Basically, you need to be ready to punt. Maybe you didn't know it, but Ma Nature and her brother, Murphy, can (and have) come up with some of the worst combinations of trouble known to Man.

I have been sick all week, and was thinking how totally inconvenient it would be for a major disaster to hit right in the middle of a violent period of projectile vomiting and diarrhea.

But to stick to Blast's scenario...

A hard hat, leather gloves and a padded jacket will go quite a ways in protecting you from falling debris, but so will using some common sense.

If I was at home and able to get clear without injury, I would try to access my pry bars and breaker bar, and then start checking the neighbors.

My sister lives 2.5 miles away, but might be at work at the hospital, where she would be required to stay during the emergency. Her home is relatively stable, with minimal dangers and no large trees, poles or power lines to cause trouble.

If I were in Seattle or Portland, it would be a major problem to get home, and could take a couple of weeks... or more. IF I wasn't totally s**ewed altogether.

Aid stations would probably be a matter of chance. If I knew where the local fire stations were, I could stop there if on the way, but with so many needing help, if I wasn't desperate, I wouldn't bother. Scrounging might do as well.

Radiation -- probably not an issue, and I couldn't do much about it, anyway.

There tends to be quite a bit of available water around here, and with a pot and a fire I could do okay. Collecting rainwater would be easier, if available.

Sue