The title is a play on an old joke – a very old joke.
“Where was Moses when the lights went out? Down in the cellar eating sauerkraut.”
When the lights went out across eastern North America 20 years ago (Aug. 14, 2003), most of us remember what we were doing – not much, since there was no television and nothing was open. There was no need to keep kids home from school – it was summer.
In fact, it was very much summer – uncomfortably hot and humid. No air conditioning.
We were certainly not eating sauerkraut – we were enjoying barbecued steak under a fabulous array of stars, and sharing theories on what caused the blackout with the neighbours. This was not long after 9/11, and in light of that, terrorism was the first thought on a lot of minds.
In this part of the country, we were better off than folks in cities, where people on upper stories of apartment buildings were trapped with no elevators – not that they had any great desire to leave their homes since the only thing moving on the streets was steam coming out of drivers’ ears. No traffic lights but lots of cars equals gridlock. There was also the fear – largely unrealized – of widespread looting and violence.
Around here, it was mostly a matter of carrying the solar garden lights around inside the house to find the bathroom.
Fortunately, the power outage did not last long. However, it did draw attention to how dependent we are on electricity, not just in the city. Modern agriculture includes automated feed and milking systems, pumps, electric fences and a million and one other innovations that created a sudden run on backup generators in the days following the blackout.
The question arises, as we look back 20 years, could it happen again?
Most of us know the answer. It might be gremlins in the grid, as in 2003, or something much more deliberate. Ask the people of Ukraine about that.
While we would like to think the 2023 electrical grid is more stable than it was when the blackout hit, there is also a much higher demand on it – electric cars included.
Faster than we could say, “Sump pumps need electricity,” we could easily find ourselves in a real mess. And should a widescale power failure hit during the winter, we would find ourselves in a life-threatening emergency, instead of just dangling our feet in the kiddie pool while sniveling over warmish beer and no AC.
Winter is no fun in our climate, even with electricity.
In days gone by, and with modern folk who choose to live “off the grid,” the key to surviving winter was, and is, preparation.
The time to worry about putting gas in the car is while gas pumps are working. Running on fumes is not the best plan when even a few dollars’ worth of fuel could get you and the kids somewhere with heat.
As for the rest of it – most of us know what we should have in an emergency kit – some cash, bottled water, flashlights with batteries, first aid kit, copies of important papers and prescriptions, and a deck of cards to keep the kids from going nuts when the computer stops working. And most of us know when to put together the kit – before we need it. No one knows when the need will hit.
We truly hope the answer is, never. And if there is a repeat of 2003, we truly hope it will be on a balmy summer night when there are stars everywhere, friendly neighbours to chat with, and good food on the barbecue. And we truly hope it will be short-lived, just long enough to help the kids locate the Big Dipper, and the North Star that guided ancient mariners.
Most of us realize how lucky we were in 2003, and how fortunate we are today, to be in a country with ample and dependable electricity, a stable political and economic system, and best of all, peace. The rest of the world should be so blessed!
