for your cell phone. Then you can charge it when you are on the go looking for somewhere to eat or just driving to see the damage.

Now that we have installed a Natural Gas powered Generator for our home we should never have to worry about being without power again. But being a little more prepared than we were would have been nice. C'est la vie, right?