Blackout!

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H ow much thought do you give to the modern-day miracle of electricity? None I bet as you flippantly flip those light switches on and off without a second thought. But what about when you flick that switch and — horrors! — nothing happens?! Um hello — why is it still dark?! Yup blackouts are nasty bothersome things. No light. No heat or AC. No clean laundry. No hot food. No cell phones (once the batteries die that is). Most blackouts last just a few hours but why do they occur? And what happens when they last way longer?

Down and Out

Blackouts (a.k.a. power outages) aren’t caused by someone snipping wires (usually!). In fact about 70% of US power outages have natural causes things like falling trees and storms. Electricity companies work hard to keep trees from causing blackouts — cutting down trees growing too close to power lines. Obviously though they can’t get it right all the time and trees still sometimes cause damage.

The weather is something no one not even electricity companies can control. If you’ve ever had to prepare for a big storm your survival kit probably included a flashlight along with those piles of tuna and crackers. That’s because severe weather often causes blackouts. Strong winds can pull down cables and even utility poles and objects sucked up by the wind can smash into power lines.

Natural disasters like hurricanes floods earthquakes and tsunamis often cause so much damage that millions of people are left without power for days. But it’s not just those big bad storms that make problems. Another menace is dust! Who’da thunk?! That’s not to say you have to worry if you don’t dust on a regular basis. Areas exposed to lots of dust or sandstorms need to make sure their circuit boxes (the box with all the fuses) are protected and closed tight.