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LIVING IN AUSTRIA

Energy crisis: What to do in case of a power outage in Austria

Power outages are rare but can happen in Austria. Here's what you need to do if it happens where you are.

Published: 8 August 2022 13:52 CEST
Updated: 24 January 2023 11:30 CET
Energy crisis: What to do in case of a power outage in Austria
What to do in case of a blackout in Austria? (Photo by Claudio Schwarz on Unsplash)

When a large-scale power failure occurred in western Austria in August 2022, it affected supply in 33 municipalities, including the Tyrol capital Innsbruck and its surrounding areas.

The power outage happened at around 10:45 am and lasted less than one hour, but was enough to leave thousands of households without energy, affect tram lines and shut down traffic lights, according to the daily Tiroler Tageszeitung.

READ ALSO: REVEALED: What is Austria’s emergency plan if Russia cuts gas supply?

So what to do in the event of a power failure?

Following the outage, Austrian power suppliers shared tips and the proper procedures to follow during power failures.

According to Wiener Netze, if the electricity in your apartment or house fails, it is essential to keep calm. There are six steps you need to follow.

The first is to create light by getting a flashlight or candle or activating the flashlight function on your smartphone. “This allows you to orient yourself in the rooms and reduce the risk of injury”, the company said.

Tyrol’s Tinetz company also highlights that a power shortage is not an emergency, “so do not call emergency services such as fire brigade, ambulance, or similar”.

READ ALSO: Who to call and what to say in an emergency in Austria

Then, you need to try and access who is affected by the power failure. Just look out the window to see if there is still light in your street – you can also ask your neighbours if they have electricity at home.

If you are the only one affected, check whether individual fuses have failed and see if any fuses are set to off. If that is the case, you need to simply flip the levers again or replace old fuses with new ones.

You should understand how your fuse box works (Photo by mostafa mahmoudi on Unsplash)

You should immediately unplug electrical appliances that no longer work and replace them with new devices once you have energy back on.

READ ALSO: Cost of living: How to save money on energy bills in Austria

If other apartments or houses are also affected, you need to contact your local power grid disruption line (in Vienna, that would be calling 0800 500 600, in Tyrol, the number is +43 0 50708 123). The line should be available around the clock to immediately take care of the damage.

The local power supply companies also provide websites to check for any failures. For Vienna, you can check here. In Tyrol, here.

What to do after the power failures?

You must check your electrical appliances once the power supply is resumed.

Ensure that the last switched-on devices (such as an iron or a boiler) are switched off. If your power supply was interrupted for more than six hours, you should empty the refrigerator.

Your gas boiler automatically resumes working after a power failure. If not, turn the main switch off and on again or contact the device manufacturer.

READ ALSO: EXPLAINED: Is it worth switching to solar power in Austria?

Check all clocks that work with electricity to update the time. Also, check if any electrical devices no longer work – they should be taken to a repair shop or disposed of.

How do I prepare for a power outage?

You can prepare for a possible power failure.

First, it is important to get familiarised with the fuse box (including the key to it) in your home. You should also keep replacement fuses at hand and ensure that you have sufficient battery power for your alarm systems in case of prolonged failures.

You should also keep a flashlight with working batteries and the telephone number of your local power grid malfunction line in case of any emergencies.

If you don’t have a battery-powered radio, you can check the news with the radio on your car or even use the station’s app on a smartphone.

READ ALSO: Wild weather in Austria: How to protect yourself during summer storms

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For members

HEALTH

Patients in Vienna face long waits for specialist health appointments

Waiting times to get appointments with health specialists in Vienna have increased significantly, a new study has revealed.

Published: 17 May 2024 09:56 CEST
Patients in Vienna face long waits for specialist health appointments

Accessing essential healthcare within a reasonable timeframe is becoming increasingly difficult for Viennese residents.

The Vienna Medical Association presented their new study this week which shows that waiting times for appointments with health specialists have increased significantly in recent years.

The study, which involved contacting over 850 doctors’ practices via so-called “mystery calls,” revealed that child and adolescent psychiatry currently had the longest waiting times in the city.

Patients can expect to wait an average of 90 days for an appointment.

Other specialisations where patients have to wait long to receive help include radiology (57 days), neurology (45 days), ophthalmology (44 days), pulmonology (36 days), internal medicine (33 days), and dermatology (28 days).

The waiting time for seeing a gynaecologist has increased fourfold since 2012, with patients now waiting an average of 32 days.

READ MORE: Why are there fewer public sector doctors in Austria?

No new patients accepted

In certain specialist areas, there is no capacity to accommodate new patients. The situation where no new patients are accepted occurs particularly often in paediatric practices, where more than half of the public healthcare practices have put a freeze on admissions.

In child and adolescent psychiatry, 40 percent do not accept new patients, and among gynaecologists, it is almost a third (30 percent). Family doctors also struggle with welcoming new patients, and many of their practices have already reached full capacity.

The Medical Association calls for immediate action, urging the health insurance sector to become more attractive and receive better funding. This could involve measures to incentivise doctors to work within the public system, potentially reducing wait times and improving patient access to care.

During the study presentation, Johannes Steinhart, president of the association, described the increased waiting times as the result of neglect within the established health insurance sector. He said he believes that the public health system is massively endangered.

Naghme Kamaleyan-Schmied, chairwoman of the Curia of the resident doctors in the association, pointed out that while the population of the federal capital has grown by 16 percent since 2012, the number of public doctors has fallen by 12 percent in the same period.

The association now wants to make the public healthcare system more attractive to doctors, which could cut down waiting times and make it easier for patients to receive care. The association’s demands for this to happen include increasing flexibility in contract options, integrating health and social professions in individual practices, reducing bureaucracy, and improving fees.

ÖGK, Österreichische Gesundheitskasse, Austria’s largest public healthcare fund, is currently creating 100 additional public health positions, with almost two-thirds of the positions already having applicants, as well as planning for another 100 positions. They also aim to create a central telemedicine service and a platform for making appointments by phone and online, which is meant to reduce waiting times and improve access to care.

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