I live in a predominately Irish - American neighborhood in St. Louis, MO. That said it's about two blocks from high crime. I already have the basics covered for several predictable scenarios, but am looking for info on gear and plans for evacuating if something does happen large scale (i.e. earthquake, civil unrest, etc.)

Best advice I could possible give, given the info provided, is go AWAY from that high crime area if you have to bug out. Or just stay put, if that happens to be an option...

Right off the top of my head:

What are the likely and unlikely threats that you and your family may face. Which threats demand Bugging Out for and which threats don't demand Bugging Out for.
(Look @the Log Term Preparation Board for the ThreatCon and HurCon Checklists) It may help.

Consult www.standeyo.com for checklists of supplies. I think you will find it helpful.

You need to decide what situations it is best to stay put (and how long you can stay put) for and what situations it will be necessary to bug out from.

If you're staying put, you've got to plan on providing the basic services that allow you (and your dependants) to consume water, prepare & serve meals; go to the bathroom, defend yourself, family, & property; getting Intel (reliable news).

If you're Bugging Out, you need to have completed recon and mapped out several routes leading out of the city. You will need to identify possible dangerous areas along those routes and plan on how to deal with those areas/threats. You will need to know where you're going to Bug Out to, what supplies you can take with you (or have supplies cached at your destination or along the way), and again, how are you going to provide the basic services that are required for living once you arrive at your destination.

CORRECTION: The HurCon & ThreatCon Checklists are on page 2 of the Survival Forum

I get the civil unrest thing, but, are earthquakes really much of a threat in St. Louis?

Isn't the New Madrid fault in the neighborhood of Saint Louis?

"...are earthquakes really much of a threat in St. Louis?"

It does sound kind of strange, but YES. The New Madrid, MO area was the epicenter of the worst earthquake (actually a series of four major quakes) to have taken place in the continental U.S. between December 11, 1811 and February 7, 1812. The last quake was estimated to have hit 8.0 on the Richter Scale.

From Wikipedia: "There are estimates that the earthquakes were felt strongly over 50,000 square miles, and moderately across nearly one million square miles. The historic San Francisco earthquake of 1906, by comparison, was felt moderately over 60,000 square miles.

"As a result of the quakes, large areas sank into the earth, new lakes were formed (notably Reelfoot Lake, Tennessee), and the Mississippi River changed its course, creating Kentucky Bend. Nearby sections of the Mississippi River actually ran backwards for a short time. Sandblows were common throughout the area, and their effects can still be seen from the air in cultivated fields. Church bells were reported to ring in Boston, Massachusetts.

"The epicenters of over 4,000 earthquakes can be identified from seismic measurements taken since 1974. It can be seen that the earthquakes originate from the seismic activity of the Reelfoot Rift. The zone which is strongly colored in red on the map is called the New Madrid Seismic Zone.

"The zone remains active today. In recent decades minor earthquakes have continued. Scientists estimate that in the next 50 years, with a probability over 90%, there will be an earthquake with a magnitude greater than 7 on the Richter scale.

"The situation is more precarious than it was 200 years ago. The area is now more densely populated, and many buildings have no earthquake resistant construction. A few states have joined forces and founded a special institute for their earthquake zone, to prepare as well as possible for a major earthquake. The Mississippi River will probably present one of the incalculable problems."

Sue

Historically, one of the weapons of civil unrest is fire. In the case of fire moving through a highly-populated area, bugging out would be a distinct possibility, so being able to grab some pre-gathered supplies and having a place to run to would be a high priority to me.

In the case of an earthquake, you could be in a real tight spot. Earthquakes often make travel difficult or impossible, you're in competition with a lot of other people, law breaks down in many cases, and there is always the added difficulty of fire due to broken gas mains and plain carelessness.

I would plan for both escape and hunkering down, and be aware of conditions that would cause you to change from one plan to another. Never get locked into just one plan; when conditions change, you must, also.

Sue

heat & storms are likely your #1 concern there -- combine either with a power outage...

New Madrid is a couple of hundred miles to the south of St. Louis and yes, St. Louis felt effects from those EQ's. There are small tremors (1 & 2's) on an almost daily basis.

A big one (7+) is coming soon!

As usual, Susan has cut through the crap and gotten right to the bone!!