Making a plan - liquefaction

One of my biggest frustrations from all of my preparedness prep is not committing the liquefaction map to memory. Maybe taking a photo of it. I just wish I could refer back to it.

There was one in the classroom where I took my CERT training, many years ago. Online searches generally reveal maps that display a number of factors, and often where it is hard to zero in on my area.

Granted, you don't know where you will be. It might not hurt to know some of the risks for the other side of the river, but home is where I worry about most.

Liquefaction refers to the process of a solid or a gas going to liquid, but getting caught in this in-between state that isn't quite liquid but follows some of the dynamics of a liquid.

In an earthquake, sand, saturated dirt, and unconsolidated soil can be a at risk for turning into a suspension. Dirt soup may be the best way to think of it.

Interestingly, even without an earthquake a woman recently sunk in sand on a beach because of the water creating a quicksand effect. There are some differences, but the important thing to remember is that solidity may not be permanent.

https://www.sanluisobispo.com/news/state/california/article214626755.html

That certainly doesn't sound fun for going across on foot, but where it can get really messy is when the soil liquefies under a structure, like a building or a road.

For example, if you have a seismically constructed bridge, but the roads on either side get broken up as the ground loses its solidity, that can be a transportation problem. It's still good for the people on the bridge that it didn't collapse.

(I've heard bad things about PDX airport.)

So I worry about the house collapsing, or that we will choose a nearby park as our meeting place, and then find that the spot will literally suck.

This is once again one of those areas where you may need to handle a little bit of ambiguity.

On the plus side, I know from my attempts at gardening that our soil is more of a clay type. It is very hard for it to get saturated because of the way it holds water.

Take the rays of hope where you find them.