Connecticut town considers charging centers for power outages

Following Hurricane Irene which left thousands without power up and down the East Coast, a town in Connecticut is consideringbuilding several charging stations for residents to power up their hand held electronics like cell phones and laptops during a natural disaster or prolonged power outage.

On Tuesday the West Hartford Town Council passed a resolution to research the possibility of building charging stations designed to “limit the distance required for residents to travel in inclement weather,” according to the resolution.

“We do not want people to be out in storms,” to charge their electronic devices said town manager Ron Van Winkle

Mayor R. Scott Slifka said he was first struck by the idea when he went to see his doctor in nearby Glastonbury and saw the town was planning on establishing charging centers after 90 percent of its homes experienced power outages following Hurricane Irene.

“Increasing percentages of our residents depend on cell phones and personal communication devices for their emergency communications, and power outages of twenty-four hours or more can limit accessibility to these devices even for those who are well prepared,” the resolution read.

According to Slifka, most residents are prepared to lose power for a short period of time, but options for charging cell phones, laptops, and other electronic device are limited to places like an office or a car, which may not be available to every resident.

The stations would be built into the town’s Emergency Operations Plan and would be aimed at those least prepared to go with long periods without electricity.

The town council is considering placing the charging centers in the town’s fiver fire stations to guarantee access for the largest number of people.

Under the resolution, the town will research the idea and no spending is required at this point.