Can the Government Prevent Massive Power Outages?
Homeowners that rely on well water for daily use need to be prepared for power outages. The following discussion showcases how important the need is for well owners to prepare your well pump for a power outage to make sure you have access to your water when you need it.
ARE YOU RELYING ON THE GOVERNMENT TO PREVENT MASSIVE POWER OUTAGES?
If your answer is yes, you might want to rethink your answer.
Between 2016 and 2020, there was a big shift in the whole preparedness industry. Many people seem to take on the idea, “I don’t need to do anything. The government will take care of everything”, or “They just need to upgrade the grid. Then everything will be fine.”
WELL – THE GOVERNMENT DISAGREES.
Under the Dept. of Homeland Security, The President’s National Infrastructure Advisory Council released a report in December 2018 titled: Surviving a Catastrophic Power Outage: How to Strengthen the Capabilities of the Nation.
The report describes a MASSIVE effort by government and industry together.
But it makes clear that effort CANNOT PREVENT massive and catastrophic power outages affecting maybe TENS OF MILLIONS of people. Their planning addresses circumstances going beyond anything seen to date and is all about
- Trying to lessen the worst of the negative effects
- Speeding recovery
ONE INTRODUCTORY PARAGRAPH DESCRIBES POTENTIAL CAUSES
“Unlike severe weather disasters, a catastrophic power outage may occur with little or no notice and result from myriad types of scenarios: for example,
- a sophisticated cyber-physical attack resulting in severe physical infrastructure damage;
- attacks timed to follow and exacerbate a major natural disaster;
- a large-scale wildfire, earthquake, or geomagnetic event;
- or a series of attacks or events over a short period of time that compound to create significant physical damage to our nation’s infrastructure.
An event of this severity may also be an act of war, requiring a simultaneous military response that further draws upon limited resources.”
So clearly, the hope of some people that, “The government will upgrade the grid and everything will be fine” falls far short of dealing with such circumstances.
To make it clear once again — this report contains NOTHING ABOUT PREVENTION. Disasters like these cannot be prevented.
THEN TWO SHORT PARAGRAPHS DESCRIBE THE SEVERITY OF POSSIBLE EFFECTS
“For the purpose of this study, the NIAC focused not on the cause, but rather on the consequences of an event, which are best categorized as severe, widespread, and long-lasting. The type of event contemplated will include not only an extended loss of power, but also a cascading loss of other critical services—drinking water and wastewater systems, communications, financial services, transportation, fuel, healthcare, and others—which may slow recovery and impede re-energizing the grid.
Most importantly, the scale of the event—stretching across states and regions, affecting tens of millions of people—would exceed and exhaust mutual aid resources and capabilities. The ability to share public and private resources across businesses and jurisdictions underpins our nation’s emergency response plans and strategies today.”
IN CONCLUSION
A number of natural, astronomical, or geopolitical causes could cause gigantic, long-term power outages. Potential damage could be catastrophic. This is absolutely something we ALL need to think about… government, business, and individuals.
We cannot just sit back and think the government will just fly in and take care of everything. It is clearly OUR responsibility to do as much as possible to take care of the health and safety of our families.
Clearly — readiness, preparedness, and self-reliance matter as much as they ever did — or even more.
Securing your water source should be one of the top priorities when thinking about being prepared for power outages.
