Power outage in Neuruppin: Disaster protection is ready!

Power outage in Neuruppin: Disaster protection is ready!

Neuruppin has been in the dark for several hours. Severe damage to the regional substation hit the town in the Ostprignitz-Ruppin district and left all users without power. Shops remain closed, heaters are not working, and cell phone and internet services are completely down. “It’s really critical, people can’t even make emergency calls,” reports Mayor Nico Ruhle. Cell phones are on their last legs, and that's more than tricky. The mayor suggests making it easier for citizens to access emergency care.

In order to create a central contact point in this emergency situation, the city has set up a disaster control contact point in the sports hall of the Karl-Friedrich-Schinkel-Gymnasium. Here, those affected receive first aid, access to drinking water and cell phone charging stations connected to the power grid. The rush is great and the offers of help come at exactly the right time. Heaters for warm food and drinks are also available to prevent cold shocks. In addition, digital radio and satellite telephones were made available to ensure a communication channel that currently hardly exists in any other way.

Ready for an emergency

The preparations for such a crisis situation are no coincidence. “The establishment of our disaster prevention lighthouses is a general precautionary measure,” emphasizes Ruhle. A total of 18 disaster protection lighthouses have been set up in the district, which were financed by the state of Brandenburg with over 2.3 million euros. Neuruppin and Wittstock each have three contact points, while other communities only have to make do with one or two. The costs for equipping the Neuruppin locations alone amounted to 390,000 euros, but the municipalities will be responsible for ensuring maintenance in the future.

The lighthouses and contact points will soon be presented to the population, certainly on the nationwide warning day on September 11th. Such contact points are important because such power outages are not only observed in Neuruppin. According to stromausfall.org, there have been repeated reported outages in recent years - be it in the form of several shorter interruptions or long-lasting problems.

The dangers of a long-term failure

At first glance, the consequences of a widespread power outage are difficult to imagine. The studies by the Office for Technology Assessment at the German Bundestag warn that the areas of communication, healthcare and food supply in particular could be massively affected. The Federal Office for Civil Protection and Disaster Relief (BBK) shows that the dependence of critical infrastructures on electricity supply increases with every year. Who would have thought a few years ago that so much would depend on electricity?

The scenario of a widespread, long-lasting power outage is still unlikely, but it cannot be ruled out. It is all the more important that every citizen takes appropriate precautions and is informed about what to do in an emergency. The current situation in Neuruppin makes it clear: It is never a bad idea to be prepared for an emergency and to do everything you can to protect yourself and those around you. This situation shows that the right supply of information is worth its weight in gold.