Interestingly, this country has quite a long history of responding to disasters on remote island chains  --  until the 21st century began, the US was responsible for disaster relief in Micronesia and other South Pacific islands.  And of course we respond to disasters in our territories in the Caribbean.

The important step, and one which fills me with relief, is that now we are officially recognizing that the Olympic Peninsula will require an island-chain response.  The fact that there are so many Navy assets close by, and that the Navy is planning to use them here when "the Big One" happens, is a huge advantage to us.

We still need to be prepared to be self-sufficient in our individual needs  --  food, water, and medication  --  for an unusually long time.  But now we, and the US Government, are starting to plan for the conditions we will actually be facing.  And that's the best news we could possibly receive.