User blog comment:Unownshipper/Metallurgists Wanted: Rapture's Natural Resources/@comment-24769282-20140810040047/@comment-75.36.142.53-20140810062845

Likely anyone coming to Rapture didnt just bring 'a few suitcases', but lots of worldly possessions and their work apparatus and tools and supplies of materials.

How long all that would last after the cutoff date probably varied alot and whether appropriate self-sufficiency-based alternate materails could be developed/found was another question.

Recycling would obviously fill in for some and those materals unlikely to be locally produced may have been massively stockpiled (ie - tungsten is rare across the entire world and wouldnt likely have any loacal source for Rapture,  but is fundamental for various tools and commonly for lightbulbs)