Brits warned of grim reality of using the toilet if 'Black Sky' event hits UK
The UK has contingency plans in place in the event of a 'Black Sky' situation, which is where the country is struck by something that knocks critical infrastructure offline.
It might mean the internet going down, or a significant blow to the energy grid that leaves many homes and businesses without power, but it would be a very bad thing to happen.
The government has stressed that such an outcome is very unlikely, but they've got to prepare for the unlikely and if it did occur then it'd result in 'significant and widespread disruption and risk to health'.
They have scripts prepared for this possibility, and part of the day one advice for a Black Sky event is that Brits won't be able to flush the toilet because disruption to the power grid might have knocked the sewage system offline.
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Instead, advice is to fill a big bowl with water and add some soap or disinfectant for washing of hands, and if you need the loo then you'll need to have some plastic bags to hand.
"Do not try to in any way as the sewage system will not be working. You should collect your poo in plastic bags, which should be sealed and disposed of with normal household waste, ideally in an outside bin," goes the somewhat grim guidance.
"If anyone in your house has diarrhoea, keep a separate bowl of water and soap or disinfectant for them to use to wash their hands."
On the other hand, if the nation's electricity has been knocked offline then bagging up your poo and binning it because you can't flush the toilet is going to be low on your list of concerns.
While this is going on you'd be able to hear updates from the BBC's 'special emergency radio studio', which should make you glad you built up a stockpile of food, water and other essentials including a wind-up radio so even without mains electricity you can stay up to date.
Places with backup generators would still have power and they'd be sending out an FM broadcast where they'd carry the official updates and warnings people have to be aware of.
The BBC reports that something similar to this happened in Lancaster in 2015, it wasn't the nationwide calamity a Black Sky event warns about but for over 60,000 people who lost power when the River Lune flooded it was a difficult situation.
Only landline phones using copper wire and FM radios were working as far as communication went, while witnesses described how streetlights and cash machines went off, petrol stations closed and traffic lights stopped working.
Residents couldn't even see the glow of light from the next town over.
While that occurred on a small scale, conversations about the UK's resilience have said Brits need to be ready to get through three days of a similar situation, which means having a stockpile at home.
Topics: UK News
Joe Harker
