Did the power outage change the way you think as a consumer?
Customers line up at the gas station on 1202 South Jefferson Street where cashier Ram Lamichhane tries to keep up with the demand in the afternoon. The store sold 20-30 bags of ice in about 15 minutes. ERICA YOON | The Roanoke Times
Now that we’ve all had some time to (hopefully) recover from and reflect on last week’s power outage, I’m curious whether the event has made you change or think about your habits as a consumer.
For instance, I found myself wishing I had a car phone charger, but being thankful that I didn’t let my gas tank hit empty before filling up again because many gas stations were closed. My husband was kicking himself for letting a prescription just about run out before picking up more medicine because our pharmacy was without power.
I’m sure for some residents in Vinton, who were without water after the power outage, stocking up on extra bottled water has become a priority.
I also heard that batteries were in short supply at several stores, as were ice and generators.
Did the power outage change the way you think as a consumer? What items did you not have around that sent you scrambling to the store? Have you since stocked up on anything to be more prepared for another weather event?
July 12, 2012 - 11:43 AM
I realized how reliant I was on last-minute availability, such as waiting until I’m almost out of gas (we were in Blacksburg at the time of the storm, but live in Roanoke and luckily found a gas station with power). We also tend to wait until we’re almost out of diapers/formula before picking up more, but these are essential baby items and if the open grocery stores had been out of them, we’d have been in dire straights.
In some ways pre-planning backfired, such as cutting up vegetables ahead of time and freezing them, or making baby food ahead of time and refrigerating/freezing it. We not only lost power, but also access to our house for awhile because of downed powerlines. We couldn’t access anything in the fridge/freezer until after it was too late to save anything.
We got lucky in that we only lost power for about 13 hours…but we were prepared for much longer. We have a reasonable stockpile of batteries, charcoal, matches, lighters, candles, lamp oil, firewood, and other camping/outdoor supplies to endure a week or longer of living without power…though generally it’s because we’re camping in the woods, not out of our home!
Our only primary concern was keeping the food from spoiling, as was a lot of people’s concern. We have a chest freezer and moved every frozen item to it, and were going to keep it on ice and dry ice as long as possible…though a friend with power said we could haul it to his place too. The fridge goods we moved to a 3-day cooler with ice, and were going to be eating from that to minimize losses. We try to keep a lot of non-perishable food on hand, and water, just in case it’s needed too, and we had plenty of gas in both cars. We also have car chargers (thankfully our old Blackberries and new Androids use the same chargers, so we have 6 total now).
We did realize though, in the process of moving food around, that we have an awful lot of frozen food that perhaps we should cut back on. We buy a lot of meat when it is on sale and freeze it, and keep a decent supply of frozen vegetables too, and none of that is really cheap. Losing it would have been a pretty impactful hit. So, we’re working to eat through a lot of it so we don’ have quite as much money frozen in food supplies, should they go bad, but enough to keep us stocked for a solid 5-7 days should we not have the means to get more due to a power failure or extreme weather event.
@Other John: You’ve always struck me as the kind of person who would be prepared for event such as this. I am glad you were able to save your food. We were extremely fortunate and only lost power for 18 hours, and we invited friends staying with us to bring their food over, but they still had to toss much of what we couldn’t fit in our fridge/freezer.
It’s also made me think about how much food we should keep on hand, especially in the freezer. My husband is like a child in a candy shop when he hits the meat department at the grocery store, so we would have lost a lot, too, had we not been so lucky.
After four and a half days without power we learned a lot.
We were lucky enough to borrow a generator and between that and coolers saved most of our food. What food we did throw out had been pushed to the back of the refrigerator and freezer and been forgotten. We will be paying closer attention to what we actually have in both from here on out.
We are on a well so were without water. We had bottled water for drinking but nothing to wash hands, brush teeth, flush toilets with etc. All the local stores had sold out of water. However, the local fire department was happy to offer us water and told us to come back to fill up whenever needed. I can not express our appreciation for them. Lesson learned though.
I had always wondered if finishing our basement was a good choice money wise. Well I got my answer. 15 to 20 degrees cooler, nice and clean. We drug a mattress down the stairs and set up camp. Money well spent!
A few smaller things we learned…. we need better flashlights, and some unscented candles! And I am so glad that we had car phone chargers. My phone is how we stayed up to date on the news and what was happening. And of course for my lighted kindle cover. No more reading with a flashlight!
So overall I am thankful for this “event”. We learned a lot and will hopefully not forget all that we learned anytime soon.
I was out of town for all of it, but had a husband at home. It just made me realize when he was calling me to tell me what happened how different we are. He was asking where everything was and if we had certain items. He was asking where all the extra batteries, flashlights, crank powered flashlights and cell phone charges were and the only thing i did not have was bottled water. I have a freezer and know from a few test runs on it how long food will last before it is unsafe to use when with out power.
I also am a person of charcoal and if necessary he could have made an attempt at grilling. I have lived in areas of frequent hurricanes and this is second nature to keep all this on hand as well as all insurance and important papers safe and sound in case something happens. I even haven an emeragancy USB with insurance and other important information stored on it, with back up copies to family in other states so even if we are not able to get into the home due to a disaster I have all the contact information instead of scrambling.
friends always think that I am prepering for the worst ever but the reality of it is that we never know what can happen and after our recent “upgrade” with AEP and the substation move, we have had more power outages than with the old lines so its become habit. I watch for hand powered crank items like flashlights, radios and and the like which is how I came about finding a hand crank flashlight with cell phone adapter to charge cell phones are well and with a miriad of other adapters to fit other electronics.
Amanda, I got that way in much the same way as vickie c…living in a hurricane zone. Living there, I got accustomed to keeping emergency readiness kits available for riding out a storm, or for evacuating. Growing up military helped too, as my wife also did. Between the two of us, we know how to be ready for almost anything, and how to live for several days with no power or running water (provided we have a source of potable water we can access). We also keep critical information on a secured flash drive and a detailed log of medical information in a folder within our 18-gallon first-aid kit (yes, it really is that big), you never know when that might come in handy.
we need better flashlights, and some unscented candles!
Haha yes to unscented candles! At 85 degrees inside, our house smelled overpoweringly like a candle factory when we lit candles in the living room and kitchen. I am stocking up on unscented as well.
I was impressed by all the help people offered one another, prepared or not it’s nice to know we are not alone. The Roanoke valley is a great place to live.
I will be ready for the next AEP event. Now the proud owner of a new generator, portable air conditioner and soon to be added gas logs. Threw out over $400 worth of food. That will not happen again. Have a stockpile of drinking water, 2 rain barrels of water for commode flushing if necessary. Not a question of will an outtage happen again, but rather when…………..
The shame of it all is that after people went with out power now AEP company is going to make us pay for it. I wonder how much bonus the top executives of AEP will get this year.
Of course AEP is going to raise rates. Look at how much extra man-power and overtime they had to pay while the power was out. Do you honestly think that they enjoyed spending countless hours working on power lines in the middle of 100 degree weather? AEP can not control an act of God.
tass, you might want to stock up on battery-powered LED lanterns instead. And DJ, be extra careful with that generator. Losing power is nothing compared to losing your home permanently due to a fire caused by candles or a gasoline-powered generator, not to mention losing your life if fumes from that generator build up inside your home. Opening doors and windows is not always enough, and even running a generator outside can be dangerous if it’s right in front of an open window or door.
“AEP can not control an act of God.” No, but they should be responsible for their p*** poor response to the storm. Two hours after power is out in 2 states to hold a meeting? Meeting result is to request a pathetic 500 extra workers? The next week, it’s up over 2000 workers – Oops. And what does the AEP CEO think about their performance?
RT: If this happened again, or if you had another shot at it, would you do anything differently?
AEP: “No. I think we’re very disciplined in our review of what we do well and what we don’t. . . .
He was probably happy with their performance b/c they resumed electricity to his house in Charleston on the *first* Monday following the storm.
It is only a matter of time before AEP gets money when you buy a generator, crank/battery operated flashlights or anything else that runs on batteries due to loss of revenue for using those instead of something that plugs into the wall. (That ends my rant – I will return back to local store talk
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My home, in Riner, only lost phone service – I was impressed! We *always* lose power!! However, for the storm aftermath, I was at my boyfriend’s home in Roanoke. He lost power until Wednesday. We learned several things: the basement is much cooler (as someone already said of theirs) and we could sleep just fine; whenever the power goes out, empty the ice maker in the freezer or you’ll wake up to a puddle when it all melts!; we didn’t have a food stock of frozen items and were stuck spending money at eateries for all meals (which, by the way, were always packed); we were lucky that his parents (about a mile away) had power, so we packed up all the fridge items and took them there; we *almost* invested in a generator; good flashlights are a must; wine by candlelight isn’t as romantic as it sounds; car chargers are amazing and good neighbors are priceless.
7-3-2012
We now have power. I am ashamed to say I have an addiction to electricity. I think I will start a 12 step program for others and me.
So let me share information from the guy who thought he was totally prepared for any disaster. God what was I thinking? I could write a book and I cannot think about what was going on for people after Katrina on the gulf. I will share my new wisdom OJT.
1. Don’t think it can’t happen to you and you are not prepared no matter what you think.
2. Getting caught out of town in a disaster totally cuts you off from all preparation. You are in trouble.
3. Never ever leave home without being armed and a getaway bag. AMMO!
4. No electricity means no fuel unless you can pour it.
5. $2.99 gas can become $5.00 dollar fuel in a heartbeat. Coleman fuel becomes $15 for a can.
6. You better have a battery powered radio that gets AM.
7. If you have a pump septic system, do not take a dump or fill the pump tank with anything unnecessary.
8. It does not matter if you have a flash light if you cannot find it in the dark. Do not think your disaster supplies are easy to find with no light. Once again you are in trouble.
9. When there is no power you cannot use your ATM card. = no food, fuel, or anything without cash. Without cash….yes you are in trouble.
10. No power in the winter is better than no power in the summer. In the winter keeping warm is more fun.
11. Expect that if there is no power there is no cable even if you have a generator.
12. Radio stations can not transmit w/o power. DUHHHHHHHHHHHHHH now I know.
13. When the do-do hits the fan you can trade you significant other for beer and ice as in 24 hours all that is gone. Do not plan on finding any fuel left either.
14. All that supply of food you froze is gone. Learn to can or dry in a moment’s notice. Feed your friends and neighbors.
15. Hand guns have a lot of regulations and laws shot guns do not. You can carry a shot gun no problem, even in NY and Boston.
16. If you have a generator, learn how to store it. Learn about storing fuel.
17. Do you have hurricane lamps and lamp oil? Coleman fuel?
18. Extra plugs, starting fluid, and oil for generators.
19. Do you have extra mantels for your lanterns?
20. Chain saw, “never leave home without it”. Include chain oil, fuel oil, file, and an extra chain. Have this at hand at home. You are close to god with a chain saw and never loan it to anyone ever.
21. Add instant coffee to your supplies.
22. First Aid!
23. How can you cook? Freezer failed feed the neighbors.
24. Elderly neighbors can die from heat. We had one die last night.
25. Dogs…plan ahead. Yes you can eat them, but planning for them is a good thing.
26. The nasty neighbor down the street will be a good friend when you have the means to help him.
27. I now own 2 propane tanks for the gas grill.
28. Hooking a generator to a microwave is a gift. I learned to make scrambled eggs for 12 or 14 people in the microwave. Toast on the grill. Link sausage is easier on the grill than patties.
29. You can get candles cheep at Goodwill.
30. Fill bath tubs with water. Keep a pot of hot water going all the time.
31. I bought several inexpensive Thermoses at yard sales and goodwill. All were good metal ones.
32. Have something to haul water in if you have to go get it.
33. You can never have too big a cooler in this situation. I suggest having at least one family size and a few smaller.
SOME ONE PLEASE LET ME KNOW WHAT COLEMAN FUEL IS.
Re: #12… Radio stations have GENERATORS!
Well, not all of them Spiny. All of the Cumulus stations with studios near my house were down when our grid was off. They had no means to transmit to their towers for broadcast.