No. 3 · Power

Power cut: the first 10 minutes, and how to keep going

Survival Next Door · Updated 31 October 2026 · Every fact checked against the sources below

In short: In a power cut, use a torch, not candles, and check whether the rest of the street is off too. Report it on 105 (free in England, Scotland and Wales). Keep the fridge and freezer shut: a full freezer stays frozen for up to 48 hours. Switch off appliances and leave one light on so you know when the power's back. Then keep essentials running from batteries, and if you use a petrol generator, run it outdoors only and never plug it into the house wiring.

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Why it matters

On 28 April 2025 at 12:33, mainland Spain and Portugal lost power: around 60 million people, in the middle of a working day. In March 2025, a substation fire at North Hyde cut power to 71,655 customers in west London and closed Heathrow for most of a day.

Long power cuts are rare in the UK, but they happen. Storm Arwen in November 2021 cut power to over a million customers; around 40,000 were still off after three days, nearly 4,000 after a week, and the last were reconnected after 13 days.

Most power cuts are over in hours. The point of being ready is that the long ones don't turn into a crisis in your house.

The first 10 minutes

1. Torch, not candles. Firefighters get called to fires started by candles during power cuts. Keep a torch where you can find it in the dark.
2. Look outside. If the whole street is dark, it isn't your fuse box. If it's only your house, check your trip switches.
3. Call 105. It's free in England, Scotland and Wales and puts you through to your local network operator, who can tell you what's happening. In Northern Ireland, call NIE Networks on 03457 643643.
4. Keep the freezer shut. A full freezer stays frozen for up to 48 hours (24 if half full), and a fridge stays cold for about 4 hours, if you keep the doors closed.
5. Switch off and leave one light on. Turn off appliances that get hot and unplug sensitive ones like TVs and computers, but leave one light switched on so you know the moment the power is back.
6. Knock next door. Check on neighbours, especially anyone older or relying on powered medical equipment. If that's someone in your home, join the Priority Services Register now.

Watch it in 30 seconds on our YouTube channel.

Battery maths in plain numbers

Batteries are rated in watt-hours (Wh). Divide by the watts a device uses to get rough hours, then knock off around 15% for losses when using the mains-style (AC) socket.

• A 300Wh power station running a 10W LED lamp: about 300 ÷ 10 = 30 hours, so roughly 25 hours in practice.
• The same station on a 50W device: about 5 hours.
• A phone battery is roughly 15Wh, so a 300Wh station could recharge a phone something like 15 times.
• A 10,000mAh power bank charges most phones one and a half to two times, after conversion losses.
• Kettles, heaters and microwaves (1,000 to 3,000W) will flatten a small power station in minutes or exceed its limit. Don't try.

Use the USB and 12V outputs where you can; they waste less than the AC socket.

What to power first

1. Powered medical devices (for example CPAP).
2. Communication: a radio and one phone charged at all times.
3. Lighting: LED torches and lanterns on rechargeable batteries.
4. Food: short bursts of generator power for the freezer, if you have one.
5. Everything else, including screens, as a treat.

Rotate phones: keep one on, the others off, and switch over daily.

Generators: safe use

A petrol generator is the most powerful backup most households can own, and the most dangerous. HSENI's guidance:

• Run it outdoors only. Never inside the house, a garage, a shed or any partly enclosed space, even with some ventilation, and not near open doors or windows. Fans will not stop carbon monoxide building up.
• Fit battery carbon monoxide alarms inside the house.
• Keep it out of the rain and standing water, and away from anything flammable.
• Refuel outside, with the engine off and cooled.
• Plug appliances into the generator with heavy-duty extension leads, never into the house wiring, and don't load it beyond what the manual allows.
• Don't store its fuel in the house.

To save fuel, run it in short planned bursts, for example morning and evening.

Storing fuel legally

In Great Britain, the Petroleum (Consolidation) Regulations 2014 let you store up to 30 litres of petrol at home without telling anyone, in suitable containers: plastic up to 10 litres each, metal up to 20 litres each. More than 30 litres (up to 275) requires written notice to your local Petroleum Enforcement Authority. Fuel in a vehicle tank doesn't count.

• Store petrol in a garage, shed or outbuilding with ventilation and a direct way out to the open air, never in living space, and not in a flat.
• Don't fill tanks at the storage place. HSE says you shouldn't dispense stored petrol into a vehicle's tank at home without a licence.
• Petrol goes stale; use it up in the mower or generator and replace it, or use a fuel stabiliser.
• Keep a fire extinguisher suitable for fuel fires nearby.

Fill your car at the first sign of trouble. Filling station pumps need electricity.

Compensation for long power cuts

If your power is off for a long time, your network operator has to pay you a fixed amount under Ofgem's rules, and it should be paid automatically or on request.

• Outside severe weather: £100 for a home once the power has been off for 12 hours (24 hours if 5,000 or more properties are affected), then £45 for each further 12 hours, up to £400 when 5,000 or more properties are off.
• In severe storms: £90 for the first 24 hours (category 1 storms) or 48 hours (category 2), then £45 for every further 6 hours, up to £2,235.

The amounts change; check Ofgem's page for the current figures.

Run a petrol generator safely

1. Put the generator outside on dry, level ground, well away from doors, windows and vents, with the exhaust pointing away from the house.
2. Check the oil and fuel with the engine cold. Refuel only when it's off and cooled.
3. Make sure a battery CO alarm is working inside the house.
4. Unplug everything from the generator, then start it as the manual says.
5. Plug appliances in one at a time, biggest first, using heavy-duty outdoor extension leads. Never connect it to the house wiring.
6. Keep within the load the manual allows and keep children away.
7. Before switching off, unplug the heavy loads, then stop the engine and let it cool before covering or moving it.

Checklist

• 105 written on the fridge (NIE Networks 03457 643643 in Northern Ireland)
• Power banks, one per person, kept charged
• Portable power station, charged and tested every few months
• Charging cables for every device, plus a 12V car charger
• Rechargeable AA and AAA batteries and a charger
• Priority Services Register sign-up if anyone qualifies
• Generator tested monthly, with oil and heavy-duty outdoor leads (if you have one)
• No more than 30 litres of petrol, in approved containers, outside the house
• Battery carbon monoxide alarm
• Fuel-rated fire extinguisher
• A full car tank when trouble is forecast

Questions people ask

Sources: Energy Networks Association: power cut? call 105 · Food Standards Agency: food safety in a power cut · Scottish Fire and Rescue Service: power cuts · National Grid: power cut leaflet · SSEN, what to do during a power cut · Energy Networks Association, extra help (Priority Services Register) · HSENI, safety tips for using a portable generator in an emergency · Petroleum (Consolidation) Regulations 2014, Schedule 2 · Ofgem, check if you can get a payment for a power cut · NESO, final report on the North Hyde substation outage · Ofgem, final report on the networks' response to Storm Arwen (June 2022) · BEIS/E3C, Storm Arwen Review final report · Cabinet Office, National Risk Register 2025 (pp. 89-90) · HSE, storing petrol at home. General information only, not professional advice. In an emergency, always call 999.