Water is critical for life. While we can go for weeks without food if necessary, we can only last a few days without water. In the event of power outages, a boil water order, or worst case scenario such as the Cascadia Fault earthquake, each resident and/or family needs to have the means to collect, filter or purify, and store clean water.

To be clear – when the Cascadia Subduction Zone slips and we are struck with an unimaginable earthquake, basic services such as power, water, and sewer will be out for months to years. The Oregon Resilience Plan projects that systems will be out for:

Power outages: 3 – 6 months
Water systems: 1 – 3 years
Sewage systems: 1 – 3 years
Important highways: 6 – 12 months for partial service
Healthcare facilities: 3 years

There are many ways to prepare. When a big storm is predicted, many locals simply fill their bathtub with water to use for flushing the toilet, and fill containers with water to use for cooking and drinking. Others may purchase water from the stores in advance and have it around. Bay City’s water runs when the power is off so getting water in a power outage usually isn’t an issue.

In the advent of a major emergency interrupting the water supply, an alternate means of getting water is needed. When the ground shakes, pipes break.

There are many different solutions. One solution is to purchase a water filter such as the Sawyer Squeeze. Water can be collected from a stream and filtered before use. Alternatively, it would be possible to collect rainwater and filter that. The Sawyer Squeeze can be adapted to a large bucket. Water filters are good at removing bacteria and organisms, but they mostly do not filter out viruses. For that, you can use one of many methods to purify water. For example, Katadyn Micropur chlorine dioxide tablets added to filtered water will kill any remaining viruses so long as the directions are followed. However, waterborne viruses are not usually considered a problem in North America.

There are many videos on YouTube on how to use water filters such as the Sawyer Squeeze and others. How to set up a bucket gravity flow water filter using the Sawyer Squeeze.