Two Down, One To Go

Prior to Sept 11, 2001, FEMA (under the direction of James Lee Witt) identified the three largest disasters facing the US as follows:

1. A terrorist act on New York City
2. A major hurricane in New Orleans
3. A major earthquake in San Francisco

Well, since we have experienced two of these three events now, I thought it best to brush up on the history of the 1906 earthquake in San Francisco and its aftermath in an effort to figure out how FEMA and state and local agencies should respond. This links to a Wikipedia article on the earthquake (bless this site for its wealth of information), this provides additional background, and finally, this links to a related article from Ch. 5 News, which I guess is a local area station.

Aside from the 1906 quake, one also hit in 1989. I remember it took place during the “Bay Area World Series,” oddly enough, between the San Francisco Giants and the Oakland Athletics (I still remember the look on announcer Tim McCarver’s face as the stadium started to shake; hey, I’d be scared too).

I’m quite sure that mayor Gavin Newsom and (hopefully) “The Governator” are working on this right now if they haven’t done so already, but maybe some suggestions on my end would help a bit. I should note that I have not yet visited this glorious city, but hopefully I will be able to oneday. I also haven’t found anything yet from San Francisco Chronicle columnist Joan Ryan regarding preparedness for an earthquake or other disaster, but I will keep looking.

What I found is that the event in 1906 is referred to as “the San Francisco earthquake and fire,” since the quake itself, which registered an unbelievable 8.25 on the Richter scale and unleashed tremors that could be felt as far north as Oregon and as far east as central Nevada, lasted for only a minute. But the fires that were created from broken gas lines igniting structures that probably were made more of wood at that time, as opposed to the steel-reiniforced concrete like we have now, were, for the most part (as well as man-made acts of vandalism in an effort to get the insurance companies to pay for rebuilding) more responsible for the massive ruin of the city and surrounding area.

I also have to admit that I was a bit amused by this note (not for the destruction to the area, but because of the “history repeating itself” quality of the quotation, reminiscent of Republican Louisiana Representative Richard Baker’s remark about God fixing the “public housing problem” in the wake of Hurricane Katrina):

In 1906, the destruction of Chinatown by fire was considered a great blessing of the Earthquake. Many felt it should have burned long before. Said the Overland Monthly, "Fire has reclaimed to civilization and cleanliness the Chinese ghetto, and no Chinatown will be permitted in the borders of the city.... it seems as though a divine wisdom directed the range of the seismic horror and the range of the fire god. Wisely, the worst was cleared away with the best." Chinatown in Hunters Point? by Ralph Henn

I wonder if there were any stories in the papers at that time concerning wide-scale Chinese looting?

So, here are some of my thoughts about how San Francisco should prepare for the big one (again, for whatever my thoughts are worth):

To begin with (and I think this is critical across the country, especially in our cities), we should research, fund, and develop an emergency response wireless internet network in case communications through fiber optic cables is disrupted or destroyed. Since these cables are underground, I think it is safe to assume that this would happen in the event of a natural disaster. For individuals who do not have computer access, some sort of laminated quick reference card should be produced telling them what to do in the event of a disaster, including a location where they could go to access a wireless computer and find additional information. If they don’t take care of the card or lose it somehow, they have one chance to apply for a replacement. After that, they’re on their own.

Next, a network of shelters and gathering places (SBC Park, some neighborhood rec centers or meeting places, etc.) should be identified as locations to proceed to in the event of the disaster, stocked with food and water, basic medical supplies, and sanitation facilities of some type. I’m old enough to remember TV public service announcements that used to be on in prime time that actually provided useful information (“if this had been an actual emergency, you would have been instructed to do such and such”) instead of generating annoying beeps and TV screens full of nothing but primary colors.

Also, a plan of transport for individuals from poor districts should be established in cooperation with local, state, and federal authorities (combining a wide assortment of vehicles, including buses, trains, and passenger vans). Coordinating transport from the beautiful Nob Hill Victorians (which probably would go up in a fire like so much kindling) poses a whole different set of challenges as opposed to crowd control and evacuation on a Friday or Saturday night from, “The Patio,” “Orphan Andy,” or “Harvey’s.”

Maybe the city could even declare one day “Disaster Drill Day” or something in preparation, as long as Katrina is still fresh in everyone’s minds. I used to work at a hospital that performed disaster drills twice a year, and it paid off a few times. Even in a situation where the ground is shaking and all manner of structures are being uprooted or destroyed (in which vehicles wouldn’t be moving anyway), it is still wise to have precautions like this in place so individuals seeking shelter would know who or what was coming to get them.

Coordinating vehicles for these tasks would be, I think, a particular challenge for San Francisco with its hilly landscape (particularly on Lombard Street), and I would think that, as a result of that, the legendary cable cars would be effectively useless for the task of transport at this time. It might be feasible, once crowds are coordinated to designated locations, to consider ferrying them over to Alcatraz in the bay until some type of order is restored (maybe part of that location could be set aside as some type of temporary disaster mangement headquarters). The Fisherman’s Wharf area would require some type of water transport to get everyone to safety also.

I hope Newsom and Ahh-nold have also taken into account timeframes and disaster conditions under which the state National Guard would be federalized to aid in evacuation, transport, and housing of anyone who lost their homes or were injured at that time. Also, health care facilities and trauma centers would have to be designated by priority based on the level of acute care that could be provided at each location as well as geographic proximity. Coordination with the federal government would also be required if military personnel were needed for rescue and maintaining law and order. Also, the state’s disaster plan should designate which fire departments from which locality should be notified to fight any fires that would result based on location to a vital strategic facility, as well as type of fire and degree to which it may be burning out of control. If past is prologue, then, as in 1906, fires would result from another earthquake.

I can’t think of any other recommendations at this time, aside from doing everything possible to keep the Golden Gate Bridge open or provide for some means to ferry people across the bay in the event that the bridge is damaged. If I do think of anything else, I’ll add to this post.

Hey, I know I’m no disaster management expert, but these are just my ideas and recommendations based on what I know. I hope they help. Besides, writing this up is already more than Mike Brown did, and he was collecting a salary.