Experts say California is NOT prepared for the Big One (San Andreas: houses, tornado)

[freedomdove]

Do any of you feel you are ready in case something like this happens or do you all just basically go on with your lives and not worry about it?

California ill-prepared for the Big One, earthquake experts say | Daily Mail Online

[Tex?Il?]

Any article about the "big one" that uses images from the movie San Andreas should be ignored, even if there is any good information. There are plenty of sources of good scientific information about earthquakes without the Daily Mail.

[volosong]

Lived the whole of my life in California and quakes don't bother me. Been through a few good ones too.

Really don't think about them going through daily life, and when they happen, the first thought is to ride it out and see how strong it is. If it is more than just a short one, then the best course is to get outside and away from anything that can fall on me/us. No biggie. I'd much rather deal with earthquakes than tornadoes, hurricanes, or blizzards.

However, having said that, I have taken CERT training and keep a couple of emergency backpacks filled with supplies and 'Search and Rescue' tools in the house. "Community Emergency Response Team" training is conducted by the fire department with the goal to prepare citizens to be 'survivors' rather than 'victims'. They teach you to make due on your own for a few days or a week under the assumption that in a major disaster, first responders may not get to your location for several days. I would very highly recommend CERT training for everyone. It is no-cost and held over several days.

[freedomdove]

Originally Posted by Tex?Il?

Any article about the "big one" that uses images from the movie San Andreas should be ignored, even if there is any good information. There are plenty of sources of good scientific information about earthquakes without the Daily Mail.

So are you saying the threat isn't real that they've described?

[shooting4life]

Of course we are not prepared. Just look on the east coast and south east. They get warnings about hurricanes days in advance and people are still not prepared. Any massive earthquake here will have people looting in days.

[saibot]

Originally Posted by shooting4life

Of course we are not prepared. Just look on the east coast and south east. They get warnings about hurricanes days in advance and people are still not prepared.

Yes, and an amazing number of houses in "Tornado Alley" have no tornado shelters. It's a universal head-in-the-sand phenomenon.

[freedomdove]

Originally Posted by volosong

I'd much rather deal with earthquakes than tornadoes, hurricanes, or blizzards.

I think I'm with you on that one.

However, having said that, I have taken CERT training and keep a couple of emergency backpacks filled with supplies and 'Search and Rescue' tools in the house. "Community Emergency Response Team" training is conducted by the fire department with the goal to prepare citizens to be 'survivors' rather than 'victims'. They teach you to make due on your own for a few days or a week under the assumption that in a major disaster, first responders may not get to your location for several days. I would very highly recommend CERT training for everyone. It is no-cost and held over several days.

That's good advice.

[freedomdove]

Originally Posted by shooting4life

Of course we are not prepared. Just look on the east coast and south east. They get warnings about hurricanes days in advance and people are still not prepared. Any massive earthquake here will have people looting in days.

So there aren't many "preppers" out there? I would think that with the frequency of quakes, people would be more prepared than folks in other states.

[marcopolo666]

Originally Posted by freedomdove

So there aren't many "preppers" out there? I would think that with the frequency of quakes, people would be more prepared than folks in other states.

Why? People in Oklahoma or Kansas (etc) don't seem very prepared for tornados. People along the gulf coast don't seem very prepared for hurricanes. Why should people in CA be any different? Heck there are people living along the Russian river that have been flooded out 3-5 times over the past 40 years - they still live there, and many don't take any precautions.

[volosong]

Originally Posted by freedomdove

So there aren't many "preppers" out there? I would think that with the frequency of quakes, people would be more prepared than folks in other states.

I see you list your location as the Midwest, so I'm going to assume your perception of reality is painted by sensationalized journalism and Hollywood. Forgive me if I am incorrect.

No. The ground does not "open up and swallow you". Almost all of the fault lines in California are strike/slip faults. Meaning, the Pacific tectonic plate is moving northward and 'scraping' along the North American tectonic plate. The San Andreas movie's goal was to sell tickets and make somebody a little bit of money, not provide a 'what if' scenario. Great special effects however.

And . . . even though quakes occur constantly, almost none of them can be perceived, other than on a seismograph. Maybe once every few years we'll get one we can feel, and more times than not, only if we are sitting stationary and not moving about. The good ones, the ones that cause any amount of physical damage, and the ones that get reported on the evening news only occur about once every twenty or twenty-five years, if even that. And, those are pretty much spread out along the extended length of the state. Almost never is a quake in SoCal felt by those in NorCal. This is a BIG state and takes me two days to get out of it when driving north.

Quakes? Eh, no worries. We plan them every so often to help keep immigration under control.