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The Austrian defense minister has warned that Europeans could face blackouts that go on for days, leaving one-third of citizens unable to "supply themselves."
Klaudia Tanner made the comments during an interview with German news outlet Die Welt.
"The question is not whether it (the blackout) will come, but when it will come," said Tanner, blaming the war in Ukraine.
"For Putin, hacking attacks on Western power supplies are a tool of hybrid warfare. We must not pretend that this is just a theory. We must be prepared for blackouts in Austria and Europe," she added.
Austrian armed forces are set to establish 100 self-sufficient barracks by 2025 that are capable of sustaining themselves for a minimum of two weeks if energy supplies are seriously disrupted.
Tanner spoke to how unprepared Europeans were for crippling elongated blackouts by warning, "one-third of citizens would not be able to supply themselves on the fourth day of a blackout at the latest."
While Vladimir Putin remains the convenient scapegoat, others have pointed to Europe's overdependence on 'green energy' and its shutting down of traditional coal-fired and nuclear plants as one of the primary reasons for increasing the risk of blackouts.
In Germany for example, the country only has three remaining operational nuclear power plants, with MPs even having to vote to extend their life span into 2023 after previous plans to shut them down.
As we previously highlighted, Germans buying up electric heaters in anticipation of the gas supply being cut off is threatening to cause huge spikes in demand that could lead to widespread blackouts.
"If everyone switched on a fan heater at home, it would mean that we would have to almost double the existing network structure on every street," said Peter Lautz, the boss of the Stadtwerke Wiesbaden Netz utility company.
Before winter began, cities across Germany announced they were planning to use sports arenas and exhibition halls as 'warm up spaces' to help freezing citizens who are unable to afford skyrocketing energy costs.
Top Green Party official Winfried Kretschmann caused controversy earlier this year by suggesting Germans use washcloths instead of taking showers, as well as buying expensive eco-heating systems that are unaffordable for the average person.
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