The quake doesn't kill on the walk home.
The official FOCP reference scenario for a severe Swiss earthquake calculates about 1600 deaths—a planning projection. But on the long walk home, the real enemy is different: sore feet, exhaustion, the aftershock at the wrong place, getting lost over distance. Death is rare and comes almost only via accident—falling glass when running, a failing bridge, the aftershock in a damaged building. The instinct to get home as fast as possible is human and true. But blind rushing is the risky choice.
Why stopping briefly can be right.
After the Tōhoku quake in 2011, Tokyo stranded 5.15 million people; about 37 percent set out on foot. The city then asked its employees via Ordinance No. 17 to stay at their workplaces for about 72 hours—because masses heading home block rescue in the critical window, and the aftershock waits on the street. Both ends of this game are top outcomes: arriving together in order and staying at work and acting right. The penalty hits blind rushing and wrong shoes.
What really happens in 72 hours
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Friday, 09:12 — The quake.
Deep rumble, then forty seconds of strong shaking. Screens topple, ceiling panels fall, the glass facade shatters. Workday morning—most people are in the office, exactly the reference scenario. The exit is the most dangerous place now: glass falls there.
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Friday, morning — Stay or go.
Communication collapses, no voice calls get through. The urge to rush immediately is overwhelming. But streets jam, sirens can't get through—authorities ask to respect the rescue window. Secure, inform, then leave in order.
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Friday, afternoon — The walk begins.
Eighty kilometers on foot. Now shoes, tape on heels, the right route matter. Closed bridges, first blisters, a gas station with water. Those who get lost pay in kilometers and strength.
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Night into Saturday — The aftershock.
About thirteen hours after the main quake comes a strong aftershock. Sleep in a damaged building and risk injury; sleep outdoors and you only hear the crash. A night's rest takes some exhaustion.
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Saturday / Sunday — Arrival.
Blisters now critical, food scarce. Maybe an SMS gets through, in the home area the family PMR channel finally works. The village church, the agreed meeting point—and the question of whether the plan held.
The deadliest mistakes
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Run for the exit during the quake.
The deadliest instinct. The exit is the most dangerous place: glass and facade fall there. Falling objects cause most injuries, not collapsing houses. Right is Drop, Cover, Hold On—down, take shelter, hold on until shaking stops.
Protects you: Protection during earthquakes Danger: Earthquakes
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Rush blindly immediately.
Understandable—your family is really far. But unsecured, in business shoes, into the aftershock window on congested streets. In Tokyo 2011, masses heading home blocked rescue. Secure first, inform, wait the immediate aftershock—then leave in order or stay (if a meeting point carries the wait).
Protects you: Family emergency plan Getting around in emergencies
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Walk in the wrong shoes and without foot care.
Feet are the most common failure point on a walk home—not the quake. Business shoes and no prevention, and every step becomes agony. Preventive paper tape cuts blister rates in studies from 68 to 26 percent. Good shoes and tape belong in every get-home bag.
Protects you: Pack an emergency bag Assemble emergency supplies
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Trust phone navigation and get lost.
Over eighty kilometers, getting lost is a real danger. Phone navigation drains battery and needs signal; after a quake both are scarce. Those who know the route beforehand, carry a paper map, and follow linear infrastructure (railway, river, main road) keep direction even without GPS.
Protects you: Getting around in emergencies Prepare drinking water
Radio in the blackout — your fallback
No call gets through—but the question remains: how do you know what applies, and how do you reach your family? Five channels matter in game as in reality, and the most emotionally important is exactly the most useless:
- Radio (SRF / hand-crank radio). The most reliable source: official situation, stay recommendation, aftershock warning, closed routes. A battery or hand-crank radio receives even when the phone network has collapsed—and costs no battery.
- Alertswiss & official announcement. Alertswiss pushes official warnings to your phone as long as the overloaded network carries them (unreliable). Along the way, loudspeaker announcements, notices, and rescue workers give concrete hints: which bridge is closed, where the next gathering point is.
- Family PMR channel. An agreed PMR channel is useless over eighty kilometers—range is small. But in the home area, in the family's radius, it can reach where every cell network fails. Honestly framed: valuable only at the end.
- SMS & message board—not voice calls. Voice calls are dead; the network is 70–95 percent throttled. But SMS and disaster message boards trickle through sporadically. And the most reliable path is no line at all, but an agreed meeting place: «Your voice won't get through—but an agreed place does.»
Maxim (in game as in reality): Don't run from the quake—down, take shelter, hold on. Then secure yourself and the situation (radio, shoes, water, route), don't spend the aftershock window on the street. The call is dead, SMS works, an agreed meeting point works most reliably. An agreed place, a known route, and a paper map work when the phone is dead.
More in our radio section: Radio & Information Family emergency plan Situation map Switzerland
Frequently asked questions
Is the scenario realistic?
The sequence follows the FOCP reference scenario for a severe earthquake (magnitude 6.5, damage radius about 80 km, workday morning) and the documented experiences from Tokyo 2011: 5.15 million stranded, about 37 percent on foot, a strong aftershock about thirteen hours after the main quake. The specific company, characters, and exact route are fictional. Important: the FOCP numbers are a planning projection, not measured statistics from an actual Swiss quake.
Is it true that blisters are more dangerous than the quake?
On the walk home, yes. Death is rare in the game and comes almost only via accident—falling glass when running, a failing bridge, the aftershock in a damaged building. The overwhelming punishment for mistakes is stranding, separation, or injury. Feet are the most common failure point: blisters affect long-distance hikers in over half. Blisters and exhaustion are the real enemy, no drama.
Should you really stay at work when family is far?
It's a legitimate, good path—not a requirement. After 2011, Tokyo asked via Ordinance No. 17 to stay about 72 hours at the workplace because masses heading home block rescue and the aftershock waits on the street. Those with an agreed meeting point can endure the wait. Those wanting to leave should secure themselves, get information, and wait out the immediate aftershock window—then leave in order.
How do you navigate 80 kilometers without a phone?
Beforehand: know the route home and put a paper map in your get-home bag. Along the way, follow linear infrastructure—railway, river, main street lead reliably home, even without GPS. Watch for signs, ask rescue workers and passersby. Phone navigation is unreliable: it drains battery, needs signal, both scarce after a quake. Those who get lost pay in kilometers and strength.
Does the game save data?
No. No cookies, no account, no login, no tracking. Your game progress is only in the URL of this page—close the tab and it's gone. You can share the URL or bookmark it; it contains no personal data, only your decisions.
Why two to three days for 80 kilometers?
Because a walk happens in stages and feet set the pace, not will. The only solid march number—33.6 km in eight hours—comes from trained soldiers with load and is an upper limit, not an expectation for the untrained in everyday shoes. Eighty kilometers is two to three days on foot; we've deliberately kept stages conservative and lay it out in the methodology epilogue.