Earthquake preparedness thread - post your suggestions or questions

[Wormwood]

So on the water storage thing. How often should you refresh the supply if you have it sitting in a sealed clean container so that it is drinkable without further treatment? How do you know if it is good/bad Should you have chlorine tablets or a portable camping type purifier?

Water storage is half the answer. For storage I rotate the water out, stored in 2.5 gallon containers just pull, use and replace every few months. Water purification is the other half. Your stored water should last 2-4 days. Water heaters and toilets are great sources.

My kit includes back country portable purifiers and parts needed for any long haul disaster. A stove with a big stash of fuel canisters is always a good bet.


And weed.

 

[uhmeebuh]

Bug out bag.

Agreed!

I created two "emergency" bags for my use. One at home next to the door and one in my car. They include a lot of little things to help me be sustainable for at least a few days or until I can get to my family "safe" spot. If you need ot travel or keep one in your car, you can protect yourself (at least a bit) compared to the multitude of unprepared folks.

My bag includes:

- First aid kit (with ALL kinds of stuff in it)
- Emergency blanket
- Fire starter with tinder
- Small Axe
- Tarp
- 6 liters of water
- Powerbars and other snacks that "keep" for a while
- Water purification system
- Paracord (lots of it)
- Knife (I keep one on me pretty much all the time)
- Change of clothes and shoes including a hat and jacket
- And dozens of other things...etc, etc, etc.

You have to decide what you put in it but this would serve my needs for a few days.

All of this fits in a mid-sized Jansport backpack and was relatively inexpensive...and worth every penny should I need it. Everyone in my family has one and I made two for my GF as well.

Even more than this, start planning WHAT you would do if an EQ hits - whether you are on the road or at home. Having a plan is a HUGE first step towards being prepared and taking care of yourself.

 

[Wormwood]

:thumbup ^^^^^^^^^^^

Car kit.

 

[iamrob]

keep ur helmet where it wont fall during a quake!!!

 

[2strokeYardSale]

If you have pets, keep emergency supplies on hand for them too.

One person's pets are another person's emergency food supply.

 

[Wormwood]

Booo YAHHHH


num num :teeth

 

[V4]

since this thread offers good advice, the thread made a sticky in the memory of the '89 bay area quake (which I had no experience with) and a good message that a similar or bigger quake can happen again...

be prepared....

 

[plumber]

The water supply for a lot of the Bay Area is served through Hetch Hetchy and EMBUD water lines. Those lines cross the Hayward fault. IIRC the Bay Area would have 30 days maximum of water if those lines were destroyed.

 

[ARB]

I found this site a year ago and bought kits and supplies from them: http://earthshakes.com/products.php?cat=8

First Aid kits: http://www.buyemp.com/category/First-Aid-Kits.html

Good luck and be safe!

 

[RRR70]

A bag, preferably with the following items: Ammo. Handgun. Ammo. Rifle. Ammo. MRE's. Ammo. Potable water containers. Ammo. Water tabs. Ammo. Compass. Ammo. Car charger for phone. Ammo. Socks. Ammo. First aid kit. Ammo. List of phone numbers and addresses. Ammo.

My BOB:
9mm, 45ACP, 5.56mm, 7.62x39mm. Guns that use those calibers.
Everything else I'll get.

 

[Poxy]

I always make sure I have an extra full tank of Propane for the BBQ. Nice to be able to cook the stuff in the freezer that will go bad otherwise.

I also keep a bottle of Tequila in the kit in case we need to fight someone!

 

[augustiron]

CA.gov site:

Use this website to discover the hazards that exist in your area and learn how to reduce your risk! Remember, the best way to recover from disasters is by reducing the risks before a disaster strikes.

http://myhazards.calema.ca.gov/Default.aspx

 

[stigeon]

Buy a bunch of canned tuna. It's not that tasty but it will keep you fed for a while. Flashlight and battery radio. Those things alone will keep you going for a week or two.

pro-tip for the tuna diet - bbq sauce. that shit has preservatives for days. it shouldn't spoil easily and makes tuna quite tasty. plus, easy calories.

one of these would be clever to pick up, too. i have the Eton which can charge electronics via USB. assuming power only out for our area but cell towers still working is a long shot but hey...

http://www.21st-century-goods.com/categories/Radio/Emergency-Radios-and-Solar-Radios/

i need a gun.

 

[milo2]

When using a fully stocked motorhome with water, mres , and canned food as a earthquake kit be sure and hide a set of keys on the rig so if the house is flat as a pancake you can still motor out of there when the FEMA cops are red tagging everything and the regular cops are beating folks with their nightsticks and yelling you can't go in your own house/rubble to find your keys...


youtu.be/vDDEOvLKz3c

 

[JakesKTM]

water........ lots of water........ when the Hayward fault busts loose and the pipeline is severed it may be awhile.

 

[Godsdarling]

water purification tablets. Lots of canned food, a couple of can openers one to use as backup. Radio and extra batteries, CB, extra gasoline for the jeep/quads. Worse case scenario you can take the quads into the hills and hunt for meet. propane bottles filled, hurricane lamps and extra kerosene.

When the blackout hit SD we had filled the jeep up the night before so we weren't worried about it but a lot of people got stranded because all the pumps were down.

 

[augustiron]

How were the major roads in and out of the Bay Area after Loma?
Say I wanted to bug out to the Sierras, are the roads a clusterfuck for days afterwards?

Of course it depends on the severity of the EQ, the location and extent of the damage, if the bridges are intact, etc. but just for general traffic's sake, what was it like to get out of town soon afterwards? is it like the day before Thanksgiving with everyone trying to get somewhere or were the roads deserted as everyone hunkered down?

 

[Bay Arean]

Somebody said water purification tablets. Bleach will do as well. 2-3 drops a gallon? Wait 30 minutes, somethin' like that. I watch those survivy shows on Friday nights and they were drinkin' pond water or sumthin after they found bleach. Seems like you could put a bottle of bleach in the lowest place of your property, even buried...or find some in the debris.

 

[milo2]

I got mom a old CB from the thrift store with 12 volt backup battery set up that can talk to my house 15 miles away. Shes in her seventies and still can drop that maul, seriously though, a way to check in on loved ones when the net and phones are down.

Heres a site you can test your signal at a couple different Bay Area base stations usally channel 17 http://westside11.homestead.com/westside-eleven.html

73s

 

[V4]

Here's useful tip
If there's a big quake try to save yourself loved one and pets before you post about the quake on barf