Using solar cells to generate electricity provides immediate assistance as well as long-term relief in times of crisis. When disaster strikes, electric power is usually the first critically important service to be lost. And the effects can be devastating.
Lights go out.
Furnaces, refrigerators, and other electric appliances don't work. Neither do the electric pumps that deliver our drinking water and help treat sewage. Without electricity for homes, hospitals, food stores, and vital municipal services, many of our most important needs go unmet. What's more, emergency response teams need a reliable source of electric power to even begin to deal with the crisis. Without electricity, gasoline can't be pumped at local service stations to transport emergency supplies, and banks can't provide emergency funds.