Garching’s power supply is secure – three years ago, nobody would have thought that such a message would be part of a citizens’ meeting in the district of Munich in 2022. And yet some listeners in the Garchinger Bürgersaal seemed reassured to hear the news from Mayor Dietmar Gruchmann (SPD). Even if, in a worst-case scenario, there should be a lengthy power outage in the university town in the coming months, the population would not have to do without electricity entirely.
Because the city has purchased six power generators for such an emergency. Thanks to the fortunate fact that the international plant manufacturer and rental company Zeppelin has its headquarters in Garching, the city was able to quickly secure the coveted devices despite the currently huge demand, said Gruchmann. This investment will cost a good 190,000 euros, plus costs for the delivery of the devices and the necessary accessories. In addition, the buildings on which the generators are to be installed must be structurally prepared for their use. The city’s order list also includes heaters and mobile gas stations; The administration estimates that these precautionary measures will cost a total of around 400,000 euros.
The police in the northern district are also preparing for a possible blackout scenario, as Stefan Schraut, head of inspection 48, explained. The approximately 53,000 people in Garching, Oberschleißheim and Unterschleißheim, for whom the officers of Police Inspectorate 48 are responsible, can rely on the fact that the police can be contacted in such exceptional cases in the places and provide help. However, Schraut sees problems on the roads: if the traffic lights suddenly go out everywhere at the intersections of major traffic axes such as the B 471 or the B 13, traffic jams are probably programmed.