WHAT TO EXPECT AFTER A DISASTER

Surviving the unsettling jolt of a quake or the flames of a fire is just the first step. An important one, yes — but the danger and challenge is rarely over right away. You will need to push on for the next several hours, days, or even weeks.

Here’s what experts advise: If your house is livable, stay with it even if the utilities are out because shelters might become overcrowded. This is where your survival kit will prove its worth, for food, water, first aid and the rest. Be prepared to go it alone for as many as three days. You may have turned off your gas, but if you smell or suspect a leak don’t light a match or a candle or flip any light switch, which can cause a spark, until you’re sure the gas danger is over.

Never touch a downed power line.

If your home is unlivable and staying in a hotel or with relatives is not an option, go to an emergency shelter. Do so quickly so you can get situated, reconnect with family or work, and apply for aid and get in touch with your home insurance agent.

If you rent or decide not to replace your house, prepare to make relocation arrangements — signing a new lease, getting new furniture or other belongings, applying for insurance payments or governmental emergency assistance. If you are moving back into an apartment that was only damaged, the landlord is responsible for making your unit fit to live in again — but not for the loss of your personal property. Take care of yourself. Consider counseling, stay healthy through exercise and good diet, stay current with your friends — in other words, recognize you’ve gone through an emotional wringer, and let yourself process the grief. Remember: To some extent, you will be rebuilding your life, and that comes one slow step at a time.

Gabrielle Lurie / The Chronicle 2017 Evacuee Martha Lynn rests with her dogs at a Red Cross shelter after evacuating her home following the Tubbs Fire in Santa Rosa last October.