Roi Levi, the head of the Federation of Local Authorities [an umbrella organization of all municipalities and local councils in Israel] and the mayor of Nesher, a town near Haifa, spoke on North Radio [104.5FM] on Monday about the possibility of an extended power outage in the case of a war with Hezbollah.

“In all the scenarios we simulate, the discussion is about a minimum of 72 hours without electricity,” he warned. “And I tell people to prepare for longer than that because if there are 72 hours without electricity or even 24 hours it is still better to be prepared when you don’t have medicine or an energy source to heat food for the baby and you have no way to use necessary basic services. It won’t help me if they restore power to a cellular antenna but I don’t have a battery in my phone.”

“They’re preparing for a very difficult scenario of 4,000 missiles at our region for at least a day. That’s why all these stories that if an electrical installation is damaged, they’ll immediately repair it – don’t seem so plausible. I can’t see workers being able to repair anything in a scenario of 4,000 missiles a day. We need to prepare for at least 72 difficult hours, maybe even more. I say to prepare even for a week. It’s clear that at the end of that week, there won’t be a trace of Lebanon and they’ll beg for a break. But we must be strong and be part of the battle because a strong homefront will allow the IDF to win and decrease the threat from the north.”

Last week, Shaul Goldstein, the head of of Israel’s Independent System Operator Ltd. [NOGA], warned that Israel is not properly prepared for a “real war” with Hezbollah.

When asked if Israel will be able to ensure electricity supply in the event of a war [with Hezbollah missiles targeting electrical infrastructure], he said the answer is “no.”

“Israel is an energy island and we have to provide for ourselves. When I entered office and began to evaluate the threat to the electrical infrastructure, I asked – let’s say a missile hits the power grid and there’s a power outage for an hour, three hours, 24 hours, 48 hours, 72 hours, and beyond. What happens in such a situation? The bottom line is that after 72 hours, it will be impossible to live in Israel. People don’t understand how much our lives depend on electricity.”

“I have 15 inspectors throughout the country. If there’s a power outage, then after 5 hours, I don’t have a phone to call them. If the inspector goes to a gas station, there’s no gas – no gas station is working. There’s a line miles long, if not more. I won’t delve into sensitive matters – but we’re not ready for a real war. We live in a fantasy world.”

“If Nasrallah wants to down Israel’s power grid, he only has to pick up the phone to the person in charge of Beirut’s electrical system, which looks exactly like Israel’s. He doesn’t even need a surveillance drone. He can call a second-year electrical engineer and ask him where the most critical points are in Israel – everything is on the Internet.”

“The realization of our situation hasn’t penetrated. If the war is postponed for a year, five, ten years – our situation will be better.”

Meir Shpilger, the CEO of the Israel Electric Company, slammed Goldstein for his comments, saying that his words were “irresponsible, disconnected from reality and will cause panic among the public.”

Energy and Infrastructure Minister Eli Cohen responded by saying that Israel is preparing for every scenario and can generate electricity from many sources, including gas rigs, diesel fuel reserves, coal reserves and renewable energy.

“Our energy sources reserves are spread out in many protected and classified locations,” Cohen said. “There are many other actions we have taken to ensure regular energy supply, which I can’t reveal here.”

“The chance of a power outage for many days is very low. In addition, I need to make it clear to our enemies: if there’s an hours-long power outage in Israel, there will be a months-long power outage in Lebanon,” he warned.

On the other hand, Oren Helman, the former VP of Israel’s Electric Company, said: “I wouldn’t underestimate and dismiss the difficult and powerful words of Shaul Goldstein, even if he retracted them. The role of leaders is to tell the public the truth, even if it is not pleasant, and maybe sometimes scary. It’s a responsibility to say things that aren’t pleasant.”

“Coordinating expectations with the public must be done! Certainly not to underestimate the capabilities of the enemy, who unfortunately knows our electrical system very well.”

Meanwhile, the public discussion on the issue has led to a surge in generator sales, especially in northern and central Israel.

(YWN Israel Desk – Jerusalem)