Below is a piece of it. Missing are the links, inverter info, comments of
others. For all that, read the original at
http://www.hybridcars.com/blogs/power/preparedness-after-katrina
(Of course, I encourage you to link from other blogs and web pages to that URL)

Sept. 06, 2005: Preparedness After Katrina
<snip>
Someday, millions of parked plug-in hybrids can serve as a reserve and load
leveller for the entire nation's power system.

Meanwhile, here's one smaller idea -- something we could do now to prepare
for the next time we face a regional natural disaster that leaves streets
navigable and most buildings intact but without power.

With a little preparation, we could make tens of thousands of efficient,
low-emission mobile generators available for immediate delivery to refugee
centers and other key locations. That's what conventional hybrids, slightly
modified, could become -- and we don't even have to wait until car makers
build plug-in hybrids. We could equip each hybrid with an external
under-$200 inverter that plugs into the accessory battery. (Or we could
wire up a higher-power inverter to the car's high-voltage system. With more
advanced engineering, multiple hybrids could together provide even more
power.)

Here's how it would work for each 11.9-gallon-tank Prius, where, say, 8
gallons of gas is available, producing 12 kiloWatt-hours per gallon. One
such car (parked, of course, outside to avoid carbon-monoxide buildup)
could provide 1 kiloWatt of 120-volt power -- enough to keep critical
services operating. Every four days, the car would have to drive, say, 50
miles to the nearest working gas station, re-fuel and then return. (Or,
better yet, assign some hybrids to gas stations, being careful about
sparks, to power the station pumps so they can re-fuel essential vehicles.)

Current hybrid owners would benefit by having their own 1 kWhr home backup
for their refrigerator and lights for local blackouts. (That's also enough
power for TVs and home computers, though they may require more expensive
$500 sine wave inverters. I'll list a few typical inverters in an early
response, but I hope technical discussions for engineers and electricians
will happen elsewhere.)

Someone would need to organize inverter discounts, and arrange a special
deal for electricians to hook up a single-point emergency power input to
homes and larger buildings. Who might create this program? Probably not the
Department of Homeland Security. The Red Cross? Electric utilities?
Insurance companies? Car companies? Component makers? Car dealers? Hybrid
owners online?

How about all of the above? (If it seems like a good idea but no
institution comes forward, CalCars could help get it started. In order for
it not to distract us from our main objective -- incentivizing car
companies to build PHEVs -- that would take someone stepping up with
funding, after which we could find a few serious volunteers.)

Sept. 06, 2005: Preparedness After Katrina
<snip>
Someday, millions of parked plug-in hybrids can serve as a reserve and load
leveller for the entire nation's power system.

Meanwhile, here's one smaller idea -- something we could do now to prepare
for the next time we face a regional natural disaster that leaves streets
navigable and most buildings intact but without power.

With a little preparation, we could make tens of thousands of efficient,
low-emission mobile generators available for immediate delivery to refugee
centers and other key locations. That's what conventional hybrids, slightly
modified, could become -- and we don't even have to wait until car makers
build plug-in hybrids. We could equip each hybrid with an external
under-$200 inverter that plugs into the accessory battery. (Or we could
wire up a higher-power inverter to the car's high-voltage system. With more
advanced engineering, multiple hybrids could together provide even more
power.)

Here's how it would work for each 11.9-gallon-tank Prius, where, say, 8
gallons of gas is available, producing 12 kiloWatt-hours per gallon. One
such car (parked, of course, outside to avoid carbon-monoxide buildup)
could provide 1 kiloWatt of 120-volt power -- enough to keep critical
services operating. Every four days, the car would have to drive, say, 50
miles to the nearest working gas station, re-fuel and then return. (Or,
better yet, assign some hybrids to gas stations, being careful about
sparks, to power the station pumps so they can re-fuel essential vehicles.)

Current hybrid owners would benefit by having their own 1 kWhr home backup
for their refrigerator and lights for local blackouts. (That's also enough
power 

TVs and home computers, though they may require more expensive
$500 sine wave inverters. I'll list a few typical inverters in an early
response, but I hope technical discussions for engineers and electricians
will happen elsewhere.)

Someone would need to organize inverter discounts, and arrange a special
deal for electricians to hook up a single-point emergency power input to
homes and larger buildings. Who might create this program? Probably not the
Department of Homeland Security. The Red Cross? Electric utilities?
Insurance companies? Car companies? Component makers? Car dealers? Hybrid
owners online?

How about all of the above? (If it seems like a good idea but no
institution comes forward, CalCars could help get it started. In order for
it not to distract us from our main objective -- incentivizing car
companies to build PHEVs -- that would take someone stepping up with
funding, after which we could find a few serious volunteers.)

-- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- --
Felix Kramer fkramer@...
Founder California Cars Initiative
http://www.calcars.org
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/calcars-news
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/priusplus
http://www.hybridcars.com/blogs/power
-- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- -- --