Catastrophicosis

Given the still-stranded thousands who cannot hear the oft-repeated empty mantra "Help is on its way",
I think we will be safer if we realize that help is not on its way.

Pretty clear at this point is that we need to organize rescue & recovery plans for ourselves.
Our national security is at its weakest ebb.
When our major catastrophe strikes, much of the same type of incompetent and disconnected responding will most likely occur.
I can imagine a few notable exceptions.

There are those who will survive because they have means.
There are those who will help others survive.
There are those who will be unable to participate in their own rescue.
There are those who will be suddenly cut off from their methamphetamines and unable to behave or survive properly.
There are many who will flounder and fail.

What do you all think about developing a real local plan for ourselves and our families?
The recent Natural Hazards Mitigation Plan process in Covina was a tiny scrap of what needs to be done.
Few have seen the lengthy but shallow report that resulted from it, and only the Executive Summary portion is available at the city website.

We may not need boats, as the topography is different.
Most likely a big earthquake will leave no power, sewer, water, or shelter.
Big gas leaks, breached aquifer?
Possibly major fire?
Biohazards? Infectious vectors?

We will need some important things in place.
Water, medical, food.
Strategic local folks must be identified and made ready to deploy resources, which must also be staged strategically.
Evacuation plans must be well thought out and commonly known.
We all need to know exactly what course to take to secure each others' lives.
We are on our own, as we have always been.

Posted at by Duff from Covina on 09/05/05