The Austrian Defense Ministry recently issued a warning with fears of an indefinite power outage.
The Austrian Armed Forces have been correct in their latest predictions of national security risks, including a global pandemic, the Vienna terrorist attack and cyberattacks.
Now military experts have warned of a major power outage indefinitely.
“The question is not whether there will be a big blackout, but when,” conservative Austrian Defense Minister Claudia Tanner assured.
Blackout will cause traffic lights, ATMs, telephones, the Internet and other services to stop working, which indicates an extreme dependence on data digitization and a daily need for these devices.
Less developed countries will also have serious consequences, as they can run out of power for hours and thousands of patients could die without vital equipment.
“One of the biggest threats to the modern state,” Austrian Interior Minister Karl Nehammer said.
“Blackout is a huge threat to society. And it is important that all emergency services like the police, ambulances continue to function. In the event of a power outage, the main task of the military is to provide and support other emergency services,” said Austrian Lieutenant Colonel Pierre Kugelweiss.
Experts from Austria have launched an informational support in which they provide vital advice on what to have on hand in the event of an event of this magnitude: fuel, candles, batteries, canned food and drinking water.
“What to do when nothing works? When there is no water or electricity. Large blackouts have huge consequences. Through this campaign, we intend to raise awareness among citizens and provide valuable advice,” they said.
Currently, experts have not set an estimated date for when this could happen, but Austria aims to be fully prepared by 2025.
A blackout of this nature has the possibility to happen on a global scale because of the chance of a massive solar storm.
Large solar flares and solar storms have the potential to interfere with Earth’s geomagnetic field. This has happened before, and when it does, our technology could be affected.
