A couple of years ago....Chancellor Merkel came out and made a 'big-deal' over being prepared for a massive blackout. The chatter went this way.....you ought to have a week's worth of food on hand....if things shutdown. At the time...a fair number of Germans asked the question....is there something you aren't openly discussing?
My wife (German) reacted to the discussion and went a fair bit aggressive.....there is now a corner of the basement with ten days worth of canned goods, and the second freezer sits there now (stocked up).
So today, while watching N-TV (commercial German news).....the 'be-prepared' situation came up again. The scenario? Large-scale and long power outage or massive snowfall.
Who says this? The German Federal Office for Civil Protection and Disaster Assistance.
I looked at their list and it became obvious....a good bit of this revolves around the idea that you need food which requires no boiling/cooking. Camping rations? More or less. They even suggested 20 liters of water (per person) in this stash.
Older Germans (going back to the 1940s/1950s) kept a fair amount of food in the house and probably were capable of handling two weeks of a blizzard easily. Today? There are people out there with no more than 48 to 72 hours worth of food in the apartment. They are in the habit of continually shopping every other day....keeping a 'small footprint' in the kitchen.
Is this all over-hype? Well....you don't know. I will admit....most Germans would be absolutely shocked if their electrical power went out for twelve-plus hours. Most shoppers would be shocked how quick their grocery shelves went bare if a 48-hour blizzard swept through and dumped tons of snow on the roads....preventing deliveries.
Maybe the hype is worth the effort.
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