More than 17.5 million people nationwide participating in ‘Great ShakeOut Earthquake Drills’ on Oct. 19
- LAKE COUNTY NEWS REPORTS
- Posted On
Great ShakeOut Earthquake Drills, a worldwide earthquake safety movement that began in southern California in 2008, encourages people to practice how to protect themselves during earthquakes in order to reduce injuries and even loss of life.
More than 53 million people worldwide are participating in earthquake drills in 2023, including 17.5 million people holding drills in all U.S. states and territories on International ShakeOut Day this Thursday, October 19. Many will hold their drills at 10:19 a.m. (local time).
More than 9.9 million are taking part in California alone.
In Lake County, 7,092 participants were signed up as of Tuesday evening.
That includes 6,526 in schools, 194 in local government, 167 in health care, 150 in nonprofit organizations, 20 in hotels and other lodgings, 15 in museums, libraries and parks, 13 in childcare and preschools, five individuals/families and two in state government.
On Tuesday, Board Chair Jessica Pyska said the Board of Supervisors will take part and were asked to take pictures from under their desks as part of the drill.
There is still time to be included this year, even after Oct. 19. Register to participate on any day that works for you or your organization at www.ShakeOut.org.
The series of recent devastating earthquakes in Afghanistan, plus those in Turkey and elsewhere earlier this year, are somber reminders of the importance of building earthquake-resistant structures, developing effective response procedures and capabilities, and the value of practicing self-protective actions which is the primary purpose of Great ShakeOut Earthquake Drills.
ShakeOut participants practice “Drop, Cover, and Hold On” and other recommended earthquake safety actions for a variety of situations — if you’re near a sturdy desk or table, in a stadium or theater, along the coast, driving a car, in bed, or if you have a mobility disability. Guidance for each situation is provided at www.EarthquakeCountry.org/step5. Many also practice other aspects of their emergency plans.
“ShakeOut is a way to increase community resilience at all levels,” said Mark Benthien, Global ShakeOut coordinator and outreach director for the Southern California Earthquake Center at the University of Southern California. “Earthquakes can be sudden and violent, but if we have taken steps to prepare ourselves, those around us, and the structures we live, work, and study in, we can greatly reduce their effects.”
Many participants follow the Earthquake Country Alliance’s Seven Steps to Earthquake Safety at www.EarthquakeCountry.org/sevensteps, which starts with Step 1: Secure Your Space. This means fastening furniture, TVs, cabinet door, and other items, to reduce the chance of earthquake injuries and damages caused when these items or knocked over or thrown during earthquakes.
California is the state with the greatest earthquake risk according to a study published by FEMA in April 2023. It also is the state with the most ShakeOut participants with more than 10 million expected to be registered this year. Washington State has the second-highest participation level with more than 1.3 million people. Utah is next with nearly 1 million people involved (though their drills were in April as Utah schools are not in session on ShakeOut day). The fourth largest participating state is Virginia – a reminder that as with the 2011 Mineral, VA earthquake, earthquakes can happen on the east coast too. See participation levels for regions at www.ShakeOut.org.
People in West Coast states (California, Oregon, and Washington) who have installed the MyShake app on their phone will receive a test alert at 10:19am on ShakeOut day. MyShake is one of several ways to receive the alert signal provided by the U.S. Geological Survey’s ShakeAlert system. Many cities, counties, school districts, and others are also testing their emergency communication alert systems. In addition, Washington State will conduct a test of their coastal tsunami sirens.
As part of their support for ShakeOut, the Federal Emergency Management Agency, or FEMA, has also set up an option to receive earthquake information via text messaging, including a reminder text at 10:19 a.m. local time (in Eastern, Central, Mountain, Pacific, and Alaska time zones). To opt-in, text “ShakeOut” to 43362.
For more information visit www.ShakeOut.org/resources and www.ShakeOut.org/messaging.