If the big one does hit, the townies are most vulnerable.

The experts won't say it so plainly, but it is clear, particularly in reviewing what happened with Hurricane Iniki, that resourceful, make-do country jacks are better able to take care of themselves in the wake of a storm.

It's more than being able to hunt, fish and drink coconut water, although those sorts of survivalist skills just might come in handy.

City folks get used to being far, far down the chain of supply. If they can't find something at a big chain store, then it might not exist. If they see something on a checklist, then they buy it, no questions asked.

The clearest example of this is the rush to buy bottled water. Costco Iwilei sold out one day and other grocery stores were running low.

You know, you don't actually have to have bottled water to survive a hurricane and the days after. You just have to have clean drinking water, and that you can get right now from your own kitchen faucet by filling up thermoses and coolers and clean containers and whatever.

After a story ran on the local TV news about a store that sold out all their pallets of bottled water, one of the anchors made the comment that hey, you know you can just fill up bottles from your tap right now, no need buy. Yeah, said the co-anchor, and remember when they used to tell us, when a storm was coming, to fill up your tub with water?

Uh, OK. But just to be clear, the water in the tub isn't necessarily for you to drink. Kinda lepo, eh? I mean, if you're really in a pinch, go for it, but otherwise, when the storm is coming, fill up your tub so that you'll have water for little sponge baths and to use to flush your toilet. That's the main purpose of filling up the tub. It's like a rain barrel. Drink only if you have to.

And then the thing about the tarps — those are for after the storm, in case of broken windows or holes in the roof. You put up the tarp to cover the puka, anchor it on all sides with bricks or boards or nails, to keep your home from being further damaged while you're waiting for repair work to start. Don't go putting up tarps as the storm is approaching. They won't save the sofa if the roof blows off. Really.

Some of the usual storm prep checklists leave things a bit vague. For instance, putting tape on the windows probably won't keep the windows from breaking, particularly if a huge tree branch or your neighbor's roof comes flying into your plate glass. Tape can help minimize the spray of glass shards if the window breaks, so it's a good idea to do anyway. Just don't make one big X with masking tape on your window and think it's safe to stand there and watch the wind.

If your idea of cooking is heating up take-out in the microwave, you might want to work on your grill skills. If you don't know how to use bleach to make sure drinking water is safe, learn the recipe (8 drops of bleach to a gallon of water, let stand at least 30 minutes before drinking).

It's not enough to have everything on the list. It helps to know the hows and whys, and sometimes, those things get lost in translation. Ask your country cousins for the scoops.

Lee Cataluna's column runs Tuesdays, Fridays and Sundays. Reach her at 535-8172 or lcataluna@honoluluadvertiser.com.