Living Well Last Friday morning, the northeastern U.S. felt the rumbles of a 4.8 magnitude earthquake...
Thankfully, no major damage or injuries were reported, but it came just days after a much larger earthquake in Taiwan – 7.4 magnitude – caused buildings to crumble and led to at least 13 deaths.
All of this news about earthquakes has lots of folks wondering when the next "big one" will be... meaning the type of event that kills thousands, causes billions of dollars in damage, and wipes out essential services.
Even with today's technology, earthquakes are nearly impossible to predict. We have an idea of where earthquakes are likely to occur but not when. And we really can't know how big an earthquake will be until it hits.
The U.S. had more than 15,000 earthquakes last year...
Most of those were small. A "major" earthquake is one that registers 7.0 to 7.9 magnitude. Alaska had a 7.2 magnitude earthquake last year, which was the largest in the U.S. for 2023.
Americans at most risk of major earthquakes live along the western edge of North America. This is part of the Ring of Fire (a ring around the Pacific Ocean plagued by volcanic eruptions and earthquakes).
But, as we saw last week, the East Coast isn't immune from earthquake risks. And we've seen the incredible amounts of damage earthquakes can cause...
Last year, a 7.8 magnitude earthquake in the Middle East killed around 60,000 people across Turkey and Syria, with damage amounting to more than $150 billion.
Collapsing buildings aren't the only risk that earthquakes present... after the shaking, a tsunami can also follow.
In 2015, the New Yorker magazine published a story describing how vulnerable the West Coast is to a huge earthquake. It pointed out that, in the event of a tsunami:
The water will surge upward into a huge hill, then promptly collapse. One side will rush west, toward Japan. The other side will rush east, in a seven-hundred-mile liquid wall that will reach the Northwest coast, on average, fifteen minutes after the earthquake begins.
By the time the shaking has ceased and the tsunami has receded, the region will be unrecognizable.
If that happens, for those on the coast... it's going to be rough living. As the New Yorker article states, "Whoever chooses or has no choice but to stay there will spend three to six months without electricity, one to three years without drinking water and sewage systems, and three or more years without hospitals."
You might be thinking, "Well, lucky thing I'm far from the Pacific coast." But one catastrophe or another can strike anywhere in the U.S.
The nonprofit First Street Foundation concluded that 39 million U.S. homes are vulnerable to other types of natural disasters... wind, flood, or wildfire. No matter which one is the biggest danger to your home, you need to be prepared for the next big disaster – one that could leave you without the comforts of modern society for even short periods of time.
Could you survive six months without electricity? A year without a working sewage system? What about just a week? Do you have enough drinking water on hand for your family to rely on?
Two simple tips could save your life...
1. Keep enough distilled water to last for at least one week. You'll need a liter per person per day. And when a storm is headed my way (or another crisis that can cause power outages), I fill up my freezer with water containers. A full freezer keeps frozen food cold for 48 hours, twice as long as a half-full freezer.
2. Always keep extra food in your house that doesn't require refrigeration. I recently purchased a case of 32 freeze-dried meals. They just need a little water before they're ready to eat. My only worry is what wine to pair with them (cheap reds, I think). I also rotate approximately 50 cans of soup and beans in my cupboard at a time.
These things are the absolute minimum you can do to prepare for a natural disaster. They're low-effort precautions that can go a long way.
These tips are just the start of the steps that you absolutely must take to protect yourself... and your family...
If you want to be fully prepared for almost any crisis, I wrote an entire book chronicling the advice I've collected, developed, and implemented, called The Doctor's Protocol Field Manual.
It details how to handle real-life crises: from what to do on a crashing jetliner, to how to ship your assets offshore, to the must-have items for surviving an enduring crisis. Use it as your go-to guide in almost any type of crucial situation.
And for when the "big one" hits, it explains why – contrary to conventional wisdom – most people should not stand in a doorframe...
Get your copy of The Doctor's Protocol Field Manual here.
My Retirement Millionaire subscribers also have access to a digital copy right here.
What We're Reading...
- Something different: JPMorgan Chase CEO Jamie Dimon says, "We are completely convinced the consequences [of AI] will be extraordinary."
Here's to our health, wealth, and a great retirement,
Dr. David Eifrig and the Health & Wealth Bulletin Research Team
April 9, 2024