Post-apocalyptic electricity part II

So, I’ve still been told it’s possible to restore part of the grid after an apocalypse wiped out most of the population. I disagree because I did work for the power company here, and I have seen what it takes to keep the local grid on.

First, the coal. Who mines it? How do you transport it? Here, it’s brought in on trains with a special crane to dump each car (which runs on electricity). Then, you have to refine it. You have to maintain the plant, the way stations, the emergency management system, etc. There are massive specialized parts to maintain these, as parts degrade. Who will manufacture these? Who will transport them? Gasoline degrades very quickly, so it’s unlikely to be a solution, unless people are drilling for oil and refining it, etc., also requiring lots of materials and maintenance and…electricity.

Also, there are the power lines. Who maintains those? Linemen, with specialized equipment that would require fabrication and maintenance. They would not have the trucks without gasoline, either. It also requires training. And who would be running the cables, etc.? There are literally thousands of employees working for the power company here, all of whom are needed to keep it running. I just don’t see how a small population of people could manage this unless every single person contributed and did only that. No farming. No textiles. Nothing else.

So, that’s my sci-fi pet peeve. Obviously.