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Original poster

I was in blackout and parents haven’t even texted me

1000 replies

Stopeatingcrispsanddips · 29/04/2025 23:05

I live in one of the countries where there was a power cut, it was frightening at the time and still feels a bit unsettling. My parents haven’t even WhatsApped us to see how we are (they still live in the U.K.)

Is this normal?

OP posts:
Thread gallery
10
TheLeadbetterLife · 30/04/2025 00:38

I can understand why OP's parents might not have felt the need to message though, because probably by the time they knew about it they would have known that—although it was a weird incident—it wasn't sinister.

We didn't really know that, from the middle of it, but from the outside it was probably more of a bagatelle. My UK friends who have messaged me haven't done so out of concern, but curiosity.

Original poster
Stopeatingcrispsanddips · 30/04/2025 00:38

crumblingschools · 30/04/2025 00:24

@TreeStove as soon as there is a power cut in our town messages appear on local Facebook page asking what streets are impacted and then someone will post what the situation is and estimated time of power being returned. Usually down to a cable being damaged. So a few moans but people know what is going on.

If there has been a massive storm people expect a power cut.

This happened with no warning and no means of explaining to country population what was going on. Most people would automatically think cyber attacks, and on that scale that is a scary thought

Yes and no one had internet for hours, most radio was down, no one had any idea what was going on

OP posts:
notadrift · 30/04/2025 00:38

crumblingschools · 30/04/2025 00:37

I hope it doesn’t happen here but it would be interesting to see how people would have reacted, especially some posters on here

Yes. Exactly.

TreeStove · 30/04/2025 00:39

JoeySchoolOfActing · 30/04/2025 00:31

Ok, I was rude.

But clearly correct.

Show quote history

So what is the difference between a power cut and a power blackout, to your mind?

Espressosummer · 30/04/2025 00:39

TheLeadbetterLife · 30/04/2025 00:28

Because there are wars elsewhere? How does that make any sense?

What happened was completely unprecedented and unexpected, and no-one knew what was going on. A cyber attack seemed the most likely explanation. We can't help how we felt about it at the time, and actually everyone did stay calm and there wasn't much drama at all.

In my house we hauled some water out of the well and drank some beers while listening to the radio. In a practical sense it was no big deal. We still felt a horrible sense of dread and menace until it was confirmed not to be a cyber attack though, and thinking about Ukraine made that worse.

Show quote history

Please stop with the "completely unprecedented" thing. I put a link in a previous post about this happening once a year on average across the world.

Here's another that gives more detail about various blackouts https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Listofmajorpoweroutages

This is the third time it's happened in Europe in around the last 20 years. It happened in Chile just a couple of months ago.

If you had no power and thus didn't know it was country-wide, I'm not sure why everyone was jumping to cyber attack. It may because of the fire at a substation near Heathrow recently but my first thought was actually, oh here we go again, another substation fire.

List of major power outages - Wikipedia

https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_major_power_outages

Aavalon57 · 30/04/2025 00:39

Some really ridiculous responses, OP. Have you heard from your parents yet? Maybe, like others, they thought it was ‘just a power cut’. I’ve always said this over reliance on just one source of power could really have serious consequences. And yes, I remember the power cuts of the 1970s. At least the telephone still worked because of…landlines!

Missanimosity · 30/04/2025 00:39

notadrift · 30/04/2025 00:37

There were no flights.

I heard about 160 were cancelled in Spain, not sure how many are on average but I think it would be more than this.

JifNtGif · 30/04/2025 00:40

It was a 12 HR or less, power cut.

notadrift · 30/04/2025 00:41

No flights and people are still stuck.

It is actually scary that nobody has has the correct informatiom.

Original poster
Stopeatingcrispsanddips · 30/04/2025 00:41

ReadingSoManyThreads · 30/04/2025 00:25

There were many people without power for up to 10 days in January following the storm in NI. Roofs severely damaged. Windows smashed. All in the middle of a Northern Irish winter. My elderly parents home was damaged. No drama from them, they've survived many a harsh storm, even though their home has been damaged multiple times. Growing up I remember many a power cut.

12 hours? Get a hold of yourself woman.

Oh ffs! Really no point trying to explain the huge difference to some people

OP posts:
GravyBoatWars · 30/04/2025 00:42

TheLeadbetterLife · 30/04/2025 00:38

I can understand why OP's parents might not have felt the need to message though, because probably by the time they knew about it they would have known that—although it was a weird incident—it wasn't sinister.

We didn't really know that, from the middle of it, but from the outside it was probably more of a bagatelle. My UK friends who have messaged me haven't done so out of concern, but curiosity.

I think this is the big issue. I can certainly understand why it was so alarming from OP's perspective, but also why it was absolutely not alarming from the family's perspective. The family clearly didn't intuit how OP would feel and vice versa.

notadrift · 30/04/2025 00:42

JifNtGif · 30/04/2025 00:40

It was a 12 HR or less, power cut.

No. Some people still have no water.

JoeySchoolOfActing · 30/04/2025 00:42

TreeStove · 30/04/2025 00:39

So what is the difference between a power cut and a power blackout, to your mind?

Show quote history

Nothing.

They are the same.

Whoonearthareyou · 30/04/2025 00:42

I think I would contact my parents in this case to let them know I was OK.

Cafenoisette · 30/04/2025 00:43

We had powercut here due to the storm longer than that. Can't understand all the drama.

DreamTheMoors · 30/04/2025 00:44

If this had happened to these rude people, they’d STILL be hiding under their beds, sobbing in a little ball of fear, crying out for mummy in between jagged breaths and spitting out dust bunnies.
Don’t let the bad guys get you down, @Stopeatingcrispsanddips - they’re just pissed off that nothing dramatic has happened to them. They looove to whine.
❤️

notadrift · 30/04/2025 00:45

DDs school and the shops are open again tomorrow. And bank.

GravyBoatWars · 30/04/2025 00:45

GravyBoatWars · 30/04/2025 00:15

How much contact do you have with your parents and other family on a regular basis? Is this part of a pattern of them not reaching out in ways you do for them?

@Stopeatingcrispsanddips I don't think I've seen any answer to this and I know I'm not the only one who's asked. How close are you to your parents normally? Is it unusual for them not to check in frequently? Or is this part of a pattern in the relationship that's perhaps heightened your feelings?

notadrift · 30/04/2025 00:47

Only a few people died in car crashes (near me)
One old lady in a lift for 10 hours.

It was nothing.

Missanimosity · 30/04/2025 00:48

notadrift · 30/04/2025 00:41

No flights and people are still stuck.

It is actually scary that nobody has has the correct informatiom.

Why is it scary though? What scares you about me now having the corect information? In what scary way my lack of information affects you? Repectfully asked

JifNtGif · 30/04/2025 00:48

@Stopeatingcrispsanddips are you prone to catastrophising in other aspects of your life and do you share this with parents ?

notadrift · 30/04/2025 00:49

Because you do not understand AT ALL.

crumblingschools · 30/04/2025 00:49

I’m assuming the majority of non-European power cuts aren’t reported on our news. 58 million people were impacted by the ‘power cut’. Just shows what impact could be of a cyber attack

Espressosummer · 30/04/2025 00:50

notadrift · 30/04/2025 00:41

No flights and people are still stuck.

It is actually scary that nobody has has the correct informatiom.

That's not what is being reported.
The BBC and Metro are saying 45 cancellations in Spain whereas other sources are saying 400. But that is still less than 10 per cent of the 6,000 scheduled in and out of Spain.

JoeySchoolOfActing · 30/04/2025 00:50

notadrift · 30/04/2025 00:47

Only a few people died in car crashes (near me)
One old lady in a lift for 10 hours.

It was nothing.

Gobsmacked by the callousness.

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