Nisqually Earthquake + 10 Years
- John Cornelison
- February 28, 2011
Table of Contents
Taking advantage of the Nisqually Earthquake’s ten year anniversary were several retrospectives on note from key Washington disaster officials:
WEMD Director Jim Mullen posts his notes about how close we came to an even larger disaster, impacts of tightened budgetary constraints, and a chance meeting with FEMA’s head of preparedness efforts – who just happened to be in Christchurch for the latest quake: http://blogemd.blogspot.com/2011/02/thirteen-seconds.html
Seattle Office of Emergency Management Director, Barb Graff, pulled out a recent report that gives nice detail to the accomplishments done after the Nisqually Quake in Seattle: quite a lot!
Sadly this anniversary comes at a time that funding for the Pacific Northwest Seismic Network is facing significant budget cutbacks threatening many regional services.
Have you been following the big snowstorms back east? I’ve been listening in as distant friends and family rush to prepare, then hunker down to wait out the blizzard. Supermarkets are getting low on fresh foods, as families stock up in advance of the storm. Friends and family relate how they’re getting in extra bottled water and wondering how to maintain home heat and refrigeration if the power goes out. Maybe the gas tanks of their cars aren’t full, but they live in cities where they can walk to many essential services. In a city, the household plan for staying safe and comfortable may rely on municipal services, utility companies, and emergency responders. On rural and isolated Vashon, we don’t enjoy such a robust infrastructure, so we need to prepare as best we can, and be ready to help each other if possible.