Earthquake Safety for Trailers

[Gypsy Freedom]

The author elaborates on the earthquakes occurring in the U.S. and the relationship they have with drilling,

it's easy for a youtuber to post on events that support his shtick

but i can make the same predictions. here goes. if you live near the ring of fire you're likely to encounter earthquakes

but until some one can give an hour or so notice of a bad quake to the level of accuracy the people will act and not have the crying wolf syndrome it is all useless unless you want to run around like chicken little everytime some one thinks thee might be an earthquake with in a few hundred miles over the next few days...

 

[MrNoodly]

But, when you arrive at the un-affected areas beyond the disaster zone...

So, after a 7.1 quake on the heels of a 6.4 quake, power was lost in the Ridgecrest area for... about 12 hours. The outages were due to downed lines and damaged switching stations, not a system-wide failure. Three highways blocked by slides were closed... until the middle of the next day. Meanwhile, other access roads were open. 

But that's a huge quake in a sparsely populated area. What about in a major metro area?

The Loma Prieta quake in 1989 (also called the World Series quake) devastated the Bay Area with power outages, fires, collapsed freeways and bridges. Yet most power was back on the next day (the rest the day after) and enough roads were unaffected so that transportation could route around the damage. Goods and services continued to flow.

The 6.7 Northridge earthquake in Los Angeles in 1994 collapsed highways and buildings and fractured streets and infrastructure. Power outages were spotty, not region-wide and service was restored quickly. Transportation was rerouted and life continued.

None of these disasters led to weeks-long power outages and post-apocalyptic chaos. Yes, people died and many were made homeless, but disruptive damage was localized, not regional. And the fact remains that people who live a mobile lifestyle are better able to ride out a disaster than most building dwellers because we're already packed up and ready to go, with our own provision and sources of electricity and heat. And we don't need to stay in damaged areas.

 

[Ticklebellly]

The 6.7 Northridge earthquake in Los Angeles in 1994 ............Transportation was rerouted and life continued.

Living in Anaheim not long after.   Had friends in the Hollywood Hills at the time.   Both families had thought about earthquakes before hand and were prepared to stay in place for up to 4 weeks.   Restaurant owner friends in Northridge reopened 4 days later with a pile of debris piled up in the carpark.

Living in the Embassy Suites in Brea in the early 90s when a pretty big one went off at Big Bear.   Lots of talk at breakfast next morning but very little disruption seen or experienced.   Guess my attitude is based on experience that being prepared of self sufficiency in place for 4 weeks is a reasonable buffer for something a little less than total disaster.   Water is my biggest concern.   Travel away is my least concern.

 

[tx2sturgis]

Ironically, what helps mitigate the effects that a major earthquake has on a large area, and it's residents and inhabitants, is the very fact that large initial earthquakes strike with little or no warning. 

So there is no advance warning on radio and TV (example: Magnitude 7.3 will hit the valley at 9:15 AM Tuesday!) that mobilizes shoppers to go stock up on food and water and generators before the ground shakes, and no 'pre-earthquake' price gouging of generators, plywood, tarps, bottled water, batteries, diapers, tents and gasoline.

Advance notice of huge incoming hurricanes that affect us over in the south and southeast tend to cause a LOT of mass stockpiling of supplies and provisions, traffic gridlock and sometimes millions of motorists on the highways trying to escape natures fury in the last few hours before the major storms make landfall. Not to mention looting.... before, during, and after the event.

And, of course, I was not stating that all of the negative effects (to the supply chain) from an earthquake are permanent...but they will surely be a problem for some people who are directly involved and might have the least  available resources. Often, nomadic travelers, van dwellers, and RVers only have a few days of food and water on board...yes, some RVs can carry more than 100 gallons of fresh water...but its more common in a van or small camp trailer to have 20 gallons of potable water or less, and maybe 1 to 2 weeks of groceries. And maybe a couple of 5 gallon gas cans. 

Maybe.

Many of these folks (and even the 'preppers') can ride out a short event, but an extended situation with limited or very expensive food, fuel, or water, could be a real problem....if it ever came to that.  How many of us carry around 20-50 pounds of dehydrated, shelf-stable food, stocked away for a 'rainy day'? And several water filters/purifiers that we might need to use for water that is from rivers, streams, or lakes? I sure as hell don't.

So, let's hope the Yellowstone Super-Eruption is not gonna happen anytime soon!

 

[MrNoodly]

Advance notice of huge incoming hurricanes that affect us over in the south and southeast tend to cause a LOT of mass stockpiling of supplies and provisions...

Hell, when I lived in Charlotte, just a hint of a possibility of maybe a quarter inch of snow had people cleaning out the grocery stores and shutting down schools and businesses.

 

[maki2]

You already have everything along that is in a home, emergency preparedness kit. Water, first aid, food, communication device, extra clothing, bedding, etc. I suppose you could have a small tent, you are likely to already have some type of tarp, canopy material or even a tent shelter for rigging a temporary shelter. No doubt you also have a small shovel along as well as a fire starter device and a small saw or hatchet. You have cooking pots too and jugs of water.

You can't stop a landslide and since you don't know if one will happen or not maybe you should avoid parking by under or near the edge of a slope. That would be true even if not in earthquake country. Don't park under trees that look unstable, also true no matter where or when.

 

[MrNoodly]

Avoid camping where there's only one way out. This is also not earthquake country exclusive. The road could flood or wash out, a fallen tree could block it, there could be a fire, or any number of other things.

 

[bullfrog]

Enjoy life and hope the end comes quickly when it comes. If you worry about remote possibilities that can occur in certain areas enough to make you worry stay out of those areas and be happy.

 

[B and C]

^^^X2 Gotta live until you die!

 

[hipsterreplacement]

They make jack stands that can clamp to frame of mobile homes so it it rides with it and I suggest finding a way to do same with travel trailers in earthquake prone areas. Though some travel trailer frames have I beams like a mobile home and you can use the same system on your travel trailer.

Yup, that's definitely one of my worries. I've gained a lot of weight in recent years so I already feel the trailer lurch around as I'm walking even with the stabilizers on all 4 corners. I can just imagine what it'll be like in a decent-sized quake. I don't know if there's such a thing as stabilizers that go between corners...

 

[hipsterreplacement]

None of these disasters led to weeks-long power outages and post-apocalyptic chaos. Yes, people died and many were made homeless, but disruptive damage was localized, not regional. And the fact remains that people who live a mobile lifestyle are better able to ride out a disaster than most building dwellers because we're already packed up and ready to go, with our own provision and sources of electricity and heat. And we don't need to stay in damaged areas.

We haven't had what's referred to as "The Big One" yet. Dr. Lucy Jones of Caltech and others who worked on the shakeout report predict some rather serious and lengthy disruption not just of power but, more importantly, water. I agree that folks who live in their vehicles are already prepared to bug out, but there are some bottlenecks in some areas, choke points. A section of the Bay Bridge fell down during Loma Prieta and that wasn't The Big One...it's not out of line to think some of the roads you're planning on bugging out over will be totaled for a while or shut down by authorities for inspection.

I'm still in the midst of moving so I wasn't able to check in for a while. I'm glad folks have jumped in on the thread because I think it's good to be prepared. And I welcome the experience you all are bringing to your answers.

 

[hipsterreplacement]

When I asked this on Twitter (to Dr. Lucy Jones), someone replied with a link to an auto-shutoff for propane that reputedly works for RV propane tanks. Not sure if that's true, but that's definitely along the lines of the preparedness I was thinking about. https://www.amazon.com/Watts-VAGV075-4-Inch-Earthquake-Shutoff/dp/B000FCEQXK

(Edited to add: Ah, here's the manufacturer's website: http://littlefirefighter.com/ )

I've lived through the Sylmar, Northridge, and Loma Prieta quakes (close enough for those to be big for me). I'm pretty well-versed in earthquake preparedness for a standard home, but was just trying to figure out those RV-specific things. Since I'm not traveling with it, but living in a trailer park, it's a little bit different than just treating it like a car, I reckon.

Though my instinct is to get out of the trailer ASAP, recent earthquake advice from scientists is trying to get me to think this through. Apparently lots of people break bones getting thrown to the ground as they try to run. So the current thinking on earthquakes is to lower yourself to the ground ASAP, and try to get under a sturdy desk or table if you can. You're more likely to injure yourself trying to get outside while the quake is happening than if you stay where you are (although I imagine there are certain exceptions like if you happen to be standing next to an open gas-fired flame or something).