Here in Birmingham ( Alabama NOT England) we have power outages when the wind blows but most of all when we get ice or snow, and not much of it. It doesn't take much for power lines to snap when a limb falls. It's amazing how crazy you can get in just a matter of hours ( or min.) Hiker, how many times did you try and turn on a light by habit? Thank god for playing cards and solitaire. I've been known to troll the neighborhood waving and smiling at the power co. guys and rolling down the window and thanking them. Talk about a brown noser. Well I'm glad you're all powered up now. V

You really nailed it. I'm reading your piece ruefully from bed on my iPhone in our still powerless 40F house before I (try to) get ready for work. No ETA for us off Allen. Still.

Worst advice ever from the fire department: "well, if it arcs again, call us. until then, stay outside and keep an eye on it" (that was 6 days ago).

Worst advice ever from the Pas power operator: "if it isn't a downed power line, I think you'll have to fix it yourself"

Still no visit from Pas power. If a fire isn't enough to get their attention, what is?

The most important thing you can take away from this is to be more self-sufficient: get a good generator and run it at least twice a year, make sure you can transport all pets if it becomes necessary. Invest in some LED light sources and LOTS of batteries, MRE's, water, necessities, keep all meds current, and keep some heavy blue tarps on hand in case the roof is damaged. If the wind picks up, gas up your car and bring home some for the generator, you can always put it in the car later if you don't need it (if you let it age it will turn to varnish). Here in Hurricane Alley we've learned that you always have to be prepared. Oh, and if at all possible buy a chainsaw and learn how to cut down a tree, it can save you thousands and thousands of dollars. At the very least at least someone in the neighborhood should learn how.
As for the people with the information, they've probably been personally affected as well and possibly, like with Hurricane Ivan, Emergency Services were overwhelmed and damaged. They'll learned from it and since then, with every emergency they've gotten better. I hope by now things are getting back to normal and you're all nice and toasty warm.

To PJ's point, I'm already studying the various generator options. JenL, let us know when you're back up. The freezing mornings are the worst -- they just wear down.

We live in the Rubio Highlands area of Altadena. We had no power for 21 hours starting Wednesday night. On Thursday morning I got the 1KW electric generator out to power the refrigerator and computer (alas, no Charter cable internet service!). The I went to fill up my car: None of the gas stations in the Altadena were able to pump gas because they had no power backup. None of the restaurants on Lake were open. I left town on Friday noon, heading West. The first open gas station was in LaCanada, where the CA2 crosses the 210. This should be a wakeup call: In a real emergency, like a significant earthquake, have your own backup power and enough gasoline to keep it going.

hha

from lantern ,[ just make sure to vent fumes ] . had couple 12 volt batterys with a dc - ac converter ran tv and direct tv unit , to catch news etc . seems like edison needs is [ some ] sort breaker on power poles so if 1 line down it doesnt take all homes on that line down with it .

Here's another one of many questions: Our street came up at about 8 p.m. Friday night -- full functionality. Then it all went down a half hour later for the next two and half days. No wind was blowing, so I assume no trees were falling. How could we get electricity for a short period of time, then lose it again for days?

As for generators, if I can find one that allows a heat hook-up, I can make do with battery-operated lights, hand-cranked radio.

I have no idea about how often this happens in your neck of the woods but every time a tornado, hurricane or ice/snow knocks ours out in big areas, we get wonderful help from power companies all over the south and east coast. I hope that's happening there! I feel for those that are still out. That's amazing.

That first night I couldn't even find a match.

We go camping fairly often in the spring and summer, so we "camped." Warm clothes out, hats on, plenty of firewood (ha ha) for the fireplace, the gas stove still worked, and the biggest blessing was an ordinary gas water heater. Hot showers were a delightful luxury. The toilets flush, too! And no long hike from the tent to the privy, though it was probably just as cold.

I actually ended up getting more sleep than usual, because after board games and card games by the fire for a couple hours after dark, what else to do but go to sleep? My daughter felt that the only problem was that we didn't have any marshmallows.

I learned that e-bills and e-pay are not always the way to go; I am going to the bank this week to order regular old paper checks for backup in case of another extended outage. Also, I lost a week of grading for my half-internet college class that I teach at GCC, since all the assignments are turned in via computer.

I am grateful that my house wasn't yellow-tagged, like a friend of mine's was in La Crescenta. It certainly gives one a sense of perspective in this world!

Allison, I do think you're on to something. In addition to what I did have on hand (batteries, lanterns, radio, water, and food for humans and dogs) I'll add a full tank of gas in the car, a working fireplace, a stove that doesn't require electricity, and marshmallows.

"What was I doing? What the hell was I doing?"

SCE PIOs are asking themselves the same questions after a tongue lashing by Antonovich about getting information out to customers.

"But the media only works if you have electricity, so that’s stupid," Antonovich told Gutierrez.

I'm so sorry you had a hard time. My daughter got power back in Sierra Madre yesterday. Mine didn't even flicker although my house is buried in branches and part of the roof has flown off on vacation. The cat keeps sticking himself on the window screens. I have no idea what that's about. A new amusement since the windstorm.

Allison, nice to piggyback onto your post again.
Truly not trying to make light of homes without power for a week. We were out of power for five days.
My approach after the last two big earthquakes, and Katrina was that being dependent on any outside entity in any kind of emergency situation might not be the best choice. Being angry at the various underfunded, deregulated or even just plain greedy and uncaring agencies and businesses, wasn't going to feed my family or keep them warm.
We have a gas stove, so that we can still cook. We have a generator so that we can power the fridge and freezer to keep the food safe. The kids sleep in their sleeping bags with extra blankets, and I tell them to put on sweaters. We play board games and hang out together, enjoying the intimacy. We have a battery operated radio to listen to music and updates. There is a fireplace, and lots of batteries for the lanterns, and lots of candles.
And we have set it up to be able to do this for two months. I swore after Katrina that I would never have to depend on a utility co. or a govt. agency to take care of my family in an emergency.
We had a lot (!!!!) of fun during those 5 days. But I was damned happy when the power came back on, electricity make life easier. Thank God it wasn't snowing, that there were no fires, my neighbors weren't trapped in rubble or burning buildings.
The Red Cross has great emergency lists that give all the info about what you should have in these kind of disasters.

Terry and Allison, you have it just right. I've been through this in Altadena before, many days without power, We are well stocked with candles [use 'em for dinner every night anyway], flashlights, lanterns, firewood, an old gas stove, and traditional gas water heater. We have to learn that we must be as self sufficient as possible during any emergency as agencies are over-stretched. Way back in the day, I had a grandmother and other relatives who were a slice of the 19th century and we took for granted the way they lived. Ice boxes were cooled by the large block brought by the bandy-legged guy with tongs and huge shoulders. Plumbing [?] was a covered vessel under the bed and a pitcher and basin on the dresser. We just need to do what we can and adapt. We are pretty lucky because this is California, not Vermont in the winter after devastating flooding and winds.

My emergency preparedness plan is in place! Walk one mile east and knock on Terry's door.

Don't care for my emergency plumbing ideas, Karen? Never mind, you would still be welcome.

I agree Terry, the Red Cross has check lists, etc.

Oh, that's also on my checklist. "Get Doris's address. Bring personal vessel."

We should meet sometime, maybe over some surstromming. No, I'm not Swedish, and that item is one reason I don't yearn to be. My e-mail: ifinchi@fabart.net

Hah! Another reason why, Steve and Doris, come next disaster, you supply the food and I'll just bring the wine.

My next door neighbor served beer. They opened the surstromming tins way down in the back under water in a bucket. One of the funniest and most vivd images I will ever retain is the face on the guy across the table as he took a bite, popped his eyes, ingested his napkin then blew it clear across the table while shouting Oh My God! at the same time.

Not a wine I'd ever drink, Steve. Doris, my parents were from around Oslo, so stinky fish products were never on the menu. That said, my dad would smuggle a cheese into the States, a cheese so pungent it could only be stored and enjoyed in the great outdoors.

I'd like to know why Pasadena had so many fewer outages than Edison, which completely surrounds Pasadena. Is there a deferred-maintenance issue or some other management failure that caused this? What's the difference that caused these results?

I'd like to know why parts of Pasadena were still without power on Monday evening? Everyone seems to think we're the only ones with problems yet, I was driving down Los Robles Monday evening and parts of Pasadena were still without power. It's not just about us, folks!

Hi Steve Gerow, as I understand it, there are a couple of reasons: We've got an older and patchwork infrastructure up here (the wiring on my street looks positively comical), plus Pasadena, or at least most of it, has underground lines.

Karin, I didn't realize they had that many underground lines. That would help in a windstorm. The downside, as has been pointed out elsewhere, they are 2-3 times as expensive, have water-seepage problems and can be less reliable in an earthquake.

Steve G, I tend to agree with you. I'd worry about underground lines in an earthquake. And in researching generators, now I'm leaning towards a gas-powered mobile one. The permanent generators are hooked up to natural gas lines, which could prove inoperable, if not dangerous, in an earthquake.

Steve G, anchovies are stinky fish? I beg to differ. Anchovies put a Caesar Salad at the top of my food pyramid.