Natural Disasters: The Unavoidable Threats Happening Everyday

By Cade Shadowlight

 

While personal crises hit individuals quietly (article link), natural disasters make headlines: raging wildfires devouring neighborhoods, floods swallowing homes, earthquakes toppling buildings, hurricanes ripping apart communities, and tornadoes carving paths of destruction. These events are limited in geographic scope (your area might be safe from some), but happen constantly somewhere on the planet. They often have devastating local impacts, potentially wiping out whole communities overnight. Remember Hurricane Helene last year? Or the massive Los Angeles wildfires earlier this year?

Common Types of Natural Disasters

• Wildfires: Fueled by dry conditions; exploding in frequency due to forest mismangement.
• Floods: Most common worldwide; flash floods deadly and fast.
• Earthquakes: Unpredictable; high impact in seismic zones.
• Hurricanes/Tropical Cyclones: Seasonal but powerful.
• Tornadoes: Short-lived but violently destructive.
• Other extreme weather: Winter storms, heatwaves, severe thunder storms.

 

Preparation Strategies

 

1. Know Your Risks

• Check local hazards via FEMA flood maps, USGS earthquake zones, or NOAA hurricane/tornado data.
• Sign up for alerts: Wireless Emergency Alerts, local apps, NOAA weather radio. Many local government have text message systems you can opt-in to receive emergency and other important information.
• Have a good emergency radio with AM/FM/NOAA bands that operate via several power options. I have two of the Kaito Emergency Radios (Amazon link), one in my bedroom, the other in the den. These make great gifts, too!

2. Family Emergency Plan

• Make "just-in-case plans and discuss evacuation routes, meeting points, out-of-area contacts.
• Have a family communications plan (article link), including a secret word or phrase to establish identity.  
• Practice drills, routes for specific threats.
• Plan for pets and special needs family members.

3. Build and Maintain Kits

• Go-bag (72-hour kit): Water (1 gallon/person/day - bare minimum), non-perishable food, flashlight, batteries, first aid, medications, cash, important documents (digital + waterproof copies).
• Home kit: Extra food, water and supplies for 1-2 months; hand tools like wrench for gas shut-off, manual can-opener. 
• Vehicle kit: Basics, water, plus jumper cables, maps.
• Ways to purify water, such as individual water filters (Amazon link) and family-size filters (Amazon link) (Amazon link).

4. Home Hardening and Mitigation

• Floods: Elevate utilities, sandbags, sump pumps; consider flood insurance (separate from homeowners).
• Wildfires: Clear defensible space (30-100 ft), fire-resistant roofing, ember-proof vents.
• Earthquakes: Secure heavy furniture/water heater, retrofit foundation if needed.
• Hurricanes: Board windows, reinforce garage doors, trim trees.
• Tornadoes: Identify sturdy shelter (basement or interior room).

5. Insurance and Financial Prep

• Review policies: Standard homeowners covers some (fire, wind damage), but not floods/earthquakes. Get separate coverage if that is likely in your area.
• Paper and back-up digital copies of insurance polices, numbers and contact info. 
• Document possessions (photos/video/serial numbers) for claims.
• Build emergency fund for deductibles/uninsured losses (article link).

6. Community and Long-Term Resilience

• Tribe: Have a core group of family, friends, church for mutual support. 
• Know Locals: trusted and dependable contractors, electricians, plumbers, roofers, etc. 
• Stay informed during events: Follow proven sources, avoid rumors. Have an emergency radio (me: 2 Kaito Emergency Radios -- Amazon link).
• Post-disaster: Know aid resources (FEMA, Red Cross, local resources).

Conclusion

Natural disasters are inevitable in many regions, and may be worsening due to natural cycles and human activity. Being prepared turns chaos into survival.
Assess your risks today, make your plans and build that go-bag; small steps now prevent big regrets later.

 

Between Shadows and Light,

Cade Shadowlight 

 Join the Shadow Tribe: Sign up for the email list by clicking here. 

 

P.S. Here is my go to for all things life saving: Refuge Medical & Refuge Training (affiliate link). High quality, American made, first aid kits and medical supplies (training, too!). A 10% discount will automatically be applied at checkout using my links. 

 

If this article inspired or helped you, then please buy me a coffee so I can keep exposing the things they don’t want you to know → https://buymeacoffee.com/cadeshadowlight