We might never have the tech to tame a tempest, but we know about the hazards that trigger power outages and now we have the capability to manage them in granular detail, Taco Engelaar writes.
Brace. That’s the blanket instruction we’re given each time a storm approaches.
Brace for train disruption, brace for property damage, brace for unsecured objects taking flight.
So people change their travel plans, they move their car into the garage, and they tie down their garden furniture.
But how do people brace for something as out of their control as a blackout? How do you brace for darkness?
In what’s been a relentless season of storms, we have seen power outages on a huge scale. Just last month, more than 230,000 households in Ireland suffered power outages.
Alongside the scale of these power cuts, there’s also the issue of the frequency. Some regions are repeatedly experiencing blackouts, and when Storm Jocelyn hit, many were still reeling from Storm Isha.
One English county, Cumbria, has endured consistent mass power outages for the last three months in a row. When the next storm comes will we instruct them to brace again?
We can stock up on candles and torches, but there is very little that can ease the distress of being left without power for an undetermined period.
Over time, this distress will become weariness and ‘blackout fatigue’ will take hold across Europe.
Read more: euronews
