During the storm Alfrida just a few years ago, the electricity grid in Gotland suffered a breakdown.
Seven Days is a digital exercise on the website of the Swedish Civil Contingencies Agency (Myndigheten för samhällsskydd och beredskap - MSB) to work through during a preparedness week. The name refers to a seven-day power cut, a simple crisis that can be tougher than you think.
– We need to wake up our young people. This is the audience we need to reach. We are so reliant on the digital world that when the power goes out, we are in the shit, to put it bluntly. For many young people, it is not conceivable that the power can fail, or to know what to do when it does, says Margareta Lundberg, risk and safety coordinator in Älvsbyn municipality.
Those who are older or come from a smaller town have more experience with longer power cuts.
It may sound unbelievable, but long power outages happen from time to time in Sweden. In 2019, the power grid on Gotland collapsed during the storm Alfrida, and areas were without power for over a week. In 2014, the storm Dagmar swept through Svealand and southern Norrland, and some areas didn't get their power back for 14 days. 20 days after the storm Gudrun in 2005, there were still 12,000 people without power.
– That's why it's good to practice and consider what happens if the power goes out. How well-prepared are you with your supplies? The power grid is becoming more robust, but now we have power-hungry industries, the climate is changing, and the world becomes uncertain with nearby conflicts. Things can change very quickly; look at the landslide in Munkfors, says Lundberg.