PreparednessWorries about megaquake benefit preparedness, retrofitting businesses in Pacific Northwest
The sale of emergency preparedness kits has been booming in the Northwest of the United States, as more press stories have highlighted the growing confidence of scientists that the Pacific Northwest is overdue for a megaquake. Stores that sell a few preparedness kits a month, and which typically cater to survivalists, see a dramatic increase in business, as do businesses which retrofit houses to make them more quake-resilient.
The sale of emergency preparedness kits has been booming in the Northwest of the United States, as more press stories have highlighted the growing confidence of scientists that the Pacific Northwest is overdue for a megaquake. A recent New Yorker story detailed findings by scientists that a major earthquake would soon rock the coastal Pacific Northwest and destroy portions of it (see Kathryn Schulz, “The Really Big One: An earthquake will destroy a sizable portion of the coastal Northwest. The question is when,” New Yorker, 20 July 2015).
The article went viral, and many people who otherwise would not give the possibility of an earthquake a second thought begun to order emergency and preparedness kits from stores and Web sites typically frequented by survivalists. Small companies which usually see a steady if not spectacular business have been enjoying a boomlet.
Seattle-based American Preparedness, for example, sells a 2-person kit that lasts about seven days for $179.99, and a 4 person kit lasting three days one for $139.99.
American Preparedness’ CEO Steve O’Donnell told the Seattle Times that his company did over a month’s business in a day, and that the orders for more of these kits keep arriving.
Another type of business reaping big benefits from the public’s new awareness of the risks of earthquakes is the home retrofitting sector. Erik Jackson, co-owner of Seattle-based Sound Seismic retrofitting fitting, told the Times that that the wait time for customers who want to retrofit their homes to make them more resilient to earthquakes has increased from 3.5 months to six months. The growing demand for retrofitting has also driven up the cost: retrofitting a house with an unfinished basement has gone up from $7,000 to $10,000, he says.
One might ask why should people rush to stores catering to survivalists to buy emergency and preparedness kits when all people have to do is buy everything that goes into a preparedness kit in the grocery store and the neighborhood hardware store. Government agencies such as the CDC and FEMA offer tips on how prepare emergency kits, and so s does the city of Seattle.
The simple truth, says Barb Graff, director of emergency management for Seattle, is that most people procrastinate, and that only a quarter of Seattle residents have emergency kits and a what-to-do plan for when disaster strikes.
The ready-made kits are more expensive, but they are more convenient, and some contain food ingredients which are described as “United States Coast Guard compliant.” Jeff Guite, American Preparedness’ founder, notes that the food his company’s emergency kits contain is “designed to keep you fit, not fat.”
The kit from American Preparedness also features the Redi Safety Light. This bulb has a battery attached to it, and the battery is charged while the bulb is on. . If the power is cut, the bulb stays on for around eight more hours, drawing power from the battery.
Guite notes that these waves of public anxiety and complacency are part and parcel of the business. He says that there were steady orders for his company’s kits for a year and half after the 9/11 attacks on the World Trade Centre and the Pentagon and after the 2011 Fukushima disaster. That boomlet lasted two months.
