We need to store 60 to 80 litres of water?

Early this week I was talking about the recent Queensland floods to a long-term resident of Japan who happens to be blonde and blue-eyed. She asked whether Australia has evacuation centres. I replied that they used school, gymnasiums, show-grounds etc. Whatever they could.

She mused that Japan is much better set up for evacuation. It is well known in every community where the local evacuation centre is. Schools and local governments regularly hold evacuation practises and earthquake drills.

The US embassy in Japan has a "Disaster Preparedness Check-list" on their website. It makes sober reading.

It begins with this warning:

Japan is the most seismically active piece of real estate in the world. The Tokyo metropolitan area experiences regular tremors of varying intensities and the probability that a severe and damaging earthquake will occur is high. The consequences of such a quake will vary greatly depending upon the time of day and year that the quake occurs, and no one can predict with any certainty what conditions will be like immediately following an intensive shock.

With this in mind, we are warned to be prepared, like good scouts. When we first arrived in Japan our mission issued us with a standard very basic emergency kit. 

I realised how basic it was, when I saw lists about what it should include, especially recommended is four litres of water per person per day, with enough for three to four days. I think we need a tank. For our family that equals 60 to 80 litres of water. Where could I store that?

Like many people who were overcome by floods in Brisbane and claimed afterwards that "no one told us", I am an optimist and find it hard to believe that a disaster could ever affect me! That makes it very hard to be prepared. In a busy lifestyle when there are always more-important-things to do, preparing an earthquake emergency supply kit is not high on the agenda. I know I need to do it, though. The food in our kit is old and the spare clothes wouldn't fit our growing boys any more. Whatever else is in there, I can't remember. But probably new batteries are required.


I'm just hoping I never have to evacuate like the residents of this island did, the volcano they are practically living on top of erupted in 2000 and the final residents have only been allowed to return home this week!