Prudent Prepping: The Big One, part the Latest

The dust has settled and the First 72 Hours have passed. Follow along as I build a long term plan via Prudent Prepping.

There has been quite a bit of shaking this last week in Southern California, and I believe it's past time to do a recap of basic prepping with a focus on earthquakes. I have been asked what is different with earthquake prepping compared to either tornadoes or hurricanes, and my answer is "Very little, other than earthquakes regularly collapse freeways and bridges." That gives a little bit of extra stress to getting around in California after a large quake. 
 
What Is This? 

http://scedc.caltech.edu/recent/

Here is an updated map of all the earthquakes in California for the last week, updated through July 9. Pretty scary, right? In fact, other than the magnitude 7, 6 and the high 5, it was an almost normal week. If you go to the source page here, you can see an enlarged version of the map for any spot in California where an earthquake has occurred by clicking on the squares shown. My part of California has been calm after the Napa quake (mentioned in this post) almost 5 years ago. Many people don't realize we have earthquakes every week, and unless there is actual property damage, they are barely felt.

The San Andreas Fault runs up to San Francisco, but a branch called the Hayward Fault travels through the East Bay.  Here is an animation of the Hayward Fault, which is not the fault responsible for the 1989 Bay Bridge collapse. This is the fault that will do the most damage near me, due to most of the cities being built on areas that were originally marshland.



Even with the (noted) exaggeration, the Oakland area of the map will be severely damaged in an earthquake. I live to the right side of the earthquake fault, near the mountain peak shown in the larger portion of the animation and to the far right side of the earthquake damage shown in the inset on the left.

It's expected that the three major major bridges will be damaged, including the reconstructed Bay Bridge. With freeways damaged as expected, food and water will be in short supply.

What To Do

Everyone should be reasonably aware of what to do, if you've been reading Blue Collar Prepping for any length of time, but if you haven't, this post has links to several authors and what they recommend. I really do suggest going to the Search box on the blog page and reading what everyone thinks is an important topic, especially Bug Out Bags, followed closely by First Aid kits. 

Where To Start
You already have what you need, but probably not enough. My friends already have plenty of rice and canned goods that, when combined with my stored food, should get 4 people through three weeks without a problem. What is a problem, however, will be getting enough water for three weeks, if water mains or the power is off for an extended time. I'm down to 28 gallons of water because I shared another seven-gallon can with a friend to get them started in prepping. 

I live within a mile of a spring and don't have any bridges to cross to get there and back. Even with getting water right from the source, we will be using a filter and possibly heating everything to the pasteurization point before use. My favorite filter brand is a Sawyer filter of some type. I have done tests of Sawyer filters here and here, and Chaplain Tim did a recap of a real-world study of Sawyer Filters and like how adaptable they are. (He also has an excellent series of posts on water sources, with this being most applicable to me. Go and read them all.)

Getting the water back is what our next priority, so this next month we are buying at least two more of these jugs:

Reliance Products Jumbo-Tainer 7 Gallon Jerry Can

I already have four of these, and while I don't stack them, they do nest together well.

https://amzn.to/2Jr7WbB

From the Amazon page:

• 7-gallon jumbo-tainer style rigid water container
• Combines the easy to carry shape of a traditional in a more contemporary style
• Features reliable tap style spigot and dual grip-through handles

I like the fact that the spout is replaceable* and at 7 gallons, it's light enough that most people can lift one. Pouring is easy when the air relief valve on the can (white button) is opened.

* We are ordering 2 replacement spouts along with the cans.

I've eased my friends into prepping and with the examples of the damage in Southern California, this is going to be an easy 'sell' towards prepping.

Recap

• Start with what you have. My tag line 'Some is Always Better Than None!' is in response to a blogger who wrote the polar opposite to that phrase.
• Make sure everyone is on the same page and committed to working together.
• Make your plans fit your group and location.
• Nothing was purchased this week.

Be safe in your travels, check in with your friends often and do what you can to be prepared.

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Just a reminder: if you plan on buying anything through Amazon, please consider using our referral link. When you do, a portion of the sale comes back here to help keep this site running!

If you have comments, suggestions or corrections, please post them so we all can learn. And remember, Some Is Always Better Than None!

NOTE: All items tested were purchased by me. No products have been loaned in exchange for a favorable review. Any items sent to me for T&E will be listed as such. Suck it Feds.