My worst fear

[Vivo]

In September of 2009, my family and I survived the worst flood ever.... 15 feet of muddy water from an overflowed river gobbled up our home, destroyed my car, one motorbike, killed two rabbits, one dog, destroyed everything inside my house's first floor, brought trauma to all of us... after a few days, were back to our normal lives... Yesterday, the strongest hurricane in the world, a hurricane, so strong that it cannot be measured anymore by existing scientific scales... hit our country directly... I just had rum and some nuts... We have adjusted, and we have learned...learned how to deal with these things... and these makes us stronger.... However, the deepest flood and the strongest hurricanes are not my worst fears... they can come again and I'll just prepare for them.... We are waiting for the "Big One" ...  the big earthquake... the Marikina Valley fault, the country's longest faultline has not moved in 300+ years... and experts say, time is near...  How do you prepare for this? It could happen tomorrow or years from now....  And when it happens, how does one survive?  how does one recover? the damage of earthquakes is massive unlike a storm or flood, you'll just clean up afterwards...  One can prevent a war, hide from bullets, get a boat when there's flood, prepare for a hurricane... but an earthquake? a big one at that? We were hit by an intensity 7 just last month and it was compared to 32 atomic bombs that was dropped in Hiroshima... how strong will be "The Big One?  .....  Maybe we just have to live one day at a time.... just thinking...


Last month's quake...

[Stig / Major Tom]

In September of 2009, my family and I survived the worst flood ever.... 15 feet of muddy water from an

Very glad you and your's are OK, Vivo!
You know, there are some nice lots down the road from here for sale.
You could use your VA loan, plus you won't have typhoons, earthquakes and the like to worry about. We did have a couple of cows get loose once for half a day.....pretty exciting then I had a lie down.
You could open a scooter shop and I could teach counter steering to newbies.....soon as I get it figured out.

[08087]

Vivo! Wow, I'm reading about everything that's taken place in your neck of the woods and no words can describe it. About the pending earthquake, I'm afraid there is little you can do but move to prepare for that. Your country does not have the infrustructure to withstand an earthquake of any real magnitude. And worse, even if you build a home that could withstand such an event odds are you'd not be in it during the qarthquake anyway, god help those near taller buildings, even those in the street will suffer when they fall.

I have this feeling about you that your Island nation is and will remai your home. If I'm wrong and you are even thinking of moving to another part of the world I'm sure any number of the members here would help you in any way they could, even if it were just telling you which area near them is safe and a quality place to live. Real estate listings and alike are easy access via CPU, just tell us where you'd like to be and we'll all offer up an opinion. Take good care, our thoughts and prayers are with you, your family and countrymen.

David

[CROSSBOLT]

Saw pictures on www.cnn.com of the aftermath and was shocked. You and yours came through, right, Vivo?

Karl

[Vivo]

@ Crossbolt:  We're ok...thanks... can't even go halfway with those pictures in CNN... 


@ 08... Can't leave this place Sir.... this is our home... maybe I can let the kids go to a foreign land, but not me...  I believe that disaster happens.... where ever you may be...


By the way, another storm has entered.... same place...

[08087]

Well if ever we're here for you. Stay high stay dry, build a solid house (I know you have one) and hold on tight. Your in our collective thoughts.

@ Crossbolt:  We're ok...thanks... can't even go halfway with those pictures in CNN... 


@ 08... Can't leave this place Sir.... this is our home... maybe I can let the kids go to a foreign land, but not me...  I believe that disaster happens.... where ever you may be...


By the way, another storm has entered.... same place...

[TroutBum]

Like you Vivo, we in California are waiting on the big one as well. After the 1989 Loma Prieta earthquake I thought about moving, but like you where I was born and raised is my home. I accept that earthquakes are inevitable here. Even the big one. I just hope I don't regret my decision for my kids sake.

Vivo, you mentioned you maybe could let your kids go to a foreign land, but chances are they'll end up in Daly City, California. It's just south of San Francisco and about 40 north of me. Daly City has the highest concentration of Philippinos outside the Philippines.

My hope is someday they'll be able to predict earthquakes to give us enough advance warning so we can prepare. Until then unfortunately we have to accept 'at any moment and without warning'.

Stay well and prepare as best you can.

[Vivo]

@ Troutbum, thanks.. Yes Troutbum, Daly City.. they had a Filipino Mayor once... Hawaii also had a Filipino Governor... well, I have a brother in Houston and cousins in Colorado, Illinois, and Florida... maybe they can also suggest on what decision I may make..

[houndguy]

Glad you and your family are OK.  Please keep us updated. 

[ts1]

Hey Vivo,

good you are ok.
You are far away from the disaster?

My relatives had some impact from the earthquake/tsunami 2005, although they live 5km apart the coast on a hill.
The poor and homeless will try to get whatever they need.

I think you have nearly every disaster there (not to forget Pinatubo & Co).
But at least no nuclear power plant prone to fail.
The Caesium137 littered by wind from Chernobyl 1986 has a radioactive half time of 30 years and the neighboring countries, incl. Europe, will recover slowly with the next generations. But the protection shelter over the destructed power plants still need frequent repairs and rebuilds!
The Chernobyl exclusion zone is actually 4300 square kilometres and will probably remain inhabitable during lifetime of mankind.

That's my worst fear. We have several nuclear power plants in the neighborhood. And of course Central Europe would be the main arena for a hypothetical world war 3.