Here’s another example of a complete power loss. This time over 19,000 people were affected in Stratford and because of wet weather, engineers from Central Networks could not complete the repairs till the next day. The piece was in the Stratford-upon-Avon Herald – “THOUSANDS of properties across Stratford district were plunged into darkness on Wednesday 12th October after a power line came down on the A46 between Stratford and Billesley. Electricity suppliers Central Networks said 19,000 customers lost power for about an hour at around 7pm. Stratford was blacked out and the Royal Shakespeare Company had to to cancel its permformances. Because of the wet weather engineers were unable to complete repairs and the A46 remained closed overnight. It was expected to be reopened later on Thursday”.

This is our log of electrical facts and figures. Each time we find a new one we post it here. Some of the data we discover are quite thought provoking. If you find any information on electrical power usage please let us know.

Nuclear power plants provide about 17 percent of the world’s electricity. Some countries depend more on nuclear power for electricity than others. In France, for instance, about 75 percent of the electricity is generated from nuclear power, according to the International Atomic Energy Agency.

Previously Entries
- UK energy consumption increased by 32 percent between 1970 and 2001, and a further 19 percent between 1990 and 2001.
- Power failures are increasing: the National Grid is only 99.98 percent reliable, which accounts for nine hours per year of downtime.
- In 2004, the UK became a net importer of fuel for the first time since 1992. Primary fuel consumption is not being met by indigenous production (source DTI, Digest of UK Energy Statistics 2005).
- In 2004, the industrial sector was the largest consumer of electricity.
- The average number of customer interruptions per 100 customers Average Customer Minutes Lost (CMLs) across Great Britain was 86.2 in 2002/03.
- On 15th August 2003, 55 million people in the USA were plunged into darkness by a massive power failure.
- 50% of all electricity generated is used to power microprocessor based devices.
- 70% of power disturbances are created locally.
- A typical computer system is subjected to more than 125 potentially devastating power disturbances each month.
- Every hour of downtime for a typical mid-sized network costs its owner £18,000.
- One-third of all data loss is caused by power problems.
- Half of all computer problems are traced to the power line.
- The overall cost of these problems to businesses in Europe is estimated to be in a range of £13-20.3 billion per year.