Whatcom County CERT

Three hundred and twenty years ago today, life changed irreversibly for an untold number of people whose names we will never know. What were they doing three hundred and twenty years ago today? They were living where we now live, raising families, fishing, farming, and hunting, squabbling over petty matters, adjudicating serious matters, the well and strong tending to the weak and ill, washing clothes, building homes, chatting and singing, making law, making love, making art, fetching water, cooking dinner; mostly doing things familiar to us all. In less than twenty-four hours, all of that changed. But, not as much as it will change for us eventually. Those people didn’t have buried utilities, battery-powered light and information, brittle buildings and bridges, distant relations and healthcare. Those peoples’ descendants are still here, three hundred and twenty-two years later, living different lives to be sure, but probably no more different than our lives are from our ancestors’ if separated by over three centuries. Will our descendants still be here in three hundred years and will they have the same resilience? Will they behave differently and be better prepared because they have knowledge that our ancestors lacked?

Thunderbird and the Orphan Tsunami: Cascadia 1700 It's the 316th anniversary of the 1700 Cascadia megathrust earthquake and tsunami! 

Flooding remains the most common type of disaster in the U.S. and is a seasonal hazard across the country. Near-record rainfall commenced in the upper Midwest in the first weeks of January 1937, leading to flooding in the Ohio River basin starting on January 18. Flooding was the cause of 350 deaths and nearly one million people made homeless, with major impacts in the states of Ohio, Indiana, Illinois, Kentucky, and West Virginia.

https://www.weather.gov/iln/1937OhioRiverFlood
https://www.cincinnati.com/story/news/history/2016/01/26/date-1937-flood-crests-799-feet/79301880
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ohio_River_flood_of_1937

Ohio River flood of 1937 - Wikipedia The Ohio River flood of 1937 took place in late January and February 1937. With damage stretching from Pittsburgh to Cairo, Illinois, 385 people died, one million people were left homeless and property losses reached $500 million ($8.723 billion when adjusted for inflation as of January 2019). Feder...

On the morning of January 13, 1915, the central Italian town of Avezzano was struck by a M6.7 earthquake. Structures throughout the town were devastated and approximately 30,000 fatalities occurred in a community whose population did again rise past 30,000 until the mid-1970s.

https://seismo.berkeley.edu/blog/2009/04/06/tragedy-in-the-heart-of-italy.html
https://worldhistoryproject.org/1915/1/13/avezzano-earthquake-of-1915
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1915_Avezzano_earthquake

1915 Avezzano earthquake - Wikipedia The 1915 Avezzano earthquake or 1915 Fucino earthquake occurred on 13 January in central Italy at 07:52:42 local time. The shock had a moment magnitude of 6.7 and a maximum Mercalli intensity of XI (Extreme). The epicenter was located in the town of Avezzano (which was destroyed) in the Province of....

https://content.govdelivery.com/accounts/USDHSFEMA/bulletins/3042d1e

Individual and Community Preparedness Division January 2022 Newsletter: Winter Safety, 10th Anniversary of YPC and More Individual and Community Preparedness Division January 2022 Newsletter: Winter Safety, 10th Anniversary of YPC and More Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) sent this bulletin at 01/06/2022 12:14 PM EST In This Issue: Ready Tips CERT & Communities Children and Disasters Financial Preparedness....

Both the Pacific coast (Olympic Peninsula and southwestern Washington) and the inner coast (Puget Sound) of Washington face risk of tsunami that originate from a variety of sources. Learn more about tsunami at the resources linked below and practice tsunami awareness whenever you or those you care about are near the shoreline.

https://mil.wa.gov/tsunami
https://www.un.org/en/observances/tsunami-awareness-day

Tsunami | Washington State Military Department, Citizens Serving Citizens with Pride & Tradition For the 10th year in a row, hundreds of thousands of people in Washington state will participate in the world’s largest earthquake and tsunami drill: The Great ShakeOut.At 10:21 a.m. on Oct. 21, you’re invited to drop, cover and hold on wherever you are – whether it’s at work, home or school...