Have you Heard of The Great ShakeOut Earthquake Drills, officially recognized on October 15th worldwide? If you haven’t, it might be a good idea to get the word out around your school or office! It’s a day when people of all ages will practice how to react in the event of an earthquake.
Drills are taking place at 10:15am, preparing people for earthquakes so that they can rest easy, with the latest knowledge on how best to survive and recover afterwards.
You can register for the drills online, here!
Below, we’ve included some of the basics that will also be covered on the 15th:
- Most of us are familiar with these famous instructions: drop, cover and hold on!
- The idea is that you hit the floor before you fall down. Then you scramble under a sturdy desk or table to protect yourself from broken window panes or falling debris. Last but not least, you cover your head and neck, and hold on to the sturdy desk or table until the shaking stops.
- It’s crucial that you find the closest protection and get to it immediately. Earthquakes give no warning and may be very violent.
Once the earthquake is over, it’s important to be cautious as buildings may have lost their structural integrity, and aftershocks can be just as big, if not bigger, than the initial quake. You won’t be able to move around during the actual quake, but once it’s over and you’re assessing injuries and damage, it will be a huge relief if you have access to a survival kit, wherever you are.
Here are a few tips on what not to do during an earthquake:
- Do NOT stand in a doorway. The fact that doorways USED to be the safest place to be during an earthquake is simply no longer true. Modern building design has changed drastically over the years, and so doorways are not a safer place to be. The major downside to them is that they can’t protect you from falling objects. It really is best to get under a desk or table.
- Do NOT engage in the “triangle of life” theory. It is potentially life-threatening, leaving you vulnerable, and is not nearly as safe as the drop, cover, and hold on theory, which has been researched time and again by experts.
- Do NOT flee the building you are in! First of all, running itself is dangerous during an earthquake because of all the movement. And also, outside there will most likely be a lot more falling debris.
For more wonderful resources from ShakeOut, click here.
Over 14.5 million participants worldwide have registered in this year’s ShakeOut event. Don’t miss out. Get in the know, and be prepared.
Article contributed by Sophie Wooding – Avid gardener and cyclist in Victoria, BC and Content Writer for Frontier.io