The power cut that had almost completely darkened the town centre of Orimattila is over. Last winter, the municipality updated its plans for the outage and was now able to test them in practice.
Since last year, municipalities have been urged to update their contingency plans for part of the city.
Among other things, the city had to close the swimming pool because the outage disrupted the operation of the water treatment system. The locks on the city gym’s electrically powered lockers were temporarily jammed, but could be opened with a backup power supply.
A power cut also disrupted everyday life in the kitchen of the Jokivarre school. When the rainbow trout soup could not be served on time, the staff made a cold meal instead. This was possible because of the stockpile of canned goods, among other things.
Preparing kitchens also includes monitoring the temperature of refrigerators and making smart use of perishable foods if the situation requires it. This time, the break was so short that the ingredients and food remained cold enough.
– With these prospects, the Jokivarre school will eat the temptation of rainbow trout tomorrow, estimates Pulkkinen.
The schoolchildren of Jokivarre were quite satisfied with the lunch quickly prepared by the school kitchen.
The stomachs of the older students were filled with the local restaurant’s á la carte menu.
Turning on emergency lights in schools
Provisions have also been made for a possible exceptional situation in Orimattila’s schools and kindergartens, and the instructions have been updated.
– To my delight, I noticed that they had been downloaded and stored, Silvennoinen says about the situation on Wednesday morning.
If the power outage had lasted longer, it would have been possible to interrupt the school day by decision of the principal. At that time, you should also take care of the transportation of students.
Early childhood education would have started reaching out to guardians to see if they could pick up the child in the middle of the day.
In the event of a long power outage, the use of toilets would also be restricted, but Orimattila has not yet reached that point.
– Last year we thought about what we would do if there was a widespread power outage. The preparation paid off, he states.
*How have you prepared yourself for a sudden power outage? You can discuss the topic until Thursday at 11 pm.*