Preparing for potential disaster
28/09/24 03:12
A committee on which I serve has been working on options for expanding our church’s solar production and adding a battery backup system. The proposed arrangement would not only allow the church to be independent of the electrical grid, but also serve as a way to strengthen the grid when the power system is working properly and provide shelter to the neighborhood in the event of a prolonged grid failure. We have written and submitted several grant applications, but our project has not been funded at this time. We are considering other ways in which we might make progress toward our goal. Our church already has 88 solar panels producing electricity that power our building, reducing our energy costs and helping make our neighborhood a bit less dependent on outside electricity.
As part of the process of developing our plan, we have met regularly with County and City disaster preparedness officials to see how we might work with them to serve our community. In those conversations, I have learned a bit about some of the threats for which our community is preparing. This was a significant learning curve for me because I have lived much of my life where wildfire is the number one threat. We also lived for a while in a region that saw occasional tornadoes and citizens needed to be prepared for severe storms. Winter storms also present challenges for disaster preparedness in the Dakotas where we lived.
Here in the Pacific Northwest, disaster preparedness officials think about and plan for the possibility of a major earthquake. We live in what is known as the Pacific Ring of Fire, also known as the Circum-Pacific Belt, a region around the north Pacific Ocean characterized by active volcanoes and frequent earthquakes. I’m not a geologist and I don’t fully understand all of the dynamics involved, but in general the Pacific Plate is moving northwest at a speed slightly slower than 3 or 4 inches per year. Meanwhile the North American Plate is moving to the west-southwest at a bit less than an inch per year. Between them the small Juan De Fuca Plate, moving east-northeast at a slow pace is subjecting beneath the North America plate. That motion is not smooth, but rather it sticks and strain builds up until something breaks. This subduction is the cause of the volcanoes of the Cascade mountains and periodic slips of the plate cause relatively frequent earthquakes. Geologists predict that additional volcanic eruptions and major earthquakes are likely, but are not able to make accurate predictions in terms of the timing of these events.
On average this region has experienced a major subduction event about once in 550 years. Some scientists believe that such an event is likely and somewhat overdue. That doesn’t mean that an event will occur in our lifetime, but that the region continues to be vulnerable to earthquakes and volcanoes.
A major earthquake, like the 2011 Tōhoku earthquake and tsunami that struck Japan, would cause major damage and disruption in our region. We paid attention to those threats when we were shopping for our home here, choosing to consider only homes that are above the tsunami evacuation zone. A major earthquake, however, could disrupt systems upon which we depend. Disaster preparedness officials in Bellingham, where our church is located, estimate that an earthquake with power similar to the 9.0 Tōhoku quake could completely shut down the power grid and also water and sewer systems in the city. A major multi-grid failure could take years for restoration. Therefore the city is seeking shelters that might be able to operate in the event of grid shutdowns.
From time to time we receive some hints that the geology of our area is active. In July a 6.4 magnitude earthquake occurred off the west coast of Canada that could be felt in parts of our region. This week a moderate earthquake of 4.0 centered in the Haro Strait about 40miles west of where we live. It was enough for some people in our region to feel it. We didn’t experience the shaking, but the quake occurred early in the morning when we were still in bed. According to the U.S. Geological Survey website, more than 2,200 people reported feeling the quake. No tsunami warning was issued, but at noon that day, local officials ran a test of the tsunami warning sirens in our area. We have learned a bit about these tests. Officials always test right at noon and the blasts from the sirens are short. In the event of an actual tsunami warning the sirens would continue to sound over a longer period of time and the sound would coincide with the actual time of the issuance of the warning. We can hear the sirens down the hill from our home on the bay from our home.
Here in Birch Bay, the locals have a tradition that centers around the routine testing of the siren on New Year’s Day. On that day hundreds of people assemble on the beach and right at noon when the siren sounds, they all take a quick swim in the bay. The even is called the Polar Bear plunge. We don’t have any actual polar bears in our area, but last New Year’s Day, I participated in the plunge and I plan to do so each New Years Day that we are here as long as my health permits. It was a fun event.
Tsunamis, however, aren’t laughing matters. Were a major earthquake to cause a tsunami in the narrow Haro Straight, there would be major destruction and likely loss of life on the islands. In the beach areas thousands of buildings could be inundated by water with destruction being widespread. Evacuation plans are in place. In our community, the assembly point for evacuees is a former air force radar station that is a short walk from our home. It is reassuring that our home is in the zone considered safe even in the event of a worst-case scenario. Being save from the waters, however, does not mean that we would have essential services following a major earthquake.
Learning to live in our new home means making plans for possible disaster. Those plans are most effective when they are community plans rather than individual survival plans. As a result I continue to work to educate myself and coordinate with community officials. Like our church, our home has solar panels that produce more electricity than we consume. For now battery technology makes the installation of an off grid system on our home a steep investment, but technology is rapidly changing and we continue to explore possibilities.
As part of the process of developing our plan, we have met regularly with County and City disaster preparedness officials to see how we might work with them to serve our community. In those conversations, I have learned a bit about some of the threats for which our community is preparing. This was a significant learning curve for me because I have lived much of my life where wildfire is the number one threat. We also lived for a while in a region that saw occasional tornadoes and citizens needed to be prepared for severe storms. Winter storms also present challenges for disaster preparedness in the Dakotas where we lived.
Here in the Pacific Northwest, disaster preparedness officials think about and plan for the possibility of a major earthquake. We live in what is known as the Pacific Ring of Fire, also known as the Circum-Pacific Belt, a region around the north Pacific Ocean characterized by active volcanoes and frequent earthquakes. I’m not a geologist and I don’t fully understand all of the dynamics involved, but in general the Pacific Plate is moving northwest at a speed slightly slower than 3 or 4 inches per year. Meanwhile the North American Plate is moving to the west-southwest at a bit less than an inch per year. Between them the small Juan De Fuca Plate, moving east-northeast at a slow pace is subjecting beneath the North America plate. That motion is not smooth, but rather it sticks and strain builds up until something breaks. This subduction is the cause of the volcanoes of the Cascade mountains and periodic slips of the plate cause relatively frequent earthquakes. Geologists predict that additional volcanic eruptions and major earthquakes are likely, but are not able to make accurate predictions in terms of the timing of these events.
On average this region has experienced a major subduction event about once in 550 years. Some scientists believe that such an event is likely and somewhat overdue. That doesn’t mean that an event will occur in our lifetime, but that the region continues to be vulnerable to earthquakes and volcanoes.
A major earthquake, like the 2011 Tōhoku earthquake and tsunami that struck Japan, would cause major damage and disruption in our region. We paid attention to those threats when we were shopping for our home here, choosing to consider only homes that are above the tsunami evacuation zone. A major earthquake, however, could disrupt systems upon which we depend. Disaster preparedness officials in Bellingham, where our church is located, estimate that an earthquake with power similar to the 9.0 Tōhoku quake could completely shut down the power grid and also water and sewer systems in the city. A major multi-grid failure could take years for restoration. Therefore the city is seeking shelters that might be able to operate in the event of grid shutdowns.
From time to time we receive some hints that the geology of our area is active. In July a 6.4 magnitude earthquake occurred off the west coast of Canada that could be felt in parts of our region. This week a moderate earthquake of 4.0 centered in the Haro Strait about 40miles west of where we live. It was enough for some people in our region to feel it. We didn’t experience the shaking, but the quake occurred early in the morning when we were still in bed. According to the U.S. Geological Survey website, more than 2,200 people reported feeling the quake. No tsunami warning was issued, but at noon that day, local officials ran a test of the tsunami warning sirens in our area. We have learned a bit about these tests. Officials always test right at noon and the blasts from the sirens are short. In the event of an actual tsunami warning the sirens would continue to sound over a longer period of time and the sound would coincide with the actual time of the issuance of the warning. We can hear the sirens down the hill from our home on the bay from our home.
Here in Birch Bay, the locals have a tradition that centers around the routine testing of the siren on New Year’s Day. On that day hundreds of people assemble on the beach and right at noon when the siren sounds, they all take a quick swim in the bay. The even is called the Polar Bear plunge. We don’t have any actual polar bears in our area, but last New Year’s Day, I participated in the plunge and I plan to do so each New Years Day that we are here as long as my health permits. It was a fun event.
Tsunamis, however, aren’t laughing matters. Were a major earthquake to cause a tsunami in the narrow Haro Straight, there would be major destruction and likely loss of life on the islands. In the beach areas thousands of buildings could be inundated by water with destruction being widespread. Evacuation plans are in place. In our community, the assembly point for evacuees is a former air force radar station that is a short walk from our home. It is reassuring that our home is in the zone considered safe even in the event of a worst-case scenario. Being save from the waters, however, does not mean that we would have essential services following a major earthquake.
Learning to live in our new home means making plans for possible disaster. Those plans are most effective when they are community plans rather than individual survival plans. As a result I continue to work to educate myself and coordinate with community officials. Like our church, our home has solar panels that produce more electricity than we consume. For now battery technology makes the installation of an off grid system on our home a steep investment, but technology is rapidly changing and we continue to explore possibilities.
