The article below describes the ineffectual response of Connecticut utility companies to power outages caused by normal Earth-based weather such as ice & snow storms, or tropical storms & hurricanes -- for the past 25+ years ! Recent outages lasted from 1 - 2 weeks.
Hence, imagine these utility companies' pathetic response to a solar EMP event, where power outages could last from months to years !
In both cases, one of the main enemies is the same -- trees ! During a major solar flare cum coronal mass ejection (CME) event, all loooooong conductors such as power lines will spark. Tremendously. If an event occurs in summertime or a dry season, hundreds of forest fires will start immediately -- and simultaneously. Nationwide, possibly thousands will start.
Thus, alllll utility companies in the United States should have very very aggressive tree trimming / cutting programs year-round to prepare for EMP events.
And to prepare for the more normal storms of Mother Nature -- blizzards, ice storms, hurricanes, tornadoes, etc.
And now, to the news that should not be "news" -- again:
"Connecticut storm highlights decades of repeat issues"
"Recent Conn. snow storm highlights decades of repeat problems with utility storm response"
12 Nov 2011
"HARTFORD, Conn. (AP) -- A storm hits Connecticut and causes hundreds of thousands to lose power. Utility companies take a week or longer to restore it. Public outrage leads to state investigations. Officials order service improvements.
"It's a cycle that repeats itself in the Land of Steady Habits. The problems that arose after the freak October snowstorm and Tropical Storm Irene in August are similar to ones that cropped up after other major storms dating to Hurricane Gloria in 1985, an Associated Press review of state regulatory reports shows.
"Gov. Dannel P. Malloy, legislators and other state officials say it's time to finally fix long-standing problems such as utilities not being quick enough in bringing in out-of-state crews, inadequate tree trimming and poor communication with government officials after storms. They also want to hold utilities more responsible for performance troubles, possibly by issuing fines.
...
"The Oct. 29-30 storm downed scores of trees and utility wires, leaving 3 million homes and businesses in the Northeast without power. Hardest hit was Connecticut, where a state record of 850,000 outages was set only two months after Tropical Storm Irene caused a then-record 830,000 power failures."
...
Read the full article here:
http://finance.yahoo.com/news/conn-storm-highlights-decades-repeat-171137833.html
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Very electro-magnanimously yours,
David A. Palella
Founder
EMP DEFENSE COUNCIL(sm)
[ Electro-Magnetic Pulse Defense Council(sm) ]
San Diego, California
cell: 619-787-5767
email: dpalella@gmail.com
http://EMP411.blogspot.com
EMP Defense Council -- Preparing for Electro-Magnetic Pulse
http://www.linkedin.com/e/vgh/3702799/
(1) Electro-Magnetic Pulse (EMP) Defense Council(C) Founded in San Diego, California on Pearl Harbor Day
http://www2.marketwire.com/mw/release_html_b1?release_id=695425
(2) The EMP Defense Council(C) Announces the Electro-Magnetic Pulse (EMP) Priority Hardening List Ranked by Industry Vulnerability, and Proposes a Markets-Based Approach to Addressing Solar or Nuclear EMP Events
http://www2.marketwire.com/mw/release_html_b1?release_id=708639
(3) EMP Defense Council(SM) Highlights Calculable Risks of Solar Cycle Peak in 2013
http://www2.marketwire.com/mw/release_html_b1?release_id=784096
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