How many flashlights are enough?

When we used to live in Bangalore, we had to have flashlights and candles ready all the time, as the electricity used to go quite regularly. Our apartment, unfortunately, did not have a power backup system than most of the new residential complexes now have, so we just had to have everything ready to manage on our own, flashlights etc. Although, the power never went for too long, it went almost every second day or each time it rained, which comes to the same thing in Bangalore. With the weather being so great there, one didn't miss the fan too much, but not having the lights, geyser or oven working did cause some hassles.

So, I used to keep a variety of flashlights all over the house, so no matter where you were, you could easily find one. There was a small penlight in the wicker basket by the front door, strong and steady freestanding ones for the kitchen and baths and a variety of other ones scattered around the house in the bedrooms, living and dining rooms. Although we didn't need industrial strength flashlights like the SureFire or Streamlight that are used by the police and fire departments, we did need to have lots of flashlights available at all times.