You may have heard by now that the Washington area was rattled by a 3.6 magnitude earthquake about 5 o'clock this morning (the largest recorded ever by the USGS within 30 miles of Washington), prompting calls to local emergency services and lots of excited conversation on the Metro. Though transplants from California have been walking around my office muttering "Earthquake? That was no earthquake!", other folks have been talking about the need to check with insurance agents and home inspectors about possible damages. More than one person has mentioned that though they always get flood insurance in DC, they never even contemplated possible earthquake damage.
All of which raised the question of whether most folks plan for all possibilities or just plan for the probables, and whether or not those decisions grow from an assessment of the current situation or are informed by past experiences. My husband grew up in the midwest and so is always alert to the possibilities of tornadoes whereas I am always shocked when a twister touches down briefly in this area. On the other hand, I grew up in DC and so would never have contemplated a basement rental in college; several friends from out West who pooh-poohed my concerns were horrified when torrential summer rains flooded their Georgetown digs.
What about you? When you are making decisions about your home (where to live, what kind of insurance to get, etc) do you plan ahead for every possible situation or just for the ones that you consider most likely? If you only consider the most likely, is that based on the actual probabilities for your area or on what you think is most probable based on your experience? Have you ever been on the wrong end of such a decision?
Images: 1. Tornado in Parker CO by Ryan-o, 2. Hurricanes Darby & Celia by NASA, 3. Flooding in Nashville by tandemracer, 4. Sandstorm in Kuwait by Steve Copley all licensed for use under Creative Commons
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A person could go broke, insane and miserable trying to insulate themselves from all the "What-Ifs" in the world.
Stuff happens - It's what one does afterwards that shows the true mettle of a person.
We just had a tornado yesterday in southern CA. In Riverside (between LA and San Diego). Crazy weather.
Native Kansans (which I am one) sometimes joke that tornado sirens are signals to go outside and watch.
I know that I wouldn't want to live in a volcano or hurricane or earthquake-prone area just because I'm not familiar with those things. Tornadoes I know. What to do when one approaches was ingrained in me starting in kindergarten. I've always lived in the midwest and feel comfortable with the weather as nuts as it is. Although earthquakes on the New Madrid fault (southeastern MO) can sometimes be felt up here, I don't really consider them to be significant and don't feel the need to prepare for one.
In South Florida (from whence I came), it is silly and irresponsible not to heed Hurricane Season with some very easy, very basic steps of preparation. Sure, there are a lot of near misses, but its sort of a given that *something* will happen, and preparation for the inconvenience afterwards is fairly easy.
Why there continue to be MASSIVE lines at Home Depot with each Hurricane Warning down there is just a mystery. What are y'all doing with the plywood once the storm passes??? KEEP IT FOR NEXT TIME. There WILL BE a next time!
And for those doing renovations or home improvements down there, do yourself a favor and install gas hot water heaters and stoves when you can. It will make you the most popular house on your block when the rest of the neighborhood is without electricity.
But to those further northwest, how you prepare for tornadoes is another mystery. And THOSE terrify me.
Um, "*it's* sort of a given"
Henrietta and kushkush, that was for you. :)
It was a 3.2 in Maryland, and no one outside of that particular area even felt it. I went hours without realizing there had been an earthquake, until I started my daily regimen of checking Washington Post and DCist and found out there had been some minor rumbles. Could something worse have happened? Perhaps. But the DC area is definitely not an earthquake prone area, and like bepsf said, you'll go insane planning for every what-if.
I grew up with Midwestern tornadoes, but have never been in an earthquake. I think the fear is all in what you are unfamiliar with. And I too have wondered why there is always a stampede for plywood before hurricanes - in fact, I would think the usable shutter would be a huge thing in Gulf Coast housing designs, but I guess not. It's the same bafflement as to why everyone has to buy a shovel before a big snowstorm in NY. Did you really throw the last one away when Spring hit?!
I live just a couple of miles from the epicenter but didn't feel the quake. I thought the noise was from a train and went back to sleep.
I do have an earthquake endorsement on my renter's insurance, though. It's just a few dollars a year. I swear I didn't go insane planning. The insanity comes from decorating my apartment.
Having lived in California all my life I generally don't worry too much about earthquakes. Certainly not as much as I should given that I live in the Bay Area. I suspect if I moved somewhere else and someone suggested that I, to borrow Colleen's example, not rent a basement apartment I would probably do some research and try to get a feel for how likely it really is before making a decision.
Stuff happens. Plan for the probable and it'll help you through the improbable too. It's not like that kit of food, water and medical supplies won't work just as well for a tornado as it would for an earthquake. But definitely don't make yourself crazy with it.
@ home body re: snow shovel-- hysterical!
Growing up in Seattle and living in San Diego, earthquakes are a very integral part of life. There might be something wrong with me because I rarely feel anything stronger than a 4.2, but a lot depends on where you are at the time. Let me tell you, feeling the Easter 7.2 in LOWES was a unique experience.
As a homeowners insurance claims adjuster, people ask me all the time what the best coverage to get is.
My answer is always to get everything possible you think could potentially happen. I often times deny claims just because someone didn't think to add a certain endorsement which may have afforded them coverage.
Things like mold and sewer back-ups are typically excluded under your Homeowners insurance. When you pay a little extra each month though and add on these endorsements, a portion of your claim that might not have been covered, is.
It's better paying $5 extra month instead of trying to come up with $10,000 out of pocket.
I live in southern CA and I don't have earthquake insurance. No one I know has it. Most people here don't because it's incredibly expensive (only about 12% of Californians do). It probably ought to make me nervous, but my family has lived here for nearly 70 years and never had earthquake damage to one of our houses. I currently live in a newish house built to current earthquake standards which makes me feel like that money is better off in my 401K than down the insurance drain. Now if I lived in a historic house built out of unreinforced brick sitting on a fault line, then that would be a different story.
Knock on wood......
You can't buy insurance for everything. They don't offer policies for everything, and each additional policy has exclusions.
You can't eliminate your risk in life, why try in insurance?
And for those who have earthquake insurance in DC, I bet if something did happen, there'd be something in the policy that prevents you from collecting. You just didn't have the right endorsement.
I'm also bitter after hearing the insurance industry would not sell earthquake insurance in SF because of the Haiti earthquake. Because they had insured so much there.
Goodness sakes people, just a little bit of prep doesn't make you paranoid. At least have a few days of water around.
http://urbanrucksack.blogspot.com/
I think, beyond planning for the probable, an emergency savings account can help with the "I never imagined that would happen!". I'm in the DC area, so flood insurance might be worth the money (I'm a renter -- all I have is renter's insurance). But the chances that I have damage due to tornado or earthquake are minimal -- it wouls be silly to buy insurance for it. If I have some savings, it's good whether there's a freak earthquake, an unexpected termite invasion, or the car just dies.
General emergency preparedness (water, canned goods, batteries/flashlight, savings account) preparing for things that are likely to happen in your area (floods and terrorists, for me) is probably more than sufficient.
im in the Bay Area where no one seems to have earthquake insurance - and even my home insurance salesman (who was in so cal) vehement discouraged it!
mass denial?