I live in the San Francisco area, so my number one planning scenario is "The Big One", a major earthquake. One aspect that makes this challenging is that when the Big One hits we will go from normal to 20 million person regional disaster in seconds with no warning.

If I am at home, I am prepared for weeks. If I have my vehicle, I am prepared for ten days. If I have my computer bag, I'm prepared for 3 days. If I'm in the backcountry, I'm more than prepared to get back to my vehicle. Probably 95% of the time I'm prepared, but what about the other 5%?

One scenario is that I stop for gas in a sketchy area. The Big One hits and the canopy over the pumps falls on my vehicle. I'm left standing in the cold and rain a long way from home with literally nothing but what is in my pockets. Or I'm in a shopping center and the parking garage collapses. I rarely take BART or other mass transit without my computer case, but it does happen, so that's another possibility.

The DR PSK is a great resource. There's one in the EK in my now inaccessible vehicle. But I don't think it is exactly what I want in my pocket in this strictly urban/suburban situation.

Currently, I have the following in my pockets: folding knife, led micro light, Fox 40 whistle, cell phone, cash, wallet with credit cards, ID, etc. As we are in the rainy season, I have been experimenting with carrying a small AMK Heat Sheet. Since my footwear is likely to be suboptimal, I just realized I'm going to need blister pads. (My feet and dress footwear don't get along.)

So what would you folks carry to prepare for a huge, regional, urban/suburban disaster that hits in seconds without warning?

Risk avoidance

Top off your tank before driving into any sketchy or remote areas, find stores/shopping/malls which don't have garages.
If I'm driving to a park or soemhting I always try to top off the tank before I get off the highway so I'm not trying to find gas in a remote area.



Keep another pair of shows with you so that you only need to wear the dress shoes while actually at work. A small gym bag to carry them in and changing back into good walking shoes before leaving work won't look out of place as people will just thing your going to a gym afetrward.

A large trash bag make a good rain coat / shelter. Is compact, cheap, can even fit in a hip pocket. The bright blue ones for
recycling really stand out too if you need to be seen. The best
ones I've seen come from Staple's.

Wear Dr Martens shoes. They are the best for pavement walking and look ok with a suit. And you can't walk home if you don't know the way. You got a map in your pocket?
The Sock

I live in a rural area (woods) really the only "Instant" disaster would be a tornado in my area and only in certain times of the year and not very often.

Not living in that area I'm not sure if 5% is worth thinking about, it sounds like you are pretty well set up, at home, during the commute at the office, etc. There are going to be times you just can't bring it with you. Other than always carrying a backpack, or waist pack with supplies in it but that's not really practical.

your feet are the most important things at this point, if having to dress up for work try to find a pair of dress shoes that will stand up to a good hike, I have a pair I love, Columbia, I can hike miles in them and yet put them on in a suit with no second looks, the only problem is they are brown and don't go with everything I wear, so I either adjust what I wear to always have these shoes or try to find a color match. My black pair of dress shoes hurt my feet after a walk through the airport. Not a situation I want to find myself in if I have to hike my way out of some place.

Sounds like you are doing the best with what you have, which is probably better that most people.

Try to add another couple day's worth of stuff to your PC bag and keep it with you more often, and you should be in good shape.

At just 'bout any time, I will have Leatherman Wave, sharpening stick, keys with P-38 and Hot Spark, either Mini-Mag 3w led or Surefire G-2 with spare batteries, cell phone, credit cards, pocket change and cash, plus a couple hundred in hide-out-money, dogtag chain with micro light (brand unknown, it was a gift. Has three different levels of light, three speeds of flashing, and SOS flashing modes) and red dogtag with med info on it. Bandanna and a pocked pack or two of Kleenex. That is my bare minimum everyday stuff. I normally wear either low top "hiking" shoes or combat boots. If my other stuff gets squashed as you describe, depending on where I am, things are gonna get rough.

In your case, you really need to look for better footwear. I can't walk a few blocks in "dress" shoes...

One fact in life is that you can not plan for every event that might happen. It just bogs you down, OK.
Accepting your scenario at the sketchy gas station...
____________
S.T.O.P.


STOP - Take a deep breath, sit down if possible, calm yourself and recognize that whatever has happened to get you here is past and cannot be undone. You are now in a survival situation and that means . . .

THINK - Your most important asset is your brain. Use it! Don't Panic! Think first, so you have no regrets. Move with deliberate care. Take no action, even a foot step, until you have thought it through . . .

OBSERVE - Take a look around you. Assess your situation and options. Take stock of your supplies, equipment, surroundings and the capabilities of fellow survivors . . .

PLAN - Prioritize your immediate needs and develop a plan to systematically deal with the emergency. Make a plan. Follow your plan. Adjust your plan only as necessary to deal with changing circumstances.


PRIORITIES: 1. Medical Care
2. Shelter & Fire
3. Signaling & Communication
4. Sustenance


Equipped To Survive™ - Immediate Action Survival Plan™ - http://www.equipped.org/stop.htm
© 1997 Douglas S. Ritter - All rights reserved.
_________________
All right, lets look at the car at a sketchy gas station.
OK, you did a quick inventory of what is in your pockets, now what else have you got around you?
Is anybody hurt, do you need to do first aid on anybody? Is the store still standing?
Is the area safe to be in, or is their a risk of an explosion or electrocution from downed wires?
How about the risk of after shocks from the quake?

If you can go into the store is it a safe place to be out of the rain?
What kind of goodies do they have?
You have cash and can buy stuff if you need to, but you might not need to buy it...
Water, clothing, a rain coat, food, lighters, a working phone, toilet paper, you know, goodies?

Are the roads all closed? Are there other people you can get to give you a ride out?
Think about this part.
If you are still uninjured in your scenario then you are in very good shape in an area rich in resources.

Sometimes you have to adapt to the situation as it is to survive it.

There's no way you're going to live in the SF area, have the Big One hit, and be fully prepared. Personally, I would move.

Even if you were in the area with your undamaged vehicle, you won't be going anywhere. Nothing will be going in or out of there by ground for quite a while. I can't even visualize feeding, watering and medicating (by air) 16,000 people per square mile (well, the survivors, anyway).

Sue

That one-in-twenty time is the time you lose. *shrugs* Not really, but odds are the odds aren't that bad as you think they are. THere are things you can't prep for, and times you'll be caught with your pants down. All you can do then is roll and come up on your feet as best you can.

Edit: My odd, MUST have with item: work gloves.