Putting things in perspective, complete with one or two statistics. None of this has shown up in the news media and none of it will. http://tinyurl.com/naysyyg
Please check www.arpse.org for ham radio service opportunities. There are lots of races, bike rides, parades, fire works shows, etc. that need ham radio operators for communications.
Power brown-outs are dangerous to anything in your house or office that has a motor. Referigerator, air conditioner, computers, furnace, heat pump, etc. If a brown out occurs, you need to shut off all devices with motors. Best to just go outside and pull the main power switch.
When the power comes back on, don't be too anxious to turn your power back on. Often the power cycles a few times before it comes on and stays on. Those cycles are not good for anything in your house that is electrical.
Also, when power is restored, a LOT of devices come on at once in the affected area and that causes spikes and valeys in the power until it all settles out. You don't need to subject your devices to that level of electrical stress.
If you are going to connect a generator to your house, consider a power transfer switch. When power goes off, a power transfer switch will disconnect your house from the main power line and connect it to the generator. When power is restored, the transfer switch disconnects the generator and reconnects your house to the commercial power lines.
If your generator is not one of the automatic ones, get a manual power transfer switch. Lots cheaper and just as effective.
Are the batteries in your LED flashlights good to go? There have been a number of power outages during the evening thunder storms we have been having lately.
During an actual disaster, if you are a communicator in an area where conditions become unsafe, LEAVE! You are a communicator 2nd. Life and property trump communication. EVERY TIME! Check your part 97 rule book, this rule is in there!
During a disaster there may be riots, looting and violence. Unpleasant, but the "group mind" of a large number of people is capable of doing things that many of the individuals in the group would NEVER do on their own. BE SAFE!
Until next time.
N7OZH
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