Social vulnerability to long-duration power outages: A Survey of households in Colorado and Minnesota

Long-duration power outages cause devastating impacts to society, which will only worsen as climate change increases the frequency and intensity of extreme weather events and natural disasters. However, few existing studies quantify the social impacts of power outages or investigate household-level social vulnerability specific to these events. Through a survey of 1050 households in Colorado and Minnesota, we examined patterns related to: (1) power outage exposure and household impacts, including negative health outcomes, (2) power outage preparedness, and (3) evacuation capacity due to a long-duration power outage. We analyze the survey data using statistical methods, including correlation tests, analysis of variance, Kruskal-Wallis tests, and association rule mining. Our results indicate that electricity-dependence is a key indicator of negative outcomes due to a power outage; that income, age, household size, and home size and type are indicators of power outage preparedness; and that gender, fear of looting, and presence of children, pets, and livestock are all factors that influence evacuation intention and means. Our results provide household-level insights into social vulnerability to long-duration power outages, which can inform equity-centered planning and operational decisions aimed at enhancing power grid resilience.