What Would Be The First Three Actions You Would Take If Morning News Reports Indicated Yellowstone Caldera Had Just Erupted?

[Rickenbacher39]

I have seen several posts in this thread that stated one of the last things
they would do would be to "kiss their butt goodbye".
Hmmmm.
I may be a bit odd but if I knew I was going to die my butt would be the last place
I would want my lips to be. As a matter of fact I wouldn't want them to be there
any time for any reason.
Some of you need to get out more..................

 

[The Heretic]

Not meant to be taken literally

 

[nammac]

Not meant to be taken literally

At least not before a through washing

 

[HB of CJ]

Not much I could do. Very situational. Other than a big private sailboat berthed at Coos Pay completely ready to put to sea for a long voyage to the South Pacific nothing much comes to mind. Many things are completely beyond my control and I need to understand this. Death and taxes and stuff.

 

[KKG]

ONLY one action to take. Turn on the Boob Tube and see if they are providing live pictures like they did when St. Helens blew.

 

[CRBMoA]

RE: St Helens

I was in Deep Southeastern Oregon exterminating rabbits for an alfalfa farmer.

The first thing we noticed was the ash in Brothers and French Glen. Had no idea where it came from until we got back to Eugene.

 

[The Heretic]

Not much I could do. Very situational. Other than a big private sailboat berthed at Coos Pay completely ready to put to sea for a long voyage to the South Pacific nothing much comes to mind. Many things are completely beyond my control and I need to understand this. Death and taxes and stuff.

You don't want to be in relatively shallow water when geological events like that happen - i.e., you don't want to be within sight of the shoreline.

 

[v0lcom13sn0w]

id google what that meant

 

[Andy54Hawken]

This line from RoadHouse Blues comes to mind...

Well , I woke up this morning and I got myself a beer.....
The future's uncertain and the end is always near....
Andy

 

[Pops1911]

Or in the words to another Blues tune the writer of which I know well ...
"The hard times is coming, better get your self back home ..."

 

[revjen45]

"At least not before a through washing"

Wash your a$$ last.

 

[The Heretic]

We should be OK for a while based on previous ash maps.
View attachment 657738

With regards to ash fall and short term knock on effects, I think for the most part, western Orygun up to Alaska would maybe be one of the safer places in the USA. East of here would get hit the hardest. I don't see a map for how Europe would fare.

However, this is a more modern projection of ash fall:



Long term, it would be SHTF for the USA and we would

 

[The Heretic]

As for the first three things I would do:

1) I would take my flatbed truck into Costco and buy as much shelf stable food on pallets as they would let my buy and have it loaded onto the truck, then unload it into the shop. Most of that would be dry food as I would prefer to not have food that could freeze sitting in the shop.

2) I would fill up all my fuel cans that I could.

3) I would go shopping at Home Depot.

After that is done, I would come home and start reorganizing all my stuff, especially supplies.

My main worry would be that the effects the eruption would have on crops/etc. in the northern hemisphere, and therefore food supplies. I have enough food for about six months for three adults, but I believe the effects would last for years.

BTW - I would stop using my firewood until the power went out. I would go out and cut as much as I could so I would have more for when the power went out.

 

[Geardo]

As for the first three things I would do:

1) I would take my flatbed truck into Costco and buy as much shelf stable food on pallets as they would let my buy and have it loaded onto the truck, then unload it into the shop. Most of that would be dry food as I would prefer to not have food that could freeze sitting in the shop.

2) I would fill up all my fuel cans that I could.

3) I would go shopping at Home Depot.

After that is done, I would come home and start reorganizing all my stuff, especially supplies.

My main worry would be that the effects the eruption would have on crops/etc. in the northern hemisphere, and therefore food supplies. I have enough food for about six months for three adults, but I believe the effects would last for years.

BTW - I would stop using my firewood until the power went out. I would go out and cut as much as I could so I would have more for when the power went out.

The issue is everybody else would be doing the same thing. Might be worth a shot but also might get you shot.

 

[3MTA3]

The issue is everybody else would be doing the same thing. Might be worth a shot but also might get you shot.

Agreed. Truth is that gettig it back home might be way harder than getting the supplies in the first place. Likely as soon as people have recovered from the initial awe that there would be people laying in wait to take from others.

 

[The Heretic]

The issue is everybody else would be doing the same thing. Might be worth a shot but also might get you shot.

If I was quick enough (I rarely am), I could beat most people to it. I would probably sit here trying to get the latest news until the full impact of it became clear (I wouldn't want to spend that kind of $ until I was sure), and then it would probably be too late.

 

[The Heretic]

Agreed. Truth is that gettig it back home might be way harder than getting the supplies in the first place. Likely as soon as people have recovered from the initial awe that there would be people laying in wait to take from others.

The first day or week, or so, there would still be ROL, and I wouldn't attempt this without being armed (concealed). My route to the largest Costco warehouse in the PNW is mostly rural roads until I get into Hillsboro.

Not too worried about it, less likely than a Cascadian Subduction Zone earthquake, which would probably make it really hard to get to the store.

 

[Cavedweller]

I think my actions would be determined by the time of day, the season, and what happens to the electrical grid when it happens.

If it was dark when it happened and the grid went down, then I'd probably be concerned with getting light sources going first. Then I'd want to communicate with family members to see how they were. After that my actions would probably be determined by whatever seemed most exigent. It could be getting heat going in winter, or attending to physical security needs, or communicating with neighbors.

If it happened during the day, and in warm weather, light and heat would be less of a concern, and communicating with family and neighbors would probably rise to the top, followed by physical security needs. In both cases, seeking available sources of news (radio or whatever) might be #3 on the list.

Does anyone know, if the grid to the east goes down due to ash fall, does the entire grid go down? Would we be without power if most of the initial effects were east of Yellowstone?

It seems it's difficult to answer this question succinctly because there are so may variables involved when it happens (time of day, season, wind direction, availability of news sources, etc.)

 

[3MTA3]

I think my actions would be determined by the time of day, the season, and what happens to the electrical grid when it happens.

If it was dark when it happened and the grid went down, then I'd probably be concerned with getting light sources going first. Then I'd want to communicate with family members to see how they were. After that my actions would probably be determined by whatever seemed most exigent. It could be getting heat going in winter, or attending to physical security needs, or communicating with neighbors.

If it happened during the day, and in warm weather, light and heat would be less of a concern, and communicating with family and neighbors would probably rise to the top, followed by physical security needs. In both cases, seeking available sources of news (radio or whatever) might be #3 on the list.

Does anyone know, if the grid to the east goes down due to ash fall, does the entire grid go down? Would we be without power if most of the initial effects were east of Yellowstone?

It seems it's difficult to answer this question succinctly because there are so may variables involved when it happens (time of day, season, wind direction, availability of news sources, etc.)

Ultimately the power grid in the PNW is the most robust in the US since it's hydro based. All we have to do is to make sure that the dams are operating and the lines stay up. Coal and gas turbines are much more vulnerable since they require more labor and supply of fuel.

All US states except Texas are part of the US power grid, so initially we could lose power, but I would expect that would be resolved fairly quickly. There are regional control centers that have the ability to route/re-route/cut power all along the portion of the grid they manage. I've been in the one that controls the SE power grid and it was amazing what they could do even 20 years ago.

 

[GWS]

Here's a map of past ash falls from Yellowstone and a few other volcanoes. Mt, St Helens ash fall is kind of puny in comparison, embarrassing actually.

Detailed Description

Eruptions of the Yellowstone volcanic system have included the two largest volcanic eruptions in North America in the past few million years; the third largest was at Long Valley in California and produced the Bishop ash bed. The biggest of the Yellowstone eruptions occurred 2.1 million years ago, depositing the Huckleberry Ridge ash bed. These eruptions left behind huge volcanic depressions called "calderas" and spread volcanic ash over large parts of North America (see map). If another large caldera-forming eruption were to occur at Yellowstone, its effects would be worldwide. Thick ash deposits would bury vast areas of the United States, and injection of huge volumes of volcanic gases into the atmosphere could drastically affect global climate. Fortunately, the Yellowstone volcanic system shows no signs that it is headed toward such an eruption in the near future. In fact, the probability of any such event occurring at Yellowstone within the next few thousand years is exceedingly low.

Sources

Public Domain.

Fact Sheet 2005-3024