The power grid in Germany is safe and stable – even in the midst of the energy crisis, a total blackout is more than unlikely. Nevertheless, the Federal Office for Civil Protection and Disaster Assistance recommends all citizens to have a packing list for emergencies.
Telephone, Internet, elevators, trains, gas stations, supermarkets: we are dependent on a power supply in almost every area of our everyday life. If this fails, nothing works anymore. Even at home there would then no longer be any electric light at night and the heating would also be out of order.
But the quality of the power grid in Germany is exceptionally high and such a scenario with widespread and prolonged power outages seems rather unlikely. Nevertheless, the Federal Office for Civil Protection and Disaster Assistance (BBK) provides a list of food, useful tips and information to prepare for the worst case scenario.
If there is no electricity, modern cash registers work just as little as ATMs to get fresh money. Supply chains could also break down and the cooling of fresh products is also no longer guaranteed. The BBK therefore recommends having food and drink at home for 10 days. There is a detailed list of foods in PDF format that are recommended for emergency care:
Grain products, bread, potatoes
vegetables, legumes
fruit
beverages
milk, dairy products
fish, meat, eggs
Fette, Die
And at will
Sugar, sweetener, honey, jam, chocolate, alcohol, iodized salt, dried potato products (e.g. mashed potatoes), flour, instant stock, cocoa powder, hard biscuits, pretzel sticks, etc.
Important: Don’t forget to reserve water. The BBK recommends 2 liters of water per day and person. For 10 days that makes 20 liters per person, including a portion for cooking. Speaking of cooking: in the event of a power failure, you can neither use the fridge nor the stove. A small gas camping stove will do a good job in this case.
The free e-book “Cookbook for all cases” from the BBK is also helpful. It lists various recipes for dishes that can be prepared even without electricity and running water.
In the event of an emergency, the Federal Office for Civil Protection and Disaster Assistance also advises having the following items and materials at home.
medicine cabinet
Hygiene products
Fire protection
power outage
emergency luggage
radio set
If you have to leave the house immediately in an emergency, you usually don’t have time to pack. If you want to prepare yourself optimally for this emergency situation, you should use a checklist to put together an escape backpack. This is simply taken with you in an emergency and already contains all the important things. In addition to food and medicines, this also includes tools and means of communication.
If an escape backpack is not available, a packing list for emergency luggage is advisable, which can be collected and taken with you within a few minutes if necessary. In addition to food, medication and first aid equipment, means of communication and documents are particularly advisable here.
If the worst comes to the worst, clever tips are also helpful. Therefore, the federal government offers a guide for emergency preparedness and correct action in emergency situations. The free e-book gives you tips on what to do in the event of a disaster. The guide explains which foods you should keep in stock. The BBK manual summarizes all the important steps at the end in a checklist for use in the event of a disaster.
The BBK offers a helpful e-book with tips for prevention and self-help especially for a power failure.
The NINA app from the Federal Office for Civil Protection and Disaster Assistance should not be missing from any smartphone anyway, but it is essential for emergencies such as a blackout.
The app has an integrated warning function that you can use to be warned in the event of a disaster. The BBK pushes messages from the modular warning system MoWas to the app. You can either share your location through the app or set specific locations for which you want to receive alerts.
The smartphone is essential, especially in emergency situations. You should therefore make preparations here in order to be able to use the mobile phone for as long as possible. In the event of a power failure, it is useful to have an alternative charging option, such as a charged power bank. If it can then also be recharged using a solar panel, you are well equipped.
Otherwise, it is important to save battery as much as possible so that you can use the cell phone for as long as possible. If several mobile phones are available, it is best to only switch on one in order to conserve the battery of the others. It is particularly important to reduce the brightness of the display. If there is no mobile network anyway, you can also put the mobile phone in flight mode and manually test from time to time whether the network is available again.
