On the night of October 27, 2012, the Hawaiian Islands were placed under a tsunami alert. An earthquake measuring 7.7 on the Richter scale had struck near an island off of British Columbia, and had sent shock waves–and possibly a tsunami–racing across the Pacific Ocean. The haunting memories of the March 11, 2011 tsunami that devastated Japan sent many of us scurrying to gather up essentials and head for higher ground.
To our relief, the tsunami that hit our islands was minimal and no substantial damage was reported. However, the lessons of this "dry run" should not be lost on us. If you were not completely prepared for several days without access to outside sources for food, water, medication and medical supplies, please take this opportunity to be ready in case disaster really does strike.
You can find a helpful list of basic disaster supplies here. One thing the list does not address is what you will need for the comfort and security of your pets. You can find some helpful resources for your fine feathered, furred, or otherwise non-human friends here. You can look here for a helpful resource for deciding what financial records and information you should include in your disaster preparedness kit.
Let's all benefit from what turned out to be a false alarm by being better prepared for the next time a disaster looms.