Power Outage Hits WH-Capitol-DC

Posted by: Dagny

Power Outage Hits WH-Capitol-DC - 04/07/15 07:14 PM

The Washington D.C. region and the federal government are just now (Tuesday afternoon) coming out of a geographically large-scale power outage/surge that hopefully will provide some lessons to individuals and institutions. It no doubt brought 9/11 back in the minds of a lot of locals, if only for a few minutes.

Instructive that a small-scale incident in a county most DC residents don't hear about much was the instigator. The first-responders to the triggering event was a volunteer rescue squad in Charles County, Maryland (which until today I could not have confidently stated the location of).

Upon hearing on the radio about "massive area outages" I immediately plugged in my phone and laptop to charge. This spurs me to re-charge my backup portable chargers, too. Am away from my house and hoping my power stayed on (refrigerator) but am otherwise not inconvenienced as I am away from the city until tomorrow.

http://www.cnn.com/2015/04/07/politics/power-outage-washington-dc/

Widespread power outages sweep Washington, D.C.
By Jeremy Diamond, CNN
Updated 2:54 PM ET, Tue April 7, 2015



http://www.washingtonpost.com/local/scat...ff6a_story.html

"A power surge temporarily knocked out power to the White House, State Department and wide swaths of the nation’s capital and its Maryland suburbs early Tuesday afternoon."


I received this message via the DC Alert messaging system (e-mail + text). "Pepco reports there are several power outages occuring concurrently in the DC Area. At this time the estimated time of restoration has not been determined. "


Was just the other day having a discussion with friends about why I make a point of having a cash stash -- while at home and while away -- and a full tank of gas.

"What if the power goes out?" I asked them. "We'll call you," they replied.

Hmmmm....




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Posted by: chaosmagnet

Re: Power Outage Hits WH-Capitol-DC - 04/07/15 08:11 PM

"I know where I'm going in a crisis -- your house!"

Thanks for the reminder to get periodic maintenance done on my backup generator.
Posted by: bws48

Re: Power Outage Hits WH-Capitol-DC - 04/07/15 10:01 PM

This seems to be a localized issue, but still a problem if you are affected. At he moment, it appears to be the fault of a single power line failure, see:
http://liveblogwp.wtop.com/Event/Power_outages

IMO, another example of why to carry a flashlight with you at all times. . . and the other precautions Dagny mentions. . .
Posted by: LesSnyder

Re: Power Outage Hits WH-Capitol-DC - 04/07/15 10:29 PM

speaking of flashlights... just added a single AA Fenix E12 to the stable, along with a 2014 single AAA Fenix E05... very happy with the performance of both.... both run on Eneloops ... pic of size difference... the three level E05 is on the key ring with older E05 above

Posted by: Dagny

Re: Power Outage Hits WH-Capitol-DC - 04/07/15 11:39 PM


Fenix flashlights are among the many things ETS peops have hooked me on. Great value.

Smartphones have been a boon to preparedness in regard to the flashlight functions that are now standard. Will run down your phone battery but at least most people now have a flashlight in the form of their phone.

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Posted by: Russ

Re: Power Outage Hits WH-Capitol-DC - 04/08/15 02:27 AM

I prefer to keep my cellphone battery for making calls. I EDC either a Fenix E01 or an E12. The E12 is a very good light which is useful in a variety of situations. For me the E01 is more an emergency light the primary purpose being to get to a bigger light. The E01 is in a CountyComm Zipper Key Pouch -- very handy for carrying small EDC items. I prefer a small pouch to carrying stuff on my keyring.
Posted by: LesSnyder

Re: Power Outage Hits WH-Capitol-DC - 04/08/15 02:54 AM

the new edition of the E05 is a quantum leap up from the E01
Posted by: Phaedrus

Re: Power Outage Hits WH-Capitol-DC - 04/08/15 04:09 AM

Originally Posted By: LesSnyder
the new edition of the E05 is a quantum leap up from the E01


Thanks, I'll have to check that one out.
Posted by: Russ

Re: Power Outage Hits WH-Capitol-DC - 04/08/15 04:16 AM

The E01 is single mode, On/Off, very simple. The new E05 is an E12 with a smaller battery, I prefer the E12. YMMV
Posted by: Dagny

Re: Power Outage Hits WH-Capitol-DC - 04/08/15 12:12 PM


More information in today's Washington Post article:

http://www.washingtonpost.com/local/scat...=pm_local_pop_b

"The outage immediately caught the attention of national security officials, who have heightened their scrutiny of vulnerabilities of the U.S. electricity grid after recent reports that nations such as China and Iran have infiltrated U.S. power company networks."

"...It disconnected the lines, power plants and generating units when it sensed a problem,” said Ray E. Dotter, a spokesman for PJM Interconnection, which coordinates the flow of electricity in 13 states and the District. Dotter said the fluctuation in the voltage probably left some in the D.C. area experiencing a power loss and others a power surge. “Those are protective measures. . . . It is easier to reset a system than replace.”