The Hawaii Earthquake

As some of you already know, we had a moderate to light earthquake here in
Hawaii, this morning. Since I worked and lived in Southern California, I
thought it was not that bad, but it did wake me up, but I was able to go
back to sleep with no trouble, though one of the aftershocks did wake me
again, but I managed to go back to sleep (too darn early to stay up). The

chatnoir...

Best call in Air Strikes!

one thing that was a pain, was the fact that it knocked out power to our
island. I do not know if it affected the entire island or not, will have to
wait to read the local newspaper tomorrow to learn that I would think. But
I quickly discovered what a pain it is not to have electricity (we had no
electricity for most of the morning). No electricity, no TV. Can't use the
computer (I do not own a portable). Should not open the refirg. Good thing
it was in the morning since I did not have need to use the stove (which is
electric, as most stoves, if not all stoves in Hawaii are), can't use the
microwave. Had to manually open our garage door, since that is opened
electrically (I open the garage door everyday, even though I do not drive).
I discovered the one battery operated radio I have, did not work (it is
really, really old). Which made me think about what to do if some future
emergency arises. I would think, what I should buy and I will buy
something, is a radio that can be operated without a battery, or without
using the electricity that powers our house, if such a radio exists. Next
time I go to Radio Shack, which will have to wait until my wife returns from
her trip, I am going to see what is available. I was also thinking, it is a
good thing I do not live in the lowlands, where it gets hot and humid. No
electricity, no airconditioning, and you can't even use a fan. The good
news was the power was out in the morning, but still yet, I would imagine
that for some, it got to be uncomfortable in their homes. Pity those who
are bedridden. The only damage that was sustain was two of my wife's
fingerines, which she said was no big deal, at least the valuable porcelein
toys she has were not damaged.

Justine...

Glad to hear you were not in danger, Jerry. I heard on the news that
the cause of the earthquake is that the islands are sinking, and in
fact they sank one inch yesterday. At least they can't blame that on
global warming.

Eddie...

All volcanic islands will eventually sink. We sailed on a 11-day
Hawaii to Fanning Island cruise two years ago. Fanning Island is a
good example of an atoll. All of the Hawaiian Islands will become
like Fanning Island with a little time. I might start thinking of
moving my family from Kapaa, Kauai to the mainland to avoid this
catastrophe.

"An atoll is a type of low, coral island found in tropical oceans and
consisting of a coral-algal reef usually surrounding an interior body
of water called a lagoon or peninsula. Atolls generally mark the
locations of subsided (or sunken) extinct volcanic islands; the shape
of the atoll is determined by the initial coastline of the original
volcanic island, and is maintained so long as coral growth is faster
than subsidence, and is not disturbed by other factors. Some atolls
contain volcanic remnant islands at their centers. An atoll's low
coral-sand islands form as a result of wave action breaking off pieces
of coral at the reef escarpment and piling them up behind."

Eddie

Hope your power is restored and all else is well with you.

Jerry Okamura...

One advantage of living 2,000 feet above sea level is, you do not worry too
much about any "sinking", nor do you have to worry to much about global
warming, at least the possibility of your house being under water, or being
flooded by a hurricane.

Power came back on before noon, but I understand parts of Oahu were without
power for a much longer period of time. As I said, had to feel sorry for
them, since no power means no air conditioning and no power means you can't
even use a fan to provice some relief. Pity shoud go to those who are
invalid and at home.

George Z. Bush...

Welcome to the world of power outages. Living on one of the barrier islands off
the coast of North Carolina, they're pretty common out here. AAMOF, we had one
the day before yesterday. It was a perfectly beautiful day weatherwise and
there was no known reason for it other than (1) the salt air corroded another
transformer somewhere on the island or (2) someone ran into a light pole and
knocked it down, along with our electric power. Since the system wa down for
only about a half hour, it was more likely the first reason was the cause.

Most of us here have learned to accomodate their occurrence and don't sweat it.
Some of my neighbors have bought home generators that they can hook up to
generate a limited amount of power while the system is down. They can provide
enough juice to provide lights, keep the fridge and freezer running, and run the
radio and TVs, but not enough for air conditioning or heating or running the hot
water heater. They're a little bit pricey, but companies like Lowe's and Home
Depot do carry them.

Of course, we usually have power outages when we get hit by a hurricane.
However, those of us with an ounce of sense in our heads pack up and evacuate
the minute our town officials tell us we ought to go for safety sake and it
doesn't matter if the AC is on or off. Anyway, we get used to it and it's no
big deal.....the worst part of it is having to go through the house resetting
the electric clocks after the power comes back on.

George Z.

Rumpelstiltskin...

Glad to hear you're OK, and only inconvenienced, Jerry. The
latest I heard was that your earthquake was 6.6. Our 1989
earthquake was 6.9, but the epicenter was 60 miles away and
it was still a dilly. Our news seems to have been deficient in
reporting, probably due to taking care of emergencies. When
I got hold of my mom on the east coast, she knew more about
the earthquake than I did.

Jerry Okamura...

That is probably why I did not think it was an earthquake of any
significance.

Note old & in the way's suggestion of a hand-crank radio.
I thought of that too, and it sounds like a great idea, though I
admit I don't have one myself.

Sir Frederick...

I have two, one of an older kind that winds up a spring that
generates electrical juice as it unwinds, and a better newer
kind that charges batteries as you crank.
(It has regular batteries as well.)
The newer also has a built in LED light
and the whole thing weighs about 5% of the older. Newer is
better.

"Necessity is the plea for every infringement of human freedom: it is the
argument of tyrants; it is the creed of slaves" -- Wm. Pitt the Younger

Cochon Capitaliste...

6.6! WOW! That'll shake your pinapples.

Boo!...

And rattle your coconuts.

Jerry Okamura...

I wonder how many coconuts did fall as a result . There used to be a
joke among us Hawaii born Japanese Americans when it came to mainland born
Japanese Americans. We called them Kotonks. One story that I used to hear
about why that was went like this. There was this California born Japanese
American, who was under a coconut tree in Hawaii. A coconut fell and hit
the guy on the head. His head was so hard that when it hit, it made a
"kotonk" sound.

George Z. Bush...

Careful there.....there may be children peeking into this venue!

George Z.

Islander...

Glad that you came through it with a minimum of inconvenience.

Now would be a good time to keep track of the things that you needed
when the power was out. There are hand-crank flashlights and also
hand-crank radios available, but it is easier and less expensive to
simply buy battery powered devices. Keep packets of batteries available

Rita...

Good to hear you got off so lightly, Jerry.

This reminded me to buy some new batteries for my Walkman radio and
large flashlight, since living in SoCal we could have a similar
occurrence.

Old & in the way.......

We bought a hand crank radio (with a solar panel) and keep CostCo packages
of several batteries types.
Living in your San Diego eastern foothills we have had over the past twenty
plus years quite a few power outages and two fires that put us completely
down for over a week each. Emergency supplies (esp. meds and water!)
relative to each persons situation are critical. I would think that every
area of the US is susceptible to outages/shortages, be prepared folks, at
our age we have less reserve than ever.

Jerry Okamura...

Power outages is an interesting problem for those of us who live in Hawaii.
As I understand it, the island of Kauai did not have power for one month
after Iniki hit. That is not likely to happen on the mainland. Given that
probability, I think we could have a much bigger problem, then you folks on
the mainland. Last year when the news was reporting that a hurricane was
headed our way, I thought about what to do, should that happen. Providing
for you needs for a week, is a whole lot easier than providing for your

Jerry Okamura...

It did not feel like a 6.6 on Maui, and I know what a 6.6 feels like.

needs for a month or longer.

Rita...

I think you are right that every area is susceptible to power
outages. I experienced one in New York City -- and ran to the
hardware store where I bought the last flashlight in stock.
My old neighborhood there was without power for 8 days in the
midst of a heat wave this summer.

Buffalo, New York, is right now experiencing a massive power
outage because of an October blizzard. An October surprise,
I guess.