When the Lights Go Out
By James Donahue
Pacific Gas & Electric chose to turn the power to my Santa Cruz County home in California at 8 p.m. I was suddenly forced to stop what I was doing and just go to bed. I realized the room night light was out, my electric clock was blank and the portable heater I use to keep the room comfortable was out as was the working air purification unit. The entire building we occupy was plunged into a dead silence. This happened on one of the shortest days of the year so I sat up in my room for the next 11 hours in total darkness.
Who can sleep when all the natural sounds, lights and comforts of home are unexpectedly turned off?
Imagine how unnerving it would be to find you in a situation like this without prior warning. Other than a flashlight I had within reach there was absolutely nothing within my grasp that black night to give any comfort for dealing with my situation. It is amazing how slow time passes when the power goes out in the night. I became so desperate for any kind of light I opened the shades to my windows hoping for some starlight. And I found that cloud cover eliminated any chance of natural night light. There was no moon. Every other building within sight of my home also was black.
I paced the floor using my flashlight on occasion to get my bearings until the sun began pushing back the darkness at about 7 a.m. A rooster in my neighbor’s chicken pen announced the new day as the precious daylight spilled out over the yard and through my east window. Imagine then spending the next two days without any electric service. The telephone service was dead. There was no Internet, no television. I found an old battery operated radio, put batteries in and tuned in on local radio. It was only then that I finally tuned in on the threat of high winds and out-of-control fires raging all around our state.
We were luckier than many other residents of California that week. The wind was not as damaging where we live and there were no fires threatening the area so the power came back on in the third day. Many others remained in the dark for the week and may still be out of power as fires are still raging especially in Southern California. The fires were destroying homes. Because of the danger entire cities were evacuated as fires bore down on the roads leading from their neighborhoods.
PG&E is taking a lot of heat for what occurred. Defective power lines are being blamed for some of the fires. Schools and businesses were forced closed for lack of power. People living via medical equipment in their homes were left fighting to stay alive. We suspect that there were some deaths. People couldn’t buy gasoline or food from closed business places. They were unable to eat a warm meal or get to their jobs. It was total chaos everywhere.
It is frightening when a situation like this occurs that we become aware of how dependent we have become to the electric power serving our homes and businesses. To adapt I personally resorted to reading a book, listening to radio broadcasts and feeding on cold food. I took a walk and found my neighbors doing the same thing. Thus some old-fashioned neighborhood comradely began to evolve. I put that down as a good thing.
With battery operated devices and lighting, with candles and portable generators, it was interesting to notice how people were adapting to the loss of electric power. We Californians demonstrated how quick we can deal with stuff like this. There seems to be hope for our generation in spite of the horrors now generated by dramatic weather changes.
When I got back on line I found that a few fools posting on the social media were still saying weather change is a hoax. Our personal experience amid the California fires and blackouts convinced me how dead wrong they are.
By James Donahue
Pacific Gas & Electric chose to turn the power to my Santa Cruz County home in California at 8 p.m. I was suddenly forced to stop what I was doing and just go to bed. I realized the room night light was out, my electric clock was blank and the portable heater I use to keep the room comfortable was out as was the working air purification unit. The entire building we occupy was plunged into a dead silence. This happened on one of the shortest days of the year so I sat up in my room for the next 11 hours in total darkness.
Who can sleep when all the natural sounds, lights and comforts of home are unexpectedly turned off?
Imagine how unnerving it would be to find you in a situation like this without prior warning. Other than a flashlight I had within reach there was absolutely nothing within my grasp that black night to give any comfort for dealing with my situation. It is amazing how slow time passes when the power goes out in the night. I became so desperate for any kind of light I opened the shades to my windows hoping for some starlight. And I found that cloud cover eliminated any chance of natural night light. There was no moon. Every other building within sight of my home also was black.
I paced the floor using my flashlight on occasion to get my bearings until the sun began pushing back the darkness at about 7 a.m. A rooster in my neighbor’s chicken pen announced the new day as the precious daylight spilled out over the yard and through my east window. Imagine then spending the next two days without any electric service. The telephone service was dead. There was no Internet, no television. I found an old battery operated radio, put batteries in and tuned in on local radio. It was only then that I finally tuned in on the threat of high winds and out-of-control fires raging all around our state.
We were luckier than many other residents of California that week. The wind was not as damaging where we live and there were no fires threatening the area so the power came back on in the third day. Many others remained in the dark for the week and may still be out of power as fires are still raging especially in Southern California. The fires were destroying homes. Because of the danger entire cities were evacuated as fires bore down on the roads leading from their neighborhoods.
PG&E is taking a lot of heat for what occurred. Defective power lines are being blamed for some of the fires. Schools and businesses were forced closed for lack of power. People living via medical equipment in their homes were left fighting to stay alive. We suspect that there were some deaths. People couldn’t buy gasoline or food from closed business places. They were unable to eat a warm meal or get to their jobs. It was total chaos everywhere.
It is frightening when a situation like this occurs that we become aware of how dependent we have become to the electric power serving our homes and businesses. To adapt I personally resorted to reading a book, listening to radio broadcasts and feeding on cold food. I took a walk and found my neighbors doing the same thing. Thus some old-fashioned neighborhood comradely began to evolve. I put that down as a good thing.
With battery operated devices and lighting, with candles and portable generators, it was interesting to notice how people were adapting to the loss of electric power. We Californians demonstrated how quick we can deal with stuff like this. There seems to be hope for our generation in spite of the horrors now generated by dramatic weather changes.
When I got back on line I found that a few fools posting on the social media were still saying weather change is a hoax. Our personal experience amid the California fires and blackouts convinced me how dead wrong they are.