What's in your Lights Out box?

[bellinisurge]

Following on from the discussion on here about whether or not candles are a good idea in a power cut - I think they are a risk if they are your only light source, I've decided to put a Lights Out box together. My assumption is that lights and heat go out in a power cut.

I'm assuming that I can find stuff in the house once I've got the lighting sorted so I don't need to pack my box with food or blankets.

I'm assuming a short lived rolling blackout that we are warned about in advance as well as an unplanned one.

I'm factoring in an unlikely but not impossible scenario of mobile towers going down so no mobile phones but, in this scenario, I'm magically thinking landlines might still be up.

1. Torches including head torches and milk bottle lanterns.
2. List of where useful stuff is - like hurricane lamps, garden solar lights, camping stove &windbreaker, whistle kettle, big umbrella if cooking outside, location of precooked food and hot water in flasks if we have advanced warning
3. Battery pack and cables for phones
4. Candles (yes, I will use them) including tea lights
5. Matches
6. Lighters
7. Radios (wind-up/solar charged one + battery powered one)
8. First aid kit
9. AAA and AA batteries

10. Duck tape because I'm a prepper (probably a comfort thing) 11. Hooks for the solar powered fairy lights to set up indoors (currently in garden getting the sun) 12. Hot water bottles (if not already in use) 13. Lifestraw (see 10 ) 14. Old fashioned rotary dial landline phone - also got one for my in-laws so we can talk to each other.

If you are not a prepper, I would suggest you just get your torches together with batteries and maybe a phone charger and cable. Have a torch outside the box in a place everyone knows about.

I've put some kids fluorescent stars on the box so it will show up easier with a torch when anyone goes looking for it.

I've not even thought about it but they will be early hours of morning when most of us are in bed. So just a torch.

So if we go to level one you would be affected 15.30-18.30 on a Thursday and 6.30-9.30 plus 21.30 -midnight on Friday and midnight - 0.30 on Saturday

That’s zone R

No zones have only overnight blackouts

Yeah sorry, I didn't mean 'at' as in right now, I meant as we go through winter!

But yeah, hopefully L1 at most!

thanks for the info!!

If we go past level 3 it gets much more difficult

All very well and good if you are the sort of person who prepares for every emergency, like the folks who empty the supermarket shelves when there is a whisper of something brewing which only happens when you go and empty the shelves.
Threads like this can also make people panic which was my original point

Could you post a link to this info please as the text isn't clear on your screenshot. Thanks!

assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/995049/esec-guidance.pdf

It’s in the preppers topic…

And quite honestly if people panicked a bit and stopped using as much energy now then it would reduce the chances of us getting to that stage (although we have very limited back up storage in the Uk)

@Pugalicious

People who PREP aren't the ones who create supermarket shortages. PREPPERS PREP well in advance, getting pasta/tins & batteries/candles well in advance, a bit at a time, NOT clearing shelves when the problem has already begun!

If people panic at the thought of being organised in advance, they probably should stay away from the preppers topic.

Well so far its calmed down my panic with sensible suggestions of how to keep life saving medical equipment operating

Must be nice not to have to prepare for these things.

I rely on electricity for my freelance business (my only source of income). Using the grid given here, one of the time slots for my letter will span my busiest time of the week.

For the people ridiculing those worrying about this, if it was just a case of not cooking and not having the lights on or power for entertainment for three hours that would not be an issue and I'm sure we're all capable of making the best of it. For some people though the concerns run beyond a bit of inconvenience.

Found the link @Era
www.gov.uk/government/publications/electricity-supply-emergency-code

Many thanks for the information.

Like de ja vu man

Apologies. I can't see where you see what letter your area is.

Powercut105.com

put in your postcode to find out your network operator and scroll down

Just done the rounds at work keeping my colleagues upto date with the info. Having checked areas by postcode one of my colleagues is in zone F. This doesn't appear on the chart! I wonder what that's all about?

Might be next to a priority service like a large hospital?

Hmm no zone I or zone O either. I know zone v is reserved for priority services (no blackout so not on the rota)

I was asking the kids to dig out their torches last week. We must get organised pronto.

DS has spent loads of nights with army cadets and D of E this year so he can cook tea in the garden.

Are these for England only? I can't see any Info for N Ireland.

I've not got much.

But I've got some torches.
One rechargeable one. And a couple that need batteries.

Lots of batteries.

Our cooker is gas.

I've just checked if it works if the plug is switched off, it does - just need to use matches/ lighter - which we have in the house.

Might buy some more batteries and another pack of matches.

But I've got light. Heat. And a way to cook.

Also my family who live locally have different electric codes. So if its really bad- depending on how the blackouts are arranged I could go to visit them for a bit with the kids.

Also I've bought some blanket hoodies type clothes for the kids to keep them warm.