The UK is forecasting several days in winter when frigid weather can combine with gas shortages leading to organized blackouts in industries and even homes.[1]
According to the government’s latest ‘reasonable worst-case scenario‘ Britain could face a total electricity capacity shortfall of around one-sixth of peak demand even after coal-fired power plants start emergency operations. In this outlook below-average temperatures and reduced electricity imports from Norway and France could prompt the UK to take emergency measures to save gas.
If shortfalls materialize “the power cuts would come even as Britons face up to average annual energy bills possibly rising above £4 200 ($5 086) in January from just under £2 000 currently stoking already soaring inflation.”
In case of extremely cold winters Britain could become increasingly dependent on gas shipments from mainland Europe where supplies are already scarce due to Moscow’s limited flows. This poses a dilemma for the UK which has very little domestic storage capacity.
And to make matters worse the Daily Mail published an article using the usual fear tactics in its announcement that gas stoves can now cause asthma in children and lung disease in adults.[2]The article states that according to scientists having a gas stove in the home can be dangerous because it exposes the occupants to a variety of dangerous chemicals since stoves emit nitrogen dioxide the same pollutant released by combustion engines. They also state that even when stoves are turned off they still emit chemicals like methane and benzene that cause cancer.
So the solution of the experts is that at a time when humanity is being deprived of heat these gas stoves should be thrown away and instead they should switch to an electric device at a time in history when energy bills are becoming unaffordable and at a time when the same media is warning the Britons of blackouts. They want gas out of people’s houses.
Because the two weeks to flatten the curve have been turned to you shower and you use the oven and switch on the light and the heater on our own terms.
And then we learn that the BBC has prepared secret scripts for possible use in winter blackouts.[3]
Bloomberg reported that the BBC has prepared secret scenarios that can be read on the air if energy shortages cause power outages or loss of gas supplies this winter. The scenarios which were seen by the Guardian explain how the company would reassure the public in the event of a ‘massive blackout’ that leaves mobile phone networks internet access banking systems or traffic lights unavailable in England.
“One draft BBC script warns that a blackout could last for up to two days with hospitals and police placed under “extreme pressure”.
Another says: ‘The government has said it’s hoped power will be restored in the next 36 to 48 hours. Different parts of Britain will start to receive intermittent supplies before then’.
“The draft scripts for on-air news bulletins include space for a quote from a Cabinet Office minister given the fictitious name Jose Riera.
The scripts report that these blackouts would affect gas supply systems and knock out mobile phone networks cashpoints and internet access. Traffic lights would stop working causing disruption on the roads.
One script written for a hypothetical news bulletin warns: ‘The emergency services are under extreme pressure. People are being advised not to contact them unless absolutely necessary’.”
They are understood to have been written by BBC journalists as part of a routine contingency plan to deal with contingencies should they arise.
Since during a national emergency the BBC has an official role in helping to disseminate information [or misinformation?] across the country as part of the government’s civil emergency plan the government is working with the BBC as part of the contingency planning process although it is unclear if it will contribute to these situations. A spokesman said: ‘The government believes this is not the scenario we will face this winter.’ So why are they preparing such scripts? For fun?
However National Grid the UK’s electricity supply watchdog issued a rare warning that the electricity supply could be at risk. The organization said that in the worst-case scenario it could order a planned power cut for up to 3 hours a day if Russia cuts off all gas supplies to Europe.
On Monday 17thOctober National Grid chief executive John Pettigrew went further and said that if anything could have happened there could have been a 4-to-7-hour blackout on “really really cold” days in January and February when wind speeds are too low to power wind turbines.
The question is: Was the BBC told of what lies ahead or is it just another scaremongering tactic?
[1]https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2022-08-09/uk-braces-for-blackouts-gas-cuts-in-january-in-emergency-plan
[2]https://www.dailymail.co.uk/health/article-11211733/Gas-stoves-cause-asthma-children-lung-disease-adults.html
[3]https://www.theguardian.com/media/2022/oct/18/bbc-prepares-secret-scripts-for-possible-use-in-winter-blackouts