Before I talk about the recent hurricane’s damage, I wanted to just put a reminder out to anyone living in the path of incoming hurricane Milton.
If you’re going to be running a generator as a result of power loss, having gas is important, but having oil is crucial. With all assumptions in place including proper placement and that your generator hasn’t been flood damaged – it’s important to have a supply of oil – as well as gasoline. In the event of a prolonged power loss, you may have to run your generator continuously. If that is the case, you must change your generator oil out every 2 days or else the generator components will burn itself out despite having gas to run on and you will have no way to get power to your house. Some people change their oil every 3 days but because this is a life-threatening situation, I’d want a margin of safety. I’m assuming Florida PLC or TECO can have most power up within 24-48 hours after the storm passes but it’s a long time to wait without air conditioning or refrigeration – especially for people who are taking care of elderly parents or have pets. I would have 2 or even 3 replacement quantities of oil on hand to bridge you between 4 and 6 days of power loss or intermittent power loss (gosh, I would probably even have more – but that’s because I’m paranoid as sh*t). As always, make sure you know how much oil you need to replace in your unit.
I was, to be frank, stupefied at the damage hurricane Helene wrought. I knew it would bring destruction to the central panhandle, but in no way could I have imagined it would bring the kind of destruction it did to the western carolinas, georgia and eastern Tennessee. Having worked in Appalachia and other mountainous regions, I know first hand what the challenges for people are living in those mountains – on a regular day – but when roads are destroyed and rivers are overflowing, that is……apocalyptic, and that’s not hyperbole. It’s literally a race against time and the elements, a choice between life or death.
It got me thinking really hard about the contingencies I’ve planned for in my life. I know that I can never see everything but seeing the cataclysmic consequences of something completely unpredictable bothered me very much. There’s always something out there that you didn’t plan for and you will meet that contingency, whether you want to or not. What keeps me up at night is that there’s evidence suggesting the contingency is as much a function of what you are preparing for as it is an accumulation of random, tangential occurrences – it is formless until you see it. The only constant you can control is your will to weather it and your emotional readiness.
I regretfully admit that I have no idea where I fall on the scale of those 2 qualities when – not if – catastrophe catches me.
“We don’t rise to the level of our expectations, we fall to the level of our training.”
― Archilochus
Stay safe and healthy, everyone.
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