Preparing For "The Big One"

"could california fall intothe pacific ocean duringa bad earthquake?"

Um... I don't think that's going to happen, but if you're really worried about it, you're more than welcome to move back to Wisconsin where there's lots of cheese and snow. In fact, please do! Make traffic on the 101 Freeway less nightmarish for those of us who stay in this great state, okay?

It's true. A ginormous earthquake, AKA "The Big One", is gonna happen sometime in the future. And given that, I totally "get" why you're searching the Internet for "could california fall intothe pacific ocean duringa bad earthquake?".

Since your Google search led you to me, let me reassure you: During an earthquake, you and I are more likely to die from my collection of Depeche Mode records flying off a shelf and whacking us between the eyebrows than from this entire state and it's porn industry falling into the Pacific Ocean.

I only know this because last week I got invited to a "Disaster-Proof Your Home" session put on by the California Volunteers initiative "We Prepare". I trekked to blogger Queen of Spain's home and we spent the morning with amazingly knowledgeable Los Angeles Fire Captain, Stacy Gerlich. She runs the Community Emergency Preparedness Team (CERT) and trains folks on how they can prepare and keep themselves earthquake safe.

Captain Gerlich took us around Queen of Spain's house and pointed out easy safety improvements. For example, in a big earthquake, if you don't bolt your seven foot tall bookcase to the wall, it's gonna fall over.

I know, you don't want to bolt the bookcase because you don't want holes in the walls. You're thinking, "What if I wanna move it later?"

But as Captain Gerlich said, if you die because the bookcase falls on top of you, well, you're not gonna be able to move anything anyway so you might as well bolt it!

Yeah, I had a total crush on Captain Gerlich by the end of the morning because wowzer, she knows her stuff! She made me realize how really basic things like making an Emergency Plan, knowing how to turn off the gas and water in my apartment and latching my kitchen cabinets with safety locks can make a huge difference.

And where should I go if I'm standing in my living room and The Big One hits? Here's Captain Gerlich demonstrating:



As an added bonus, the California Volunteers folks generously decided to give me 12 disaster preparation kits to give away!

Even if you don't live here in California, you know earthquakes aren't the only disaster-game in town. Depending on where you live, you may also be BFF's with hurricanes, fires, tornadoes and severe rainstorms.

Given that you could easily be in an emergency, I know you want to win one of these nifty kits! They've got flashlights, water packs, food, whistles, an emergency blanket and some band-aids in them. Just be one of the first 12 to comment on this post, and be living in the Continental United States!

In the meantime, don't forget to make your Disaster Prep Plan and use some of the resources at the California Volunteers site to make your safer. Remember, even though California isn't falling into the Pacific, your bookcase can fall on you, so be prepared!