BACKUP POWER

Community health centers' new crisis: The need for backup power

​​​Dozens of solar panels, sprawled across the south- and west- facing sections of the clinic's green roof, generate enough power for the center's clinical areas, the server room that supports the electronic records, and the refrigerators that preserve crucial medications. Batteries stacked in metal closets in the building's back parking lot can keep things running for up to 15 hours after the sun goes down.