Volcanoes 4 Scotty

There are 2 major types of volcanos of concern. Some produce pyroclastic flows like St Helens, which spewed hot gases and ash, and others like the ones over in Hawaii produce some gases and ash, but mostly lava.

Most people when they think volcano and the US focus on the ones in Hawaii and the pacific northwest of Alaska, Oregon and Washington. And of course, the ‘super volcano’ of Yellowstone in Wyoming. They mostly do not consider the ones that are in Arizona [18ish of them] some of which have erupted within the last 1,000 years and there is an old one in New Hampshire which surprised me even more. couple that with the New Madrid fault and it could get interesting …

Even in areas with volcanos retrospectively MOST of the time they are not an active threat. Using Arizona as an example when one of those volcanos erupts the chances of being directly affected on any given day are less than 1 out of 365,000.. HOWEVER it is still a valid concern.

***How do you know when something is going to happen? Listen to local news and local talk radio as things heat up you will hear warnings on programs like that. Have a EAS [Emergency Alert System aka weather radio] radio available at home and if possible at work too #1 below.

This is important generally and all the time and not just for volcanos. Also, they make portable ones too.

Web sites of interest USGS.GOV is a good place to check out specific areas and conditions. Like sides bulging or the caldera floor raising.
Another site is https://www.volcanodiscovery.com/erupting_volcanoes.html
You may have at least some warning, but maybe not. With that in mind there are several things you CAN do to be ready [er] ….

***Being ready[er]

Don’t live on a volcano in the first place.
Plan at least 3 routes away from the known volcanos in your area. Consider prevailing winds – head into the wind IF possible, to avoid ash fall and gases. Avoid valleys and low laying areas ‘stuff’ flows downhill. Your BOL [bug out location] needs to be 20-25 miles up wind in the US that would generally be WEST of the volcano. Have a list with phone numbers of places to stay especially if you do not have friends in that area – call for reservations once you are on the road.

Keep your BOB with you.

Have supplies in your vehicle for extended stays. AND a packing list of what you will want from your home that is irreplaceable IF you have time to go get the stuff.

Have at least 3/4 tank of fuel all the time. When told to evacuate, GO. IF you do not leave “early”.

# 1]
SAME technology: SAME, or Specific Alert Message Encoding allows you to specify the particular area for which you wish to receive alerts. Most warnings and watches broadcast over NOAA Weather Radio are county-based or independent city-based (parish-based in Louisiana), although in a few areas of the country the alerts are issued for portions of counties. Since most NWR transmitters are broadcasting for a number of counties, SAME receivers will respond only to alerts issued for the area (or areas) you have selected. This minimizes the number of “false alarms” for events which might be a few counties away from where you live. (Public Alert ™ – required)

Selectable alerting of events: While SAME allows you to specify a particular area of interest, some receivers allow you to turn off alarms for certain events which might not be important to you. For example, if you live in a coastal county, but not right at the beach, you might not care about Coastal Flood Warnings. This feature may also be called “Event Blocking” or “Defeat Siren”. (Public Alert ™ – optional)

Battery backup: Since power outages often occur during storms, having a receiver with battery backup can be crucial. However, unless you have a portable unit which you will use away from other power sources, an AC power connection is recommended to preserve battery life. (Public Alert ™ – required for radios, optional for other devices)

External antenna jack: While most receivers come with a whip antenna you usually can extend to improve reception, depending on your location you also may need an external antenna. Some receivers come with an external antenna jack so you can connect to a larger antenna indoors or outdoors. You can often buy these antennas where you bought your receiver or from most stores with an electronics department.
You can also improvise an external antenna for a receiver that has a telescoping antenna on it. Go to the auto section of a big box store and get a roll of electrical OR speaker wire and some alligator clips. Strip a bit of insulation off one end of the wire and attach an alligator clip to it. This is the end you will attach to the telescoping built in antenna. On the other end of the wire attach another alligator clip to the INSULATED end of the wire, this is so you can deploy the wire to capture more of the radio signal. This will vastly improve your reception. This ONLY works for receivers. IF you want to do this with a transmitter the wire MUST be tuned [cut to length] to the frequency you plan to use.

Cross ref
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