One Utah

This morning’s Trib has a disturbing article -

Life back to normal in S. Utah after ‘mass panic’ during blackout

The article recounts some events that took place in St. George during a recent power outage - including mass panic.  (There’s also a great typo - using dosing instead of dozing which makes for a very funny read.)  It makes me wonder what the hell is going on in St George that a power outage could cause mass panic.  But there’s a few other tidbits.

 ”Everything’s back to normal” St. George police Sgt. Craig Harding said.

Power was restored about 8:30 p.m. to most major areas in Washington County after four hours of “mass panic” caused by a wildfire near Dammeron Valley that knocked out a electricity transmission line, Harding said. 

. . .  Dispatcher Erin Sullivan said the lights went out in her Hurricane home about 4:30 p.m. as she was dosing off for an afternoon nap. She was called into work for a 13-hour shift filled with frantic calls, she said.

Few of those calls were serious, Sullivan said. A handful of people were transported by ambulance after complaining of heat or other medical problems.

I realize I’m an old fashioned boy, but I’m not sure why a power outage would cause 13 hours of frantic 911 calls.   The power is out - what is the crisis?  You call the power company, you find out what it is, you go about your business (in my house that means sitting on the porch drinking wine).  This passage really caught my attention:

Harding said his wife reported temperatures inside the couple’s home rose nearly 30 degrees to 98 degrees in the four powerless hours. The couple decided to buy a portable air-conditioning unit to plug into a generator for future outages, he said. 

In Southern Utah, these people keep their house at 68 degrees.  I cannot even begin to imagine what they pay for their power bills.  Not to mention the massive carbon footprint they’re leaving. 

Finally, the people of St. George could have gone some place to escape the heat in their powerless homes . . .

Red Cross officials stood by at the Dixie Center with large fans running for anyone who wanted to escape sweltering homes, Harding said. Only one person took advantage of the offer . . .

Last week, the power when out at my house - my neighbor and I grabbed some bottles and sat on the porch chatting while the power company worked to restore our power.  Why would you stay locked in a sweltering house by yourself?

This entry was posted Tuesday, July 17th, 2007 at 9:16 am and is filed under 4th Estate (Media), Environment, People Are Nuts, This Blog. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.