When the Power Went Out, Neighbors Turned Their Community Centers Into Beacons of Hope

When Hurricane Francine left parts of New Orleans without electricity in 2024, Pastor Shawn Anglim did something simple: he opened the doors of his church and turned on the lights.

By the afternoon, more than 100 people had gathered inside.

Some needed a place to cool down. Others needed to charge their phones or medical devices. For people who had spent hours without electricity, the church became a place where they could feel safe and connected.

That experience was part of a growing idea known as a “Community Lighthouse” — local places equipped to provide essential support when a disaster interrupts normal life.

The concept grew out of the devastating power outages that followed Hurricane Ida in 2021. Parts of New Orleans were without electricity for as long as 12 days.

Community organisers realised that neighbourhoods needed places where people could gather, communicate and access basic services when the regular infrastructure failed.

Today, there are 14 Community Lighthouses in New Orleans and another six across Louisiana, according to Together New Orleans.

They are based in churches, synagogues, mosques and community centres. Many have solar panels and battery systems that can keep essential equipment operating even when the wider electricity network goes down.

But the technology is only part of the idea.

The people who run the centres are just as important.

Volunteers known as “lighthouse keepers” help organise what happens during an emergency. They may open the building, prepare supplies, check backup batteries, coordinate volunteers and make sure residents know where to go.

The system depends on ordinary people being willing to help their neighbours.

Pastor Anglim says preparation matters because disasters rarely unfold exactly as expected. Volunteers may have to leave town or take care of their own families, meaning other members of the community need to step forward.

That flexibility has become one of the strengths of the programme.

The Community Lighthouse model is also expanding beyond electricity.

Some neighbourhood groups are building their own internet networks so residents can stay connected when commercial systems fail. Others are developing volunteer emergency medical services that can help people before professional responders are able to reach them.

The underlying idea is straightforward: communities can prepare themselves to support one another rather than waiting for outside assistance to arrive.

For residents who have experienced long power outages after hurricanes, the difference can be enormous.

A working light can mean a place to charge a phone. A working internet connection can allow someone to contact family. A community room can give an older resident somewhere cool to sit. A volunteer can provide reassurance when everything outside feels uncertain.

None of these actions is particularly dramatic on its own.

Together, however, they can transform a neighbourhood’s response to a crisis.

The name “Community Lighthouse” reflects that purpose. When the usual systems go dark, the lights stay on somewhere nearby — because local people have chosen to keep them on.

Sources: Reasons to Be Cheerful, Together New Orleans.