Whole Lotta Shaking Going On

Another earthquake in Tohoku, this one resulting in over 130 injuries but luckily no deaths and rather limited damage compared with the previous one, has reminded me that I should review the contents of my earthquake kit and other post-quake survival gear.

One of the reasons that I had a deep well dug on my property in Kumagaya, and the main reason that I had a manual pump installed in addition to an electric one, is to ensure the availability of water in the event of a really serious earthquake. I'm told that the local fire department uses well water for their fire hydrants, which suggests that they don't want to rely on the city-supplied water mains any more than I do.

If you're going to live in an earthquake-prone place like Japan, it's certainly a good idea to prepare for a really big one that will probably result in a week or more without reliable supplies of water, food, gas, or electricity.

I've got lots of camping gear and plenty of stuff to keep me pretty comfortable and healthy for quite a while roughing it until the authorities get their act together. Assuming I survive the quake itself, I should be OK afterward, and could probably offer a fair bit of hospitality to my less well prepared neighbors.

I really should ensure more often that the canned and freeze-dried food has been rotated so that I'm not forced to live on stuff that's too far past its "best by" date, though.