Smog, Power Cuts and Food Shortages Hit in Grim Run-Up to Christmas ; As Christmas 1946 Approached, the People of Derby, Who Were Expecting Life to Be More Comfortable in This Postwar Festive Season, Were Plunged Into New Miseries. Appalling Weather Brought, Among Other Things, Coal Shortages. And There Was Worse to Come.

Derby Evening Telegraph › January 03, 2011

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Summary

THE effects of the icy weather were soon compounded by a shortage of fuel. On December 5, 1946, the first national power cuts took place.

It was not a complete breakdown in power supplies at that stage, simply a reduction known as an "economy cut". There were several of these as the Government wrestled with a problem which seemed to have no solution: the weather was cold, the temperature hovering around freezing, so the demand for power soared - but coal stocks were low and so power stations became increasingly unable to cope with that demand.

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Extract

Smog, Power Cuts and Food Shortages Hit in Grim Run-Up to Christmas ; As Christmas 1946 Approached, the People of Derby, Who Were Expecting Life to Be More Comfortable in This Postwar Festive Season, Were Plunged Into New Miseries. Appalling Weather Brought, Among Other Things, Coal Shortages. And There Was Worse to Come.

Eventually, the answer seemed to be to ease the strain by cutting power completely at certain times, lowering consumption the rest of the time and attempting to spread demand rather than have peak times of consumption.

Early December was cold and foggy - a fog turned into a "smog" by thousands of domestic chimney fires spewing smoke over the town. Conditions were about as unpleasant as they could be.

Total power cuts were short in duration but became more frequent. They would be preceded by a warning broadcast over the wireless and the first significant cut in Derby came on the morning of December 9 when hundreds ...

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