Category Archives: Hazards
2020 Coronavirus Pandemic – Action and Reaction
In the last blog, I explained how health care workers and therefore politicians had to do something at the onset of the CoV spread. The health community had several “shots across the bow” from viral outbreaks in 2003, 2009, 2012, and 2014. Now was their moment. The initial campaign for adaptive behavior – hand washing, […]
Hurricane Season – Part 2
Sometimes we humans aren’t too smart. We don’t use our God-given intelligence. In the 21st century, with satellite technology and weather sensors, we see a hurricane forming, building, and strengthening, and can easily track direction and progress. As the hurricane grows nearer, we are forewarned to leave an area. Sometimes we are ordered to evacuate. […]
Hurricane Season – Part 1
Although now living in British Columbia, some of you are aware that I grew up in South Carolina. The areas are as different as chalk and cheese. One of these is the weather and what influences it. Here we have the Japanese current, bringing relative warmth to our part of the southern Canadian Pacific coastline. […]
Snow and more snow
We’re snowed in! This isn’t earthshaking news for Canada but in our part of the country, it is. Fifteen inches over three days and most everything has stopped in its tracks. Only essential travel is recommended. So we have little movement at the end of our dead-end road to the farm. The dynamics are interesting. […]
A Valuable Lesson from Hurricane Florence
One of the first of numerous natural disasters to which I responded throughout the world was a hurricane along the coast of my home state, South Carolina. I never realized the journey that one small response would take me. I don’t even recall the name of that storm! Hurricane Florence hitting the Carolinas last September […]
The Power is Off!
The electricity is off today at the farm. Only for the day and due to a couple of power pole replacements on our rural road. This is not an emergency, but only an inconvenience. But it is a reminder of the incredible dependency we have for this energy source. There are all the lights, cooking, […]
Household Emergency Kit Maintenance
A while back, my shoulder began aching. Although it seemed to come out of nowhere, maybe it was a pulled muscle or ligament from tackling all the chores on a fruit and berry farm. I discounted this as soreness, but the pain kept worsening. Maybe it’s yet another invasion of the ‘A-word’ (i.e. arthritis), that […]
Wildfire Recovery
2018 has been another historic year in British Columbia for wildfires. I say another, because 2017 was an historic year, as mentioned in a blog last year. The number of wildfires this year has surpassed 2017, as well as the number of hectares burned. Admittedly, the fires have been generally smaller this year, as well […]
“I’m Gonna Die!” Hawaii’s False Missile Launch Warning
On a tranquil Saturday morning, January 13, 2018, at 8:07AM, a message went out to cellphones across the state of Hawaii, signaling an incoming missile. It was a false alarm, but took 38 minutes to correct. Meanwhile panic erupted across this normally idyllic state. Several lessons were learned, which can help us all. The Hawaii […]
Celebrating the Seasons through Food
As the saying goes: “Everyone talks about the weather, but no one can do anything about it.” The significance of four seasons was more than just idle chatter a century ago. It had a huge impact on food security. Then, we were largely an agricultural society. Our ancestors were close to the land. Our lives […]
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