A major earthquake hasn’t struck California’s big cities in 3 decades. On Thursday, we will get a glimpse of one
No major California city has experienced a major earthquake in more than three decades, but experts and officials say the question isn’t when a so-called “big earthquake” will occur, but rather whether it will occur.
And even in such a large state, this risk isn’t isolated.
“It shouldn’t be surprising that 70% of Californians live within 30 miles of an active fault,” California State Geologist Jeremy Lancaster said during a recent webinar. “We have seven active volcanoes; we have landslides; we have tsunamis; we have thousands of miles of active faults.”
But what should you do when the earth finally starts shaking? That’s where Thursday’s annual ShakeOut earthquake drills begin.
Southern California will conduct its ShakeOut drills at the Los Angeles Emergency Operations Center in downtown; the San Francisco Bay Area’s drills will take place in front of Oakland City Hall.
Here’s everything you need to know about this exercise and how to best prepare for a seismic disaster.
Lie down on the ground. Hide under something sturdy, such as a table. And stay put until the shaking stops,” Wendy Bohon, branch chief of seismic hazards and earthquake engineering at the California Geological Survey, said in a recent social media video.
Isn’t it safer to run outside?
Some people instinctively want to run outside when the shaking starts. But there are reasons why this isn’t recommended in California.
One of the most dangerous places during an earthquake is right outside a building, where you could be hit by falling glass or bricks. Structural engineers say brick buildings are particularly prone to collapse, so running out of a building during an earthquake can be particularly risky.
People walk through earthquake debris in the town of Imi N’Tala, on the outskirts of Marrakech, Morocco, on Tuesday, September 12, 2023. (AP Photo/Mosa’ab Elshami)
The Morocco earthquake is a warning for California: Weak brick buildings can become death traps.
September 12, 2023
Lancaster explained that in the 6.9-magnitude Loma Prieta earthquake in 1989 and the 6.7-magnitude Northridge earthquake in 1994—two major California seismic events that struck densely populated areas—about 50% of injuries were caused by falling objects.
Staying still on the ground, under something like a table, helps protect yourself from falling objects. According to Sarah McBride, executive director of the California Seismic Safety Commission, studies of the Loma Prieta and Northridge earthquakes have shown that if you are inside the earthquake and moving around, your chances of getting injured double.
“Most of the injuries that were recorded, sustained, and treated were motion-related injuries, as people were moving around trying to function,” McBride said during the webinar.
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