Preparing for what’s coming

Posted on April 13, 2006 by Gene

These last few weeks have been hyped up due to the upcoming 100th anniversary of the Great San Francisco Earthquake. The various authorities are using the anniversary as a way to highlight preparedness for the next big earthquake, which is expected in the next 25 years.
I have to admit that I am not prepared for it, and I really need to get moving on that. The priority should be an earthquake retrofit of my house, which in my case means bolting the house down to the foundation. There’s little else that needs to be done to my house as far as I can see; it sits low to the ground and doesn’t need any further bracing.
I started to put together a small kit with food and water, at the moment it has enough food and water to last me for three days, which is recommended, but I will probably continue to stash food and water away just to be extra cautious and to make sure that I have enough for neighbors and pets as well. I’m currently keeping it in a rigid plastic crate in the garage, under utility shelves that will most likely protect it from a collapse of the garage. Of course, if the garage should collapse, it will be at the bottom of the rubble, so I’ll probably make a second stash somewhere in the house as well. I’m also in the midst of creating backup discs for my computer files and websites, which will be stored off-site somewhere, I should probably also make copies of my various important papers.
It’s weird, this coming earthquake: unlike many disaster scenarios, where people prepare for something that probably won’t happen, this particular disaster is a certainty. And I’ve plunked myself down in the center of the future disaster area, hoping that it won’t destroy my neighborhood, a neighborhood located about 10 miles from both the San Andreas and Hayward faults…