twintubdexter
Well-known member
Priorities...
<span style="font-size: 14pt; color: #008000;">I've lived in California all of my 69 years and have been through several "shakes". Same with my parents who were native Californians. Where I grew up, the house next door was owned by an elderly lady, Mrs. Leonard. She was from San Francisco and told fascinating stories of the 1906 Earthquake. Their house, on a hill, remained standing but many people sat on their front lawn and watched The City as it burned.</span>
<span style="font-size: 14pt; color: #008000;">The Loma Prieta quake was by far the worst I've experienced. Oddly enough I don't recall many fires in Santa Clara County being reported. Most of the damage was to brick chimneys, Earthquake insurance isn't much help when you have a typical $35,000 deductible unless you live in a mansion with a half-dozen fireplaces. and that was way back then. There were reports of self-induced arson since most people had fire coverage. I was at home at the time but went back to the Orchard Supply Hardware store I worked at to see if I could help. The store was heavily damaged on the inside. No power, the emergency generator (gas) did not kick in so it was pitch black. It was difficult to breath since entire aisles of volatile chemicals, many in glass containers, had fallen over. There was a sizable crowd outside demanding supplies. We had to escort people in and of course gave them what they wanted, flashlights, batteries, bottled water and the like...all free of course. It only took a couple of hours before we were out of just about everything. I personally don't recall anyone demanding a lawnmower or a Weber BBQ but there probably was.</span>
<span style="font-size: 14pt; color: #008000;">The one thing I do vividly recall is that after things died down and we went to lock the doors (difficult since the frames were bent) was being told by people who refused to believe that we had nothing left "you might as well not lock those doors because as soon as you leave we're going to smash that glass and take what we want". The point here is that in the event of a large quake, your gas appliances may prove to be the least of your worries. I guess we all have different experiences when a crisis hits. Some people are saints, other change quickly into monsters.</span>
[this post was last edited: 7/23/2019-14:22]
<span style="font-size: 14pt; color: #008000;">I've lived in California all of my 69 years and have been through several "shakes". Same with my parents who were native Californians. Where I grew up, the house next door was owned by an elderly lady, Mrs. Leonard. She was from San Francisco and told fascinating stories of the 1906 Earthquake. Their house, on a hill, remained standing but many people sat on their front lawn and watched The City as it burned.</span>
<span style="font-size: 14pt; color: #008000;">The Loma Prieta quake was by far the worst I've experienced. Oddly enough I don't recall many fires in Santa Clara County being reported. Most of the damage was to brick chimneys, Earthquake insurance isn't much help when you have a typical $35,000 deductible unless you live in a mansion with a half-dozen fireplaces. and that was way back then. There were reports of self-induced arson since most people had fire coverage. I was at home at the time but went back to the Orchard Supply Hardware store I worked at to see if I could help. The store was heavily damaged on the inside. No power, the emergency generator (gas) did not kick in so it was pitch black. It was difficult to breath since entire aisles of volatile chemicals, many in glass containers, had fallen over. There was a sizable crowd outside demanding supplies. We had to escort people in and of course gave them what they wanted, flashlights, batteries, bottled water and the like...all free of course. It only took a couple of hours before we were out of just about everything. I personally don't recall anyone demanding a lawnmower or a Weber BBQ but there probably was.</span>
<span style="font-size: 14pt; color: #008000;">The one thing I do vividly recall is that after things died down and we went to lock the doors (difficult since the frames were bent) was being told by people who refused to believe that we had nothing left "you might as well not lock those doors because as soon as you leave we're going to smash that glass and take what we want". The point here is that in the event of a large quake, your gas appliances may prove to be the least of your worries. I guess we all have different experiences when a crisis hits. Some people are saints, other change quickly into monsters.</span>
[this post was last edited: 7/23/2019-14:22]