Sleeping prepared, esp. for earthquakes

We spend a good fraction of day sleeping in bed, and occasionally will need to spring up and act quickly. This happened to me recently, arising from a sound sleep to evacuate in face of an oncoming wildfire, but I was reasonably prepared, because I am concerned about being ready for the unannounced arrival of an earthquake, an event which has no reliable predictors.

As I age, I find I prefer warmer and warmer clothing. This expends to my sleeping gear; I usually put on a light fleece jacket, which fortunately has zippered pockets. My key ring, which contains a small flashlight, a lighter, small pry bar, tiny multitool, and a cash capsule, is in the right pocket (I sleep on my left side) and I tuck my cell phone into a zippered chest pocket. Thus, as soon as I waken, I have some essentials at hand.

I need to include my wallet and especially glasses, which are on the table next to the bed. Although I can reach them immediately under normal circumstances, an EQ shock can easily displace them.

Various circumstances can require one to rouse immediately and react constructively. Foresight and planning will aid this immensely.

What measures do you take when you tuck yourself in at night?

Different needs for different situations / people. I'm in the Midwestern US and don't worry about earthquakes but do 'worry'. As I work for a major corrections agency, I've got a grab & go duty belt set up - pepper spray, baton, Surefire flashlight, flashlight ring for the big mag-light, IFAK, cuffs, holster... you get the idea. I can grab a uniform shirt/pants, stuff the pockets with EDC , duty belt and the side arm out of the safe. Bed to out the door in about ten minutes (I'm old now and not so fast).

However there is also the 'gray man' car bag always in the back end with civilian clothing and a lot of the "recommended" get-home gear, some high density food, etc. so I can get the 12 miles home from work as just another guy going down the road. I can grab that as I exit the house and I'm covered for a few days if I fill up the empty water bottles with it. Their are cold weather coats in the hall closet ready too.

With all that - we are working on a grab bag for my wife and a big factor is we're both seniors and she's retired (I get out in three years) so we also think about what the 65-70 year old person will also need. There are the pill bottles, medical info and the like that we need to have too. I'm lucky in that I don't have critical meds and can get along short term without them but the wife has daily meds that we can't miss. There are a couple of other health issues we have to also work with...

Thanks for the post as you have made me (well us as the wife is getting real vocal about it all) consider all this and get off the "thinking" stage into actually doing something.

While I don’t sleep as equipped as you, I have everything ready to get dressed in the morning. EDC items are already in my pockets, just put on the trousers et al. Pretty quick -- faster than that is why we have go-bags -- it’s already in the truck.

I'm single and 70... I leave my key ring(with Fenix E05)on my belt and wallet in my pants, typically shorts... my glasses sit around my charging phone...pistol is on the dining room table, and a small black nylon bag on the shelf next to the prescription meds, so they can be swept into the bag...enough cash in the wallet to spend a couple of days in a motel.. car in non attached garage with at least 1/2 tank of fuel at all times... time permitting a grab and go bag with 72 hours of Mountain House foil pouches, rain, and sleeping gear

I follow my sisters advice who woke of to one of the bad earthquakes in CA.
I keep a flashlight in the drawer next to my bed with my phone. Also a pair of crocks under the bed. My sister said there was glass everywhere when she got up.

Although we do not get serious* earthquakes here in the UK, it seems to me that a very useful prep could be to place important belongings in a small lightweight cloth bag that is hung up near the bed where you can easily reach it.
Contents could include, glasses, cellphone, keys, wallet, flashlight.

If these items are placed on a shelf or table as is more usual, then an earthquake could throw them to the floor where they would not be readily located.

A small cloth bag on a hook, would still be hanging on the hook and be instantly located. A beta light in the bag or next to the hook would assist in locating it.

Shoes are a bit bulky and heavy for this, but could perhaps be hung from the laces next to the bed, or perhaps from the side of the bed.

*We have recently had an earthquake that was strong by UK standards, I was a bit startled by it because I was using the toilet at the time !
Many did not even notice it, and that was the most severe for 10 years.

I’m not familiar with the “beta light” terminology, but from the website betalight.nl, it seems to be a tritium light source. What I’ve been using is a CC Universal Glow Marker. They are cheap relative to the price of tritium light sources. I have them attached to bags, door knobs and one is attached to my keyring.

'Beta light' was popularised by the SAS survival handbook, indeed a tritium light source. They are dim, so unless really dark and with direct eye sight, they ar enot that usefull. I think a few blackout lights like the Eton Blackout Buddy, can be more usefull and have emergency kit near a socket with such light.

Good to know. The UGM's are easily charged in sunlight or artificial light and they glow all night. When I wake in the morning they’re still bright enough to provide reference.

FWIW, no affiliation other than as a customer.

Great topic, Hikermor!

On my nightstand I have a flashlight, phone on charger, sturdy slip-on shoes/slippers next to the bed.

I keep weekender bags in the front hall closet that double as "go" bags of a sort.

More important, I think, is that my SUV is very well stocked with clothes, gear, boots, tools, etc. etc. And it nearly always has a full tank of gas. I bicycle to work so the car doesn't move M-F and I top off the tank on Sundays after doing errands.

I keep the keys, and my purse, near the front door.

Using the wildfire example, among my top priorities would be grabbing my laptop, iPad, external hard drives with photos and also my cameras.

Most of the rest is just replaceable stuff (much of which I actually would not bother replacing).


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If you want glow in the dark markers, check out Amazon (luminescent tape). There are many sizes, shapes, rolls, dots etc (search showed 158 results) in sticky back form.

Stick on both sides of piece of plastic if you need to tie it to something. Otherwise just chop off a chunk and stick it to whatever you want to mark.

Use different shapes or clusters to identify items by groups. Triangle means one thing, square another.

Been using this technique for years. Learned it in the Air Force.

Nomad.

I was not suggesting a beta light/tritium light as a source of illumination, a flashlight or lantern is the tool for that purpose.

I was suggesting that a beta light be placed in or on the small bag containing essentials and hung up near the bed, so as to facilitate finding it.

I use two tritium sticks (3cm long) on a string as my nightlight if/when toilet calls in middle of night. Keep them next to my bed besides my glasses. They give enough light in the dark apartment and toilet that no need to use the regular seiling lights.

The last time.... and it has been some time.... I ordered tritium sticks (in the form of key fobs) the shipment was blocked because they violated radiation levels specified for "novelty items" imported. So has anyone found them recently and been able to purchase for shipment to the U.S.?

There is a product called the UV Paqlite. I have not used them personally. They require no batteries as they use strontium aluminate as the light source. Might be worth a look.

Thanks, now I know where CountyComm gets their UGM’s (Universal Glow Markers); they’re UV Paqlite's reusable glow sticks. They don’t show CC’s UGM dots, but the other two are on the UV Paqlite website.

Im getting older now and I dont like springing up in the middle of the night .. for any reason. So really, the Big Earthquake will probably have to toss me - and my bed - completely Humpty Dumpty before I agree to wake up.

That is entirely possible, since my house is only about 25 miles from the Fault Line.

But until then, I am asleep and dreaming.