Massive Power Outage

[General Woundwort]

Same down here in Babylon-on-the-Potomac, Narrew. The local news radio station was broadcasting the national news' every-10-minute update on the power outage (yep, it's still out...) and every half hour it was "how the outage is affecting DC" (unless you wanted to travel to the blacked-out areas by plane or train, not at all).

Makes you wonder, though, at the fragility of this technological support net we've built for ourselves...

[Gryphin]

Which news channle?
You can do what I do:
Read this forum. If it is big. If it is important. It will get posted here.

Ok, I admit I also scan the headlines of the newspapers and listen to the TV in Duncan Donuts / Baskin Robins, (a Donut shop and icream vendor with a TV in most outlets.)

[Thermodyne]

Looks like the lightning strike was ***-covering, there is news about a transmission failure in Canada starting to see the light of day. The sudden voltage drop causes a cascading disconnect-shutdown event that was designed to protect the generators from burnout like occurred in the 60’s. But it also requires a manual reset that requires trained man power on site. These men have been, for the most part, victims of deregulation and profit maximizing. There is a message in all of this. The system put in place decades ago to protect the generating plants from suffering burnouts during a sudden voltage drop are no longer usable. Deregulation of the power industry has allowed them to lay off the people needed to service this system in an event like this. They simply do not have the manpower to go out and reconfigure the switches. Storm damage during the Last few years has uncovered the shortcomings of pooled-contract line crews, perhaps now the government will decide that the power industry is not capable of policing itself, and guaranteeing an up-to-date, reliable power system.

[Baron Munchausen]

There are multiple explanations surfacing now, which is no surprise. Everyone will try to blame everyone else until the proof can be found to nail down the cause.

Narrew:

You're pretty funny too, thinking that any of the news channels are any more or less unreliable than any of the others. But to trademark the phrase 'Fair & Balanced' is a whole new level of sleaziness.

[ August 15, 2003, 15:15: Message edited by: Baron Munchausen ]

[TerranC]

geez, why must we always bring politics into discussions?

[Loser]

Originally posted by TerranC:
geez, why must we always bring politics into discussions?

They were already there, you smell them buggers? They're hiding, but they're in there.

[Captain Kwok]

Hurray!

Back up and running! Fortunately live across the street from an ambulance station, so my power grid should be on despite rolling blackouts!