Geoscience Reference
In-Depth Information
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Disturbances such as floods, earthquakes, major storms, or terrorist acts can disrupt the dis-
tribution of electricity, food, fuel, goods, and services for significant periods of time. In 1998, a
severe ice storm in the Northeast knocked out power for periods ranging from three days to
several weeks, and many of the survivors of Japan's Kobe quake did not receive food or pot-
able water until a week after the quake. Could you keep your pipes from freezing if your power
went out for several days during a winter's cold snap?
Before the magnitude 6.9 earthquake struck Kobe, Japanese engineers and politicians
thought they were better prepared for earthquake disasters than any other country in the world.
Japan's freeways and buildings are theoretically designed to handle much stronger quakes than
the one that struck Kobe, yet most of Kobe's downtown freeways and tall buildings either fell
down during the quake or had to be torn down afterward because of structural damage. This
disaster was a harsh blow for hundreds of thousands of survivors who lost friends, family mem-
bers, and most (if not all) of their possessions. How well would you fare if you could not pur-
chase any food, water, or gasoline for a week? What about a month or longer? If a wildfire was
barreling down on your home, and you only had a few minutes to evacuate, would you know
what is most important to take, and could you gather those things together in just a few
minutes?
No one really knows what the future will bring. You can't plan for all possible scenarios,
but a wise person plans for several of the most likely possibilities and stores at least a few basic
supplies for emergencies. This chapter will help you to evaluate your own particular needs and
goals, and offers guidance to help you plan for both short-term and long-term situations. I sug-
gest that everyone should have at least a 72-hour grab-and-go kit, plus a minimum of two
weeks of food supplies on hand at all times. In the event that the world situation should rapidly
degrade, whether it is due to a nuclear exchange between warring countries; escalating violence
in the Middle East; a well-coordinated, large-scale terrorist act; or some other form of societal
meltdown, it might become obvious that the time is at hand to open up the next chapter for
quick advice on putting together rudimentary supplies to cover the basics for several months, a
year, or perhaps even longer. Once a crisis hits, time will be of the essence since it won't be
long before stores are wiped clean of most of the supplies you will need!
To help you organize your thoughts and guide your actions, ask yourself the following
questions while making your emergency plans and building your backup supplies and skills:
