“Like Dorothy in the Land of Oz, we can watch the news these days and conclude there are plenty of Lions and Tigers and Bears among today's list of natural disasters to keep us all on the lookout. Oh my! 

Hurricane season in 2008 is forecast to be above average, with 12 to 16 named storms, including 2 to 5 storms with winds over 111-mph, according to NOAA (National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration) this week.  

As the media drolly talk about scores of thousands who died in the Myanmar cyclone and the China earthquake, our own earthquake experts predict that a “China-like quake” in Southern California is a 99% chance within 30 years. Their scenario for a 7.8 temblor would — in their words — be 15 times stronger than the Northridge quake of 1994, and would injure at least 50,000 people and cause damage that would surpass Hurricane Katrina and the 9/11 attacks. It would make permanent changes to the local economy. The odds for a very serious quake of less than 7.8 magnitude are almost a certainty. 

This week those same experts issued a similar warning for the Hayward Fault, which runs through the East Bay in the San Francisco Bay Area. This is not the fault that moved in the Big One of 1906.  That was the San Andreas Fault — the same fault that runs from Southern California to the Bay. Both of these faults are past due to slip.

Elsewhere, there have been more than 200 quakes in the Reno area in the past three months. A quake in Wells, Nevada, in February did serious damage, and was unexpected. Tony Lowry, assistant professor of geophysics at Utah State University, said the size of the quake and its location were unusual. "In that part of Nevada, I don't think we've seen any like that in the last 150 years or so. It's not one of the places we would have looked or expected." 

Utah is now awake to the threat of quakes, with scientists noting that the state is long overdue for an earthquake of major proportions — a quake of magnitude 7 or more. 

Tornadoes continue to rip through the Heartland, and have caused destruction in unlikely places like Colorado and Wisconsin. More than 100 people have died this year from tornadoes, and hundreds of homes have been destroyed. Wildfires have ravaged California, Florida, Alberta, Saskatchewan, and even West Yorkshire in the U.K. North Americans are not alone in the world. Weather patterns seem to be causing an acceleration of severe weather events in many places. 

Strange Connections

With the rising cost of gas and food, we are now strangely connected to the effects of natural disasters in other areas of the world. We know well that the price of rice worldwide is connected to drought events and the cyclone that struck Myanmar, one of the world's big exporters of rice. 

Consider again the California earthquake scenario as an example of what might be possible. If the Hayward Fault or the San Andreas Fault were to experience the next "Big One" we are expecting, the effect would be felt a long way from the Bay Area — yes, worldwide. Much of the food we import and export passes through the Port of Oakland and the Port of Long Beach. Many consumer goods imported from foreign countries pass through these ports and over the bridges and raised freeways that may collapse (as they have in past quakes). The economic disruption could be severe, because even in “normal” times the operation of the ports and the flow of containerized goods are subject to a finely tuned balance of resources. 

Californians know the San Joaquin / Sacramento River Delta is another precarious resource. It is expected that when a large quake occurs, many of the delta levies will collapse. This will be a disaster to those living nearby in cities like Sacramento, but it is much more far-reaching than the local damage.

Those delta waters will be "polluted" with salt water from the San Francisco Bay. The fish will die, crops will be flooded with salt water and destroyed, and worst of all — the drinking water carried through the delta waterways to both Northern and Southern California cities will be unusable for drinking and cooking. Even though the quake may be hundreds of miles away, some living in Southern California will be without water. 

The most powerful earthquake in the United States occurred in Alaska. Alaska may seem far away, but it now supplies us with natural gas and oil.  Do you see how connected we are? 
 
What about tornadoes? They damage crops, destroy homes and entire towns and sadly take many lives. In the town of Parkersberg, Iowa, the only grocery store has been destroyed, the gas station is gone, and every medical facility is closed or completely destroyed.

Cars have been destroyed and workplaces leveled. Residents are completely dependent on help from the outside. All of this destruction will mean large-scale unemployment in those areas. It may also mean some disruption of food and grain supplies from that part of the economy. We are connected. 

We have already witnessed the impact of Hurricane Katrina. Families fled Louisiana and other affected states in the aftermath. Welfare rolls grew and relief costs soared due to the influx of evacuees. Jobs became scarce and schools overcrowded. This is not to blame the victims, but only to highlight the domino affect of a disaster.  

Global Factors

Regarding the food and fuel crisis we see today, this is not caused by government policies alone. There are global factors of supply and demand, currencies, and people on every continent feeling the pressure of higher prices. Although we have some drought conditions in the United States, drought in parts of Europe, Australia and Africa are much worse. These all affect our lifestyle, no matter where on the planet we live.  

If you have family and friends who live in areas where severe weather and earthquakes are predicted, now is the time to encourage them to become educated and to prepare. Even if you live hundreds of miles away, you should be preparing too.  We haven't even mentioned the possibility of a truckers’ strike, terrorist attack or pandemic. They will empty store shelves very quickly. 

Heavenly Father has warned us these things would occur. 

We are witnessing so much that resembles these warnings. We have seen an enemy in secret chambers, hiding in a cave as he directs terrorism, seeking our lives. Jerusalem has become a burdensome stone for some, as Israel counts fewer and fewer allies. We see wrath and indignation against followers of Christ. We witness the groanings of earthquakes and thunderings and lightnings (tornadoes) and the waves of the sea heaving beyond their bounds (tsunamis). 

Recently I told you how much I enjoyed the movie Horton Hears a Who. I still think about the reaction of Whoville's city council, "Nothing ever happens here and nothing ever will." These days we need more people like Horton, who recognize that even when others are oblivious to wise counsel, we must not doubt ourselves when it is time to be smart — time to be educated about world conditions and prioritize our preparedness.

No matter where you live, things are happening, and they will affect you and your family. Your home may not be destroyed by an earthquake, hurricane, tornado, wildfire or terrorism, but your current way of life could be permanently altered. Certainly, those who believe in the Lord's return, trust that some big changes will accompany those events and want to be prepared in every way.