A few weeks ago the people of Oklahoma felt the effects of the state’s largest earthquake on record. As far away as Illinois, people felt the tremors. Not long before that, the people of Washington D.C. were surprised by a little ground shaking of their own that was felt all along the eastern seaboard.

The damage caused by both of these events was pretty minor, as long as you weren’t one of the few people who no longer have a house, but more than a few were surprised at witnessing an earthquake at all. This wasn’t in California. We’ll take our natural disasters in the form of funnel clouds, thank you very much.

The fact is a network of fault lines covers much of the United States. And while some areas, like California, are located on some of the more active fault lines, you would be hard pressed to find a spot where the risk of an earthquake is completely out of the question. Similarly, tornadoes aren’t limited to that strip of land we affectionately call tornado alley.

We’ve discussed some of the things you can do to prepare for the possibility of a natural disaster , and if you don’t already have a plan and emergency supplies on hand, you should make it a priority. And if you need help developing a plan for protecting your important documents to ensure business continuity, give us a call. It’s the disaster you least expect that is the most dangerous.

 

 

Photo: Vehicles and debris line a canal in Ofunato, Japan, following a 9.0 magnitude earthquake and subsequent tsunami. (U.S. Navy photo by Mass Communication Specialist 1st Class Matthew M. Bradley/Released)