Disasters: During and afterward

• If you know the water may go out in advance, fill the bathtub with cold water and turn off the cold-water valve going into the hot water tank. Both hold a large volume of water. Turn off the water main to prevent contaminated water from entering.
• If you drain the water heater for potable water, be sure to turn it off. Running it empty can ruin it.
• Do not be selfish. Work hard to help others. Share your stuff. People who work together do all right. People perceived as selfish don't get help when they need it.
• Be prepared to shut off the gas, water, or electricity if you need to. Do not shut off the gas unless necessary, because only the gas company can safely turn it back on. This could take a month if they are busy.
• Check the house & garage IMMEDIATELY after an earthquake (or anything else that can damage your house) for fire, shorts, and gas leaks. Do not turn any switches on or off or unplug anything until you check for gas leaks (switches commonly make a small spark). If you need light to check for gas leaks, use a lightstick of a flashlight that runs on a single 1.5V AA, AAA, or coin battery. It takes more than 2 volts to make a spark. Turn multi-cell flashlights on & off outside.
• Unplug your electronics if the power might be affected. Power failures, electrical storms, and floods affect the power. Power line problems can damage your electronics.
• Start preparing to evacuate if you think it might be necessary.
• Stay off the phones! Nobody can get through to 911 because everyone responds to an emergency by calling their family & friends to talk about it. When people call, tell them to stay off the phones.
• Make sure the phones have not been shaken off the hook. Those phones tie up the lines.
• Knock on the neighbors doors, make sure they are OK, and tell them all to stay off the phone. After a disaster, the phones are ONLY for distress calls.
• Do not hang up if there is no dial tone, wait for one.
• Pay phones are the most likely phones to work after a disaster.
• Do not use the toilet if there is no water. Tape the lid down right away so nobody forgets. Dig a hole and rig a privacy tarp. Digging a hole is a problem in cities, so line a wastebasket with a garbage bags, tie it after use, and put it in the garbage outside. Use a bucket to fetch creek-water if someone uses the toilet. Improvised sanitation bag: Line a plastic grocery bag with newspaper, and line that with another grocery bag.
• Do not put food in the garbage disposal when the power or water is out, lest your sink clog and stink. Cover it so nobody forgets.
• Do not open the refrigerator or freezer unless necessary if the power is out. Keep the cold in. Tape the door shut right away so nobody forgets. An unopened half-full freezer keeps food safe to refreeze for about a day, a full freezer lasts about 2 days. Cooking when this time is up can save food. Food with ice crystals can be refrozen.
• Buying ice converts a refrigerator into an icebox to preserve food. Dry ice keeps the food in a freezer frozen.
• Floodwater usually contains sewage. Treat floodwater like it came right out of the toilet.
• Floodwater renders food, pots, and dishes unsafe. Wash thoroughly and then disinfect for 15 minutes by bleach disinfectant solution or boiling.
• Discard food exposed to smoke or firefighting chemicals. Scrub pots, dishes, etc, and then use bleach disinfectant solution.
• In case of flood, assume the tap water is contaminated until tested.
• Dilute bleach 10-1 for disinfectant solution.
• Use 1/4 teaspoon of unscented bleach to sterilize a gallon of drinking water. Mix & wait 30 minutes. Add 6 more drops & wait again if you cannot smell the bleach. The fragrance in some scented bleaches is poisonous.
• If the tap water is not safe, prepare bleach disinfectant solution for washing.
• If you must use creekwater, filter it through 2 coffee filters before sterilizing with bleach.
• If you touch something that touched floodwater, and later eat before washing your hands, you may get violently ill.
• Do not try to "help" animals. A frightened small animal can tear you up.
• Someone trying to help a small animal sounds like this: "Oh the poor little thing! He needs help! I'll help you little fellow. AAAAAHHH! GET IT OFF! GET IT OFF! I sure wish I could get seen at a hospital!"
• Do not use power tools you are not experienced with, especially chain saws. Wait for someone experienced.
• Do not use sources of fire you are not experienced with, especially oil lamps. A disaster is much harder to deal with after burning oil goes everywhere.
• Resist using candles in most situations. They can tip over and start fires. Lit candles are irrestible to children, who might burn the place down.
• Disasters displace snakes & rodents. Expect this and be careful.
• Do not drive through water. Just 3 inches of water can stall an engine and less than 12 inches can float the car (this is a bad thing). Most Americans who die in floods do so in their car.
• In a chemical spill, turn off the heater, air conditioner, bathroom fans, and all other fans that suck in outside air. Retreat to one room of the house and seal the cracks around the doors and windows with duct tape.
• Some water sources should never be used for drinking. Never drink from automobile radiators, waterbeds, or floodwater.
• Photograph damage for insurance.
• Hospitals cannot handle disasters that produce lots of injuries. Do not waste time going to the hospital unless there is no other way to save a life. They probably have one emergency room bed per 20,000 people. If there are more than half a dozen emergency patients they expect to send them to nearby hospitals.