What should Brits do in a country-wide blackout? Listen to the BBC, they say
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The BBC has revealed it would have a 100-person team to communicate with the public in the event of a country-wide blackout.
Andy Burnham's Government launched its 'Be Ready' campaign last month, urging the public to stock three days' worth of bottled water, tinned food, blankets and a wind-up radio.
Defence Secretary Wes Streeting told Brits to be ready in the event of a disruption caused by a natural disaster or cyber attack.
The campaign sparked questions about what radio stations would be open, and how it would be broadcast, if a national blackout did occur.
If this were to happen, old technology such as FM radio could be the only means of communicating with the public.
Officials have provided reassurance that there is no imminent threat to the UK National Grid.
However, the BBC has come up with a plan for such a disaster, with a report from the broadcaster shared with a small number of staff.
A team of around 100 employees would 'run a special emergency studio', it is understood.
This would be operated via secure lines of communication that would not rely on the internet.
The BBC has revealed it would have a 100-person team to communicate with the public in the event of a country-wide blackout
Meanwhile, there would be enough water, food and fuel to make sure the studio could keep going without resupply for at least three days.
The service would broadcast pre-arranged government messaging, it is understood.
A source told the BBC: 'It was originally thought we should plan for five to seven days. The latest advice from Neso [the National Energy System Operator] is that they will probably be able to get the power back on in two to three days.'
Last month, households were warned to 'be ready' for a national crisis in a campaign launched by Mr Burnham's Government.
Stockpiling three days of food and water, and having enough cash to get by if the electronic payments system collapses, were among the precautions recommended.
Last week, reports said worried Britons are splurging £700 on emergency food kits that can keep a person fed for six weeks, amid growing fears of blackouts, cyberattacks and other future crises.
Retailers said sales of long-life food packs and water filtration equipment have skyrocketed in recent weeks following renewed interest in household preparedness.
Some of the kits contain enough freeze-dried meals to feed a person for weeks, while others are designed to provide months of emergency food with a shelf life of up to 25 years.
'Over the past eight weeks, orders have quadrupled, if not more,' James Blake, manager of Emergency Food Storage, told the Daily Mail. 'It's so busy that our stocks are out. They're completely depleted.'
Meanwhile, Laura Gardener, co-founder of Base Camp Food, said demand has reached levels the company has never experienced before.
The business was originally set up to supply freeze-dried food to adventurers heading to destinations such as Antarctica or crossing oceans by yacht. But in recent weeks, survival food has become its fastest-growing category.
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