VAN volunteers are engaged in Earthquake Prep for the massive category 9+ Cascadia Subduction Zone
earthquake that WILL hit the PNW in the next 50+ years. Please take
this seriously folks as your life may well depend on your preps,
knowledge, and luck.
Emergency / Earthquake Response
Commitment-- VAN is following in the footsteps of
Mountain Justice by creating an Emergency Response Commitment. –
“Although we
are not a trained emergency response organization, VAN volunteers
wish to support fellow residents in their time of need. In the
event of a disaster we will do our best to help affected residents
with cleanup, recover, and public awareness.”
As a Mountain Justice volunteer, Matt Landon enacted
this commitment during the
TVA Coal Ash Disaster of Dec 22, 2008 in
TN.
Today, 10-15-15, is
International Earthquake Awareness Day and folks all over the world are ducking
and covering as part of their earthquake planning process. While duck and cover is good there is
so much more to do.
We have spent the last several months
doing intensive internet research to learn about the various aspects
of earthquakes and their aftermath. We can tell you that no one
source has all of the answers and the majority of the government
websites are sorely lacking in actually helpful information.
We're screwed!
The Oregon Public Broadcasting
Unprepared series does a pretty good job of laying bare Oregon's unpreparedness. This
1 hour
video is sort of a condensed version.
If you watched this video then you
learned that our modern Pacific North West Coast society is pretty
much screwed and Bridgetown (Portland) will be in shambles for at
least a year, probably longer. Are you willing and able to live for
a year without piped water, electricity, and access to grocery
stores or pharmacies?
The question then becomes to stay and
help rebuild or to evacuate. Evacuation via car will be nearly
impossible due to the failure of all of the bridges along i-5 and
across the Willamette and Columbia Rivers. I have not found an app
that routes you around all over passes, under passes, and bridges.
Also there will be many landslides in the mountains and hills and
liquefaction of soils near the rivers which means more destroyed
roadways. The rivers aren't likely to be safe due to spillage of
chemicals and sewage upstream and collapsed bridges. A motorcross
motorcycle with knobby tires or a bicycle will likely be your best
bets for getting around town. Here is a cool idea using
cargo bicycles.
The only other alternative for
evacuation is by air. I found
Global Rescue
which coordinates helicopter rescues during disasters. They are a
bit expensive ($650-$1,200) per year per person but how much would
you pay for a ride out of town following a once in a lifetime
disaster? Even if you wanted to pay A LOT for a ticket you likely
wouldn't be able to secure a seat. This insurance policy is a small
price to pay when compared to the alternative. You will need to
contact these folks to let them know you want to be evacuated.
Cellphones, landlines, and internet
will likely not work.
So even if you decide that you
will
Mad Max it here in Portland for a year or more of rebuilding
you will need to communicate with the outside world to let your
friends and family know you are ok. All of the websites that we have
read say that Ham Radio is the communication method of choice by
governments and Ham Radio operators. Well you can have your Ham
Radio, we're going with the
Delorme Inreach 2 way satellite communicator. It costs $300, $20 activation fee, and $10 a month to keep it on
with a few texts per month. Following a disaster an unlimited
texting plan costs $60 a month and can be upgraded at any time.
This little unit is able to provide 2 way text messaging, linking to
a smart phone for easier typing, posting to a previously linked
Facebook / Twitter account, and SOS rescue features. This unit is
handy for solo hikers as well, though we don't think that anyone has
currently used it for post disaster organizing.
Post Disaster Media Team
VAN will set up a
volunteer Post Disaster Media Team with various volunteers using
their Delorme Inreach communicators to help get word out to friends
and family of neighbors and each other and to flood Facebook /
Twitter social media with updates as well. After securing your
family and then going door to door to immediate neighbors to
check-in about gas leaks (so your neighborhood doesn't burn down) we
would set up bulletin boards in existing parks which will already be
functioning as gathering and distribution points following a
disaster. People can write their messages and contacts onto sheets
for “outgoing messages” on the outgoing message board, VAN
volunteers then text it out and upon receiving a text response the
information is posted onto the “incoming message” board. This
way VAN volunteers will set up the only functioning disaster “post
offices” that I have seen described yet.
We hope to have SW Portland and
Vancouver covered by the end of the year (which means one Delorme
Inreach unit in each area) so we are looking for volunteers across
the greater Portland / Vancouver area to set up “post offices”
as well.
While the government is spending days,
weeks, or months trying to get communications back and running VAN
volunteers will be providing real time updates from day 1. Yeah!
Portland Hazard Maps
Do you live or work somewhere that has
been deemed as a hazardous location by the city of Portland?
Please check the above maps to learn more.
Here is a list of earthquake prep items which we have
been compiling--
***** CASH***** Keep at least $400 in
twenties at all times
Important Docs-- Keep scanned on a
flashdrive or hard copies of identification and financial documents
including passports, birth certificates, marriage license, property
deeds, social security cards, ect.
a) Flashlight – Energizer weather
ready LED radio crank flashlight or similar crank flashlight radio
combo- because batteries will die eventually, this radio picks up
AM/FM, weather, and has a nice little annoying siren
b) leather gloves
c) dust masks, bicycle helmet or hard
hat for head protection from falling debris
d) Sawyer Mini Water Filter (or other
camping water filter) and several 2 liter soda bottles
e) bottled water- lots of bottled
water/ at least 1 gallon a day per person for at least 3 weeks.
****Possible Alternative Drinking
Water sources that should be filtered and or boiled before use- 1)
Columbia Springs in Vancouver, WA, 2) Crystal Springs in Reed
College SE Portland, OR, 3) Small springs that feed Tryon Creek (not
the main stem of Tryon Creek!) in Tryon Creek State Park SW
Portland, OR --- DO NOT drink ANY unfiltered water or even filtered
water from the Willamette or Columbia Rivers. Always make sure to
get your water from a point closest to the source where the water
comes from the rocks or ground not downstream.
f) tent
g) larger tarps
h) good quality rain gear
i) warm wool or synthetic clothes,
hat, gloves
j) paper maps- Gazetteer Maps for
Oregon and Washington and large scale maps of your city
k) hand trucks / dollies or cargo
bikes
l) tie down straps, rope, and duct
tape
m) shovel / ax / maul /crowbar / bow
saw
n) personal protection equipment
o) hand powered winch and accompanying
nylon wench straps and heavy chains
p)electronics cords and chargers to
use with a car- such as charging your cellphone / Delorme Inreach
q) car emergency jumper battery as a
portable power source
r) solar panel and or bike powered
generator
s) lots of clean 5 gallon buckets with
lids
t) contractor trash bags
u) toilet paper, lots and lots of
toilet paper, toiletries, toothbrushes / paste, soap- lots of soap,
first aid kits
v) Food- long term shelf stable foods
that contain lots of potential room for growth.
Go to Winco as they are employee owned
and have the lowest prices on most food items, ½ gallon glass mason
jars filled with listed food and oxygen absorbers which are stored
in plastic 5 gallon buckets to protect from breakage, lentils /
mung beans for sprouting- 1 pound of seeds produces 6-10 pounds of
sprouts, Texturized Vegetable Protein (TVP)-soy based, white rice-
its not as healthy but is more shelf stable than brown rice,
fermented foods, canned foods and 2 can openers, also foods that
you eat everyday, Jerusalem artichokes / sunchokes- make sure these
are planted in something that will contain them but they take care
of themselves and grow exponentially, mealworms- they almost take
care of themselves and can be used as a possible protein source,
plant fertilizer and they reproduce exponentially as well ******
FIRE starters********* stainless steel cooking pots / utensils
w) paper phone books- to know where
stuff is located without the google
x) walkie talkies
y) bicycle
z) hand powered siphon pump and gas
can
****CASH***** Always try to have at
least $400 in twenties at all times.
Never let your gas tank get below half
full in your car.
Secure heavy items in your home such as
water heater, book shelves, cabinet doors, tv. Also secure your home
to its foundation.
WikiHomes has some nice earthquake
resistant building designs. Also cargo trailers or RV's could work
as a dry home in a pinch if your home is unlivable.
The only bridges in Portland that are
likely to survive are the new Trimet Orange Line bridge, the new
unfinished Sellwood Bridge, and possibly the downtown i-5 bridge over
the Willamette river (you can see the earthquake bridge retrofits
when driving southbound) though the on ramps and soils supporting the
on ramps and columns are not earthquake proofed, doh. Since downtown
Portland is completely surrounded by bridges it appears that the only
potential escape route is south under the i-5 bridge unless you don't
mind walking over rubble.
The tank farm along Forest Park is
toast which is bad news for anyone living in NW Portland or
downstream or downwind.
Make sure you have sturdy shoes stashed
beside your bed along with your gas turn off / water turn off wrench,
flashlight, and crowbar or fireman's ax.
You need a bug out bag packed and ready
to go at home and a get home bag packed and ready to go in your car and
at work.
It is time that we faced that facts about the ground which we live
upon here in the PNW. We wish you the best of luck with your life,
activism, and disaster prepping. Feel free to call / text us if you
have any questions or concerns or want to volunteer to be part of
VAN's Post Disaster Media Team. Be safe out there, VAN volunteers
