Wednesday, January 27, 2010

Earthquake Preparedness

Papa B writes:

For folks who live in the Midwest and have seen the effects of the earthquake in Haiti, it's worth acquainting yourself with the New Madrid Fault.

Charleston, SC had one of the worst earthquakes in 1888, which I think was related to New Madrid.

I always carry a "to go" bag in my trunk.

Knowing Papa B as I do, I would guess this is a duffel bag packed with -- at minimum -- a Beretta 92FS, a carbine, twenty or more loaded mags, some gold and silver bullion, a week's worth of MREs and a Katadyn water filter.

Not that there's anything wrong with that.


5 comments:

Dymphna said...

Not that i have dirty mind or anything, but doesn't the inner section of that image resemble a...umm, like some parts of the female anatomy that are removed and/or sewn up by a certain religion...?

A Jacksonian said...

Ahhh... and the NMFZ isn't even my largest of the top 5 disasters that will be coming to North America.

Mind you we haven't even properly prepared for #5.

The_Bad said...

While there is nothing wrong with what is there in Papa B's bag, I can't help but notice a glaring omission: bacon.

No bacon, no survival.

Anonymous said...

"The magnitude 5.0 earthquake of June 18, 2002 had its epicenter between Mt. Vernon and West Franklin in Posey County, southwestern Indiana." (I was in Evansville at the time)

At first I thought it was a sonic boom, but it kept going, and going and .... wait, that's not a sonic b... maybe an explosion?

I went outside and met several neighbors looking as puzzled as I was. Shortly after going back inside, it occurred to me to check the internet to see if there was any seismic activity, and sure enough there had been.

So, yeah, I know from personal experience of what you speak. Here's a website I check periodically to see what's been going on.

Now I'm in Cent.Fl. and we don't get too many of those, although there was one in the Gulf on the very day I was on the beach, but I didn't know that till I got home.

Whitehall said...

The New Madrid fault last let loose in 1812 and did some major geological rearranging. For the sparse population living there at the time, it rearranged their mental space too!

When it lets loose again, there will be major death and destruction since all the new construction hasn't been "shaken down" like the older buildings in California.

The Charleston earthquake was not related to the New Madrid but both are examples of the most poorly understood TYPE of earthquake - the mid-plate faults.

Building codes will be your friend!

BTW, do NOT run outside in modern buildings - falling stuff from roofs and burst windows will knock you on your head. Few American buildings will collapse like those in Haiti did but it remains a percentage bet.