whats the best thing you can do to protect yourself, your wife and 2 babies, in an event of an earthquake?

Question

we live on a tenth floor

Answer 1

Here is an email that I saved Called the Triangle of life--very good info if you live in earthquake country--it's long but worth it


My name is Doug Copp. I am the Rescue Chief and Disaster Manager of The
American Rescue Team International (ARTI), the world's most experienced
Rescue team. The information in this article will save lives in an
earthquake.

I have crawled inside 875 collapsed buildings, worked with rescue teams from
60 countries, founded rescue teams in several countries, and I am a member
of many rescue teams from many countries. I was the United Nations expert in
Disaster Mitigation for two years. I have worked at every major disaster in
the world since 1985, except for simultaneous disasters.

In 1996 we made a film which proved my survival methodology to be correct.
The Turkish Federal Government, City of Istanbul, University of Istanbul
Case Productions and ARTI cooperated to film this practical, scientific
test. We collapsed a school and a home with 20 mannequins inside. Ten
mannequins did "duck and cover," and ten mannequins I used in my "triangle
of life" survival method. After the simulated earthquake collapse we crawled
through the rubble and entered the building to film and document the
results. The film, in which I practiced my survival techniques under
directly observable, scientific conditions, relevant to building collapse,
showed there would have been zero percent survival for those doing duck and
cover.

There would likely have been 100 percent survivability for people using my
method of the "Triangle of Life" This film has been seen by millions of
viewers on television in Turkey and the rest of Europe, and it was seen in
the USA, Canada and Latin America on the TV program Real TV.

The first building I ever crawled inside of was a school in Mexico City
during the 1985 earthquake. Every child was under their desk. Every child
was crushed to the thickness of their bones. They could have survived by
lying down next to their desks in the aisles. It was obscene, unnecessary
and I wondered why the children were not in the aisles. I didn't at the time
know that the children were told to hide under something.

Simply stated, when buildings collapse, the weight of the ceilings falling
upon the objects or furniture inside crushes these objects, leaving a space
or void next to them. This space is what I call the "triangle of life". The
larger the object, the stronger, and the less it will compact.

The less the object compacts, the larger the void, the greater the
Probability that the person who is using this void for safety will not be
injured. The next time you watch collapsed buildings on television, count
the "triangles" you see formed. They are everywhere. It is the most common
shape, you will see, in a collapsed building. They are everywhere.

TEN TIPS FOR EARTHQUAKE SAFETY

1) Most everyone who simply "ducks and covers" when buildings collapse are
crushed to death. People who get under objects, like desks or cars, are
crushed.

2) Cats, dogs and babies often naturally curl up in the fetal position. You
should too in an earthquake. It is a natural safety/survival instinct. You
can survive in a smaller void. Get next to an object, next to a sofa, next
to a large bulky object that will compress slightly but leave a void next to
it.

3) Wooden buildings are the safest type of construction to be in during an
earthquake. Wood is flexible and moves with the force of the earthquake. If
the wooden building does collapse, large survival voids are created. Also,
the wooden building has less concentrated, crushing weight. Brick Buildings
will break into individual bricks. Bricks will cause many injuries but less
squashed bodies than concrete slabs.

4) If you are in bed during the night and an earthquake occurs, simply roll
off the bed. A safe void will exist around the bed. Hotels can achieve a
much greater survival rate in earthquakes, simply by posting a sign on the
back of the door of every room telling occupants to lie down on the floor,
next to the bottom of the bed during an earthquake.

5) If an earthquake happens and you cannot easily escape by getting out the
door or window, then lie down and curl up in the fetal position next to a
sofa, or large chair.

6) Most everyone who gets under a doorway when buildings collapse is killed.
How? If you stand under a doorway and the doorjamb falls forward or backward
you will be crushed by the ceiling above. If the door jam falls sideways you
will be cut in half by the doorway. In either case, you will be killed!

7) Never go to the stairs. The stairs have a different "moment of frequency"
(they swing separately from the main part of the building). The stairs and
remainder of the building continuously bump into each other until structural
failure of the stairs takes place. The people who get on stairs before they
fail are chopped up by the stair treads - horribly mutilated. Even if the
building doesn't collapse, stay away from the stairs. The stairs are a
likely part of the building to be damaged. Even if the stairs are not
collapsed by the earthquake, they may collapse later when overloaded by
fleeing people. They should always be checked for safety, even when the
rest of the building is not damaged.

8) Get Near the Outer Walls Of Buildings Or Outside Of Them If Possible - It
is much better to be near the outside of the building rather than the
interior. The farther inside you are from the outside perimeter of the
building the greater the probability that your escape route will be blocked.

9) People inside of their vehicles are crushed when the road above falls in
an earthquake and crushes their vehicles; which is exactly what happened
with the slabs between the decks of the Nimitz Freeway. The victims of the
San Francisco earthquake all stayed inside of their vehicles. They were all
killed. They could have easily survived by getting out and sitting or lying
next to their vehicles. Everyone killed would have survived if they had
been able to get out of their cars and sit or lie next to them. All the
crushed cars had voids 3 feet high next to them, except for the cars that
had columns fall directly across them.

10) I discovered, while crawling inside of collapsed newspaper offices and
other offices with a lot of paper, that paper does not compact. Large voids
are found surrounding stacks of paper.

Spread the word to everyone YOU care about and save someone's life!

Answer 2

1

Answer 3

Before Grunge it was hair metal. I know this. I was there. Did you forget that? Mediocre pretty boys, with big hair, too much make up and very poppy sounds? HAIR metal was the worst thing to happen to music, by a long shot. What could Bon Jovi possibly done fpr the music scene?

Answer 4

In a field!

If an earthquake occurs the chance of the building surving are not good - fall like a pack of cards if it has not been engineered taking earthquake activity into account. Also problematic is other building around you - how tall are they? Building during an earthquake will 'wobble' and 'sway'. Each buliding will do this differently depending on construction, stability and height and if it is build too close to another building good chance they will wobble into each other causing collapse........best idea, get a ranch!

Answer 5

An ounce of prevention...MOVE
Most modern buildings in earthquake zones are designed to withstand and earthquake by oscillating with the movements. The safest place in these structures is the inside stairwell or fire escape.
But really, MOVE
Move to a one story building in Nebraska

Answer 6

I've always heard that in the event of an earthquake, the best place to be is UNDER the doorway - apparently the construction there is stronger? I'm not an engineer- just telling you what I've heard.

Answer 7

Your #1 danger is your windows. Glass doesn't bend, and the most likely way you will be injured in a quake is 'exploding' glass. #1a is light fixtures that may fall. Duck (under something) Cover (your head) and Hold (more on this later).

Crib should be away from the window, and not under a light fixture.

#2 is large objects. Remember that during a big quake, stuff FLIES. Your stuff will fly more, because you are in a building that, assuming you live in California or perhaps Hawaii, are built to withstand a quake, and will bend. Bend A Lot. Like the Bonaventure, which I recall can bend over 15 degrees.

Fasten down those big bookcases and cabinets. When Ducking and Covering, Hold on to what you covers you. You will look silly underneath a dining room table when the table moves away.

Computer monitors are probably the #2 danger at the office. Fasten them to the desk.

#3. Doorways aren't good anymore. In an average home, the doorways have no structural strength. You are better off in a corner, away from a window.

Have an escape plan, and a meeting place. And have a second one, just in case. In a big quake, expect to get out of the building.

Answer 8

I'm with 'creative rae'., on all counts. I'd suggest that you don't be in a building, if possible, though. In the open, you'll fall over, and cut your knee, at worst, if you're in a spot that has no falling objects. If inside, though, get beside something that is harder to compress, than you are.

Answer 9

You will be hardly left with the few seconds from real destruction to the first sensing primary wave . You should not try to move from your flat. Best place is inside your house . Go under any hard table or cot keep some pillows on your head.Be alert. If you can buy one quake alarm you can fix it in your hall. Avoid standing near outer wall or near glass window. You can stay under inner door ways.

Answer 10

Here's my advice "bestyankeefan" - become a Red Sox fan - God hates the Yankees.

Answer 11

Dear Bestyankeefan,

Tenth FLoor is high!!!. Be sure to have water and all the supplies necessary and also when the quake comes, get to the bottom. They say int he bathtub. save your money and get a ground floor Apartment!!!