At least you had internet through your phone.
How did Shakleton survive?
I have great sympathy. At least I didn’t have to rescue helpless line workers.
(But at least your iPhone held out. My cell phone couldn’t connect most of the afternoon, my laptop battery died at around 4:00, and my iPod died at around 9:00. Technology has failed me. 
)
My advice for the day - don’t get anywhere near big trucks using winches. I saw a bunch of fire trucks stuck in the mud trying to fight a prairie fire when I was a kid (yes, we got prairie fires AND feet of mud at the same time); the big tow trucks came along to pull them out. The winch cable snapped, and it was extremely lucky that no one in the crowd got their head taken off.
wow, 3 hours without power, at least! With the fire, probably more like 5 or 6, no?
I hate losing power.
Second this. Never happened when I was around, but we always made sure to stand well out of the way of any backlash if a winch cable broke. A broken wire cable (or even a rope with enough strain on it) can easily kill or seriously injure you.