Having a background in Emergency Management, we always operated on the axiom that we were 15 days away from a total collapse of civilized society. That turned out to be WAY too optimistic. Even the 72 hour (just in time logistics) window is probably too generous. Stores will be cleaned out in hours, and your access to fuel will be gone almost immediately. Fun fact: The EMP Commission calculated that 90 % of Americans would be dead 6 months after a collapse of the electrical grid. Yee Haw!
Agreed. People almost immediately start asking a simple question: when will power be restored? Many believe the government will come to their rescue. However, the government will face its own challenges. Can you imagine a city like LA or the entire San Francisco Bay Area hit by a massive quake that causes overpasses to collapse and bridges to be so damaged that you can't even walk across them? I live about 3 miles from California's only nuclear power plant. Twice a year, they test the sirens. There's basically only one road out of the area heading north and south, and two roads going east. If there’s a failure at the plant, gridlock would be deadly. Panic would spread rapidly. It's a frightening thought. But here I am, happy as ever for an old man.
I was involved with the planning of evacuating Atlanta in the event of an emergency. I looked around the room and stated that we try it every day. It is called "Rush Hour," and it lasts for over 6 hours, and we FAIL.
Year and a half ago, I was in the end stages of building my house.
I had started the project living in a tent with my dogs, then when the concrete was poured and cured in November, I moved into the shell of the house and started pounding nails.
I had a generator to run my power tools, propane burner to cook on and I was getting water from a spring (runs ~ 2 gals/minute); never boiled it.
When Hurricane Helene hit, it was bad never want to do *that* again, but I had no idea how bad for the 2 days it took to clear trees off my road. It was just another day to me.
Yes, I would eventually feel a sting when fuel was no longer available, but I could survive without too much suffering.
Having a background in Emergency Management, we always operated on the axiom that we were 15 days away from a total collapse of civilized society. That turned out to be WAY too optimistic. Even the 72 hour (just in time logistics) window is probably too generous. Stores will be cleaned out in hours, and your access to fuel will be gone almost immediately. Fun fact: The EMP Commission calculated that 90 % of Americans would be dead 6 months after a collapse of the electrical grid. Yee Haw!
Agreed. People almost immediately start asking a simple question: when will power be restored? Many believe the government will come to their rescue. However, the government will face its own challenges. Can you imagine a city like LA or the entire San Francisco Bay Area hit by a massive quake that causes overpasses to collapse and bridges to be so damaged that you can't even walk across them? I live about 3 miles from California's only nuclear power plant. Twice a year, they test the sirens. There's basically only one road out of the area heading north and south, and two roads going east. If there’s a failure at the plant, gridlock would be deadly. Panic would spread rapidly. It's a frightening thought. But here I am, happy as ever for an old man.
I was involved with the planning of evacuating Atlanta in the event of an emergency. I looked around the room and stated that we try it every day. It is called "Rush Hour," and it lasts for over 6 hours, and we FAIL.
Year and a half ago, I was in the end stages of building my house.
I had started the project living in a tent with my dogs, then when the concrete was poured and cured in November, I moved into the shell of the house and started pounding nails.
I had a generator to run my power tools, propane burner to cook on and I was getting water from a spring (runs ~ 2 gals/minute); never boiled it.
When Hurricane Helene hit, it was bad never want to do *that* again, but I had no idea how bad for the 2 days it took to clear trees off my road. It was just another day to me.
Yes, I would eventually feel a sting when fuel was no longer available, but I could survive without too much suffering.
Similar experience with Ike many years ago.