Earthquakes - Are You Prepared?

Waiting until the disaster (earthquake, hurricane, typhoon, tsunami, flood, blizzard, wildfire, and so on) strikes is not wise... and it can be rough, if not particularly deadly on you and your family.

Think about where you live.

Have disasters of any kind EVER happened near where you live? (by the way, tornados HAVE BEEN RECORDED IN EVERY STATE and EVERY CONTINENT--essentially ANYWHERE... they don't just occur only in Kansas, Dorothy!)

Make a list of what can happen.

On Guam, our main concern was typhoons, of course, but also earthquakes and the resulting tsunami. We also had to be aware of storm-surge flooding. So, if we lived near a beach or in a low-lying area compared to the surroundings, we'd have to be aware of flooding risks as well.

Here in California (right on the San Andreas Fault--not to mention the other hundreds of smaller, less-well-known faults), earthquake awareness is a necessity! In the central valley, flooding is also a concern. Along the coast, tsunami-risk is also a concern (in addition to the earthquake, mudslide, flooding, and other risks).

In Montana, we'd know that winters can be extremely cold and the blizzards are unforgiving. Annual seasonal flooding from the snowmelt can be a significant risk, as can avalanche danger in the mountains. Some major earthquakes have also happened in Montana--in particular, one on the Gallatin River back in the 1950s that basically collapsed the side of a mountain and created a landfill dam (and killed many campers and residents who were living in the canyon).

Make a list of your family members and their special needs (medical, physical, etc.)

With the list of your family members, make sure you keep records of medical prescriptions, and other important papers in a plastic/waterproof bag that you can grab and escape with in case of an emergency.

Plan your escape route(s), and plan your meeting places!

If your family is caught in your house when the earthquake hits, have a safe place designated in your house that is known to all family members.

As soon as the shaking is over, check for gas and water leaks--if you smell gas, shut off the gas at the main valve. If the water pipes are broken, shut off the water. (If you don't smell gas, don't shut off the gas.--read more about this on some of the resources listed below.)

If your family is separated during the quake--the kids are in school, dad and mom are at work--have a gathering or meeting place pre-arranged such as a local park or other location in case your home is no longer inhabitable.

Make sure that all your out-of-area/out-of-state relatives and friends know to NOT try to call you after the disaster. The phone lines will be jammed after an event like this. It will be easier for you to call out and notify a designated out-of-state friend or family member who can spread the word about your situation.

In your garage or easily accessable closet, store emergency supplies

Replenish and refresh these supplies regularly so they won't be stale if a disaster strikes.

In our garage, we have one of those large, plastic, sealable-lid, garbage-containers with wheels as our emergency stash. In this container, we have bottles of water, extra clothing, first-aid-kit, crank-powered radio-light, gas/water shut-off tool, light-sticks, dried food and meals-ready-to-eat (MRE), flashlights, batteries, gloves for each member of the family, dust masks, and other protective gear.

On shelves in the garage, we have our campstove, extra self-contained propane containers, tent, tarps, plastic sheets, duct tape, tools, and other gear.

In our area, the weather ranges from about 110 degrees F in the summer to as low as 20 degrees F in the winter, so we have to keep the appropriate types of clothing available for the particular season. If you live in the tropics, obviously you wouldn't need to keep a parka handy. On the other hand, if you live in blizzard and avalanche country, a pair of swimming trunks might not be an essential thing to have on hand.

If you live in earthquake areas (and probably even if you don't!), you should tie down things like your water heater, bookcases, desk hutches, and large, high cabinets to keep them from tipping or flying across the room.

You can buy the mounts, straps, and ties at local hardware stores--make sure you fasten the straps to studs in the wall.

In earthquake areas of California (which is most of California), inspectors make sure that the frame of the house is BOLTED to the foundation--and that the foundation is secured in concrete and or bedrock. This keeps the house from shifting during the quake and from settling. If the building is built on sand or loose dirt rather than bedrock, an earthquake can cause a phenomenon called liquification--and the building could sink into the ground and warp and break apart from the stress.