Power Outages: How to Take Control

Power outages are great inconveniences today, causing real frustration and problems in a world powered by and dependent on electricity. Without power, appliances shut down, heating and cooling systems stop, and the lights go out.  In the winter, power failure issues are compounded by the cold weather, which can seep into your home and cause water pipes to freeze, making life uncomfortable for the duration of the power outage.  Because it can be difficult to anticipate power outages or predict the duration of an outage, homeowners are wise to prepare for these inconveniences well in advance and to expect lengthy power failures.

What to do when you're at home:

Ensure that all family members are safe and inform them of the location of the emergency kit; it may help to gather everyone in the same room to share body heat in the winter months.

Contact your power company and turn on a battery-operated radio to receive updates and gain a better understanding of the expected duration of the outage.

Check three key elements in your home: food storage, supplies of drinking water, and potential for exposure to extreme temperatures.

Food Storage

Refrigerators and deep freezers are affected by loss of power quickly–food can only be stored safely in a fridge without power for two hours and in a freezer without power for 36 to 48 hours (for best results, keep the doors closed as long as possible). Keep a cooler handy and fill it with ice soon after the power goes out, then set refrigerated foods (especially milk and dairy, meet, fish, eggs, and spoilable leftovers) in the cooler. Use your digital thermometer from the Emergency Kit to check that all foods stay below 2 degrees Celsius; anything that goes above that temperature should be discarded.

Drinking Water

In cold and warm weather alike, risk of dehydration is high. If you do not have a large supply of drinking water and you're uncertain as to whether city water purification systems are operational during power outages (contact the city to be sure), be sure to boil questionable tap water for at least one minute before using it. If you do not have access to facilities to boil water without electricity, you may opt to treat water with chlorine tablets or iodine tablets, but note that this does not kill parasitic organisms.

Cold Temperatures

Hypothermia, which can occur when an individual's core body temperature drops below 35 degrees Celsius, is common during extended immersion in extreme cold with inadequate clothing, poor nutrition, dehydration, and/or fatigue.   Help yourself and your family avoid hypothermia and other cold weather ailments during winter power outages by ensuring they remain completely warm; they are properly clothed; they eat regularly and drink lots of water; and they take the time to rest.

Once you are confident that your food and water supplies are stable and you and your family are warm, dry, and prepared for a potentially lengthy power outage, you should turn off or disconnect appliances or electronics that were in use before the failure (but leave one on so you'll know when the power returns) and open your faucets slightly to prevent the pipes from freezing.