Preparedness

The team of Islamist militants knew exactly where the naval base's weak spot was. Dressed in black and armed with AK-47 rifles, grenades and rocket launchers, they crept up to the back wall of Mehran Naval Station in Karachi, keeping clear of security cameras. Then, with just a pair of ladders, they clambered over the wall, cutting through barbed wire at the top, to launch a 17-hour siege that would renew disturbing questions about the Pakistani military's ability to defend sensitive installations, including its nuclear arsenal.

For all the attention generated by the massive earthquakes in Haiti and Chile, experts in California remain skeptical that residents of this quake-prone region are any better prepared for the inevitable Big One. California saw a rise in quake awareness and retrofitting after the state recorded a series of major temblors over seven years: Whittier in 1987, Loma Prieta in 1989 and Northridge in 1994. But there hasn't been a devastating temblor in the state since the Northridge quake, and experts are concerned that quake preparedness may have declined in recent years.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the agency whose task includes preventing pandemics and pushing flu shots, is preparing for a zombie apocalypse. In a Monday blog post , the normally staid agency issued a straight-faced list of recommendations on how to survive a massive invasion of the flesh-eating undead. "In such a scenario zombies would take over entire countries, roaming city streets eating anything living that got in their way," the post said. "So what do you need to do before zombies ... or hurricanes or pandemics, for example, actually happen?"

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the agency whose task includes preventing pandemics and pushing flu shots, is preparing for a zombie apocalypse. In a Monday blog post , the normally staid agency issued a straight-faced list of recommendations on how to survive a massive invasion of the flesh-eating undead. "In such a scenario zombies would take over entire countries, roaming city streets eating anything living that got in their way," the post said. "So what do you need to do before zombies ... or hurricanes or pandemics, for example, actually happen?"

Your fictional account of the first hours after a 7.5 magnitude earthquake on the Newport-Inglewood Fault, "The Bigger One" (Nov. 29), presented what is, unfortunately, an all-too-plausible scenario. By Dec. 3, your article had led more than 3,000 Southern California residents to write our Southern California Earthquake Preparedness Project. In cooperation with the Los Angeles chapter of the American Red Cross, the Governor's Office of Emergency Services is responding to each of these requests with a comprehensive family and home preparedness guide.

Dear Karen: I have a small family business that sells earthquake-preparedness devices. We want newspaper and television exposure. Suggestions? Answer: Position yourself as a disaster preparedness expert, said Michael Olguin, president of Formula, a public relations firm in San Diego. "Pitch yourself as a third-party expert that electronic and print media can call on during annual drills and preparedness events and after there's a quake anywhere in the world," Olguin said.

Being a native Southern Californian and a professional working in the disaster-preparedness field, I've come up with the latest list of reasons to stay in/get out of Southern California. REASONS TO STAY: 1. The exceptional courage, kindness and community spirit of all those affected by the earthquake. 2. The extraordinary efforts of city, state and federal agencies and departments to alleviate the impacts of the disaster. 3. The presence of the National Guard to protect our peace and what was left of our property.

My words seem inadequate to describe the emotions felt while reading The Times' article "Flight 232: Countdown to Crisis" by Eric Malnic and Bob Secter (Part I, July 21). Their powerfully dramatic description of the disaster, with its heroism and heartbreak, could well become a guiding lamp for disaster emergency preparedness volunteers all over the country. Their vivid account of the incredible response to the tragedy by the wonderful people of Sioux City will be an inspiration for future generations.

Mayor Bertha (Bert) Ashley handed her gavel to Mayor Pro Tem Ray T. Watson as the City Council conducted its annual reorganization Wednesday. Watson was elected to the council in April 1988. Councilman H. Thomas Sykes, also elected in April 1988, was approved as Watson's successor as mayor pro tem.

Structural engineer Kit Miyamoto was giving a speech in Japan on earthquake safety when this month's record quake struck, giving him a front-row seat for the unfolding disaster and what steps might save lives next time. "This disaster basically paralyzed the whole country," said Miyamoto, president of West Sacramento-based Miyamoto International, standing amid the wreckage in this battered coastal city. "We can learn a lot of lessons for California. " What worked, and what didn't?

Buying or making an emergency kit is just one of three steps that the American Red Cross recommends in preparation for a disaster. Step 2 is to develop a plan for your household, including the designation of two meeting places. One meeting place should be near the home and used in case of immediate threat such as fire. The second meeting place should be outside your neighborhood and used to reunite if you are evacuated or cannot go back home. Every household also should designate emergency contacts outside the region, to increase the chances of successful communication if local telephone lines are not fully operational.

Earthquakes dwell deep in the Japanese imagination. No country may be better prepared for a major earthquake than Japan. Seismic standards for construction are among the strictest in the world. From a young age, Japanese learn to dive under desks to protect themselves in a quake. The nation has a state-of-the-art tsunami warning system. That preparation undoubtedly saved many lives Friday, when a magnitude 8.9 earthquake struck off Japan's main island, shaking buildings in a large swath of the country and sending a 30-foot tsunami onto a populated stretch of coast.

Jack Popejoy, a morning news anchor on KNX and KFWB who was a distinguished earthquake reporter for more than 25 years on Southern California radio, has died. He was 63. Popejoy, who last worked on the air less than two weeks ago, died Saturday of cancer at his Sherman Oaks home, KNX announced. "Jack had a tremendous ability to take very complex things and make them easy to understand," said Andy Ludlum, director of news programming for KNX-AM (1070) and KFWB-AM (980). "He also had a marvelous ability to make you feel calm," Ludlum said, "and could assure people that no matter how grim things look at the time, they will be OK. " On Sept.

I am a retired U.S. Marine, having been drafted at the end of the Vietnam War. At one time, I commanded a squadron of 1,200 Marines and sailors. And, like many of my fellow veterans, I believed that the Clinton-era "don't ask, don't tell" policy worked well, enabling some fine Americans to serve this great nation. But although I embraced the policy then, I now know that it denied us the service of some highly talented men and women. It continues to cost us even after its repeal. Why the change in my viewpoint?

Dear Karen: I have a small family business that sells earthquake-preparedness devices. We want newspaper and television exposure. Suggestions? Answer: Position yourself as a disaster preparedness expert, said Michael Olguin, president of Formula, a public relations firm in San Diego. "Pitch yourself as a third-party expert that electronic and print media can call on during annual drills and preparedness events and after there's a quake anywhere in the world," Olguin said.

The long, narrow room in Kenneth Moravec's basement looks like a food bank. Floor-to-ceiling shelves are lined with canned fruits and vegetables, dried or powdered herbs, spices and drinks, along with drums of pasta, rice, wheat and other grains. Each is labeled with its contents and the date of purchase or when it was home-canned, usually right out of Moravec's garden. "Right now I have about a six-year supply of food," said Moravec, whose e-mail tag line reads, "If you fail to prepare, you prepare to fail."

As chairman of the Disaster Response Team for the Los Angeles County Psychological Assn., I can speak for my fellow colleagues in the Southern California area who have been overwhelmed with individuals seeking help to deal with the psychic repercussions of the earthquake. For some, the quakes and media blitz were just triggers that brought out prior serious and disturbing psychic material--but for others this phenomenon has been quite traumatic, especially for those closest to the epicenter.

Facing the worst offshore oil disaster in American history, BP rapidly developed and implemented new technologies to contain the damage and the government watchdogs established "effective oversight," according to a report issued on Monday by the presidential panel investigating the explosion and sinking of the Deepwater Horizon drilling rig. But the rare praise for the way they responded once disaster struck was coupled with scathing indictments of...