subject: Surviving Earthquakes -- The Basics [print this page] There are major areas around the world where earthquake activity is common. If you live in one of these places, such as California and Japan down through Indonesia, you should know it. Many of these areas are close to volcanoes.
However, just about every place is at some risk of an earthquake. We never thought of Haiti as a big earthquake center until they recently got the one that devastated their capital city.
People who live in California are used to feeling tremors. The Midwest of the United States is not thought of as an earthquake prone area, and we don't often feel any, but here around St Louis Missouri we're right on the New Madrid Fault line.
The New Madrid has not had a major earthquake since 1811, but that one was powerful enough to make the Mississippi River run upstream! It's estimated it would cause amazing amounts of damage and destruction if it happened today.
Occasionally, we do feel tremors. I remember one shaking me in my sleep -- I woke up just enough to feel as though I were in a very weird dream. I've slept through other tremors, and didn't learn about them until going to work the next morning.
I did once feel a strong earthquake when in The Philippines, and it was scary. It didn't cause any damage, but in the first few seconds you don't know how powerful it's going to be, so there's a brief moment of real fear, because the very ground and everything around you is no longer solid, it's shaking.
About twenty years ago some guy calling himself a scientist predicted the New Madrid fault would have an earthquake on a particular in, I believe, 1992.
It didn't happen, but he got a lot of media attention -- for unknown reasons -- and succeeded in scaring lots of people.
One good thing is that people learned a lot more about how to prepare for and cope with earthquakes.
Make sure your house is securely anchored to your foundation. Consider installing a gas shut off valve that's automatically activated by a powerful shaking.
Bolt refrigerators, cabinets, bookcases, mirrors, your water heater and your furnace to the floor and wall, or use secure nuts to hold them fast.
If there is an earthquake, stay away from windows, mirrors or anything that could fall. Get underneath a table or desk, kneel down and cover your head with your arms, or cushions if available. If you're in bed when it happens, stay there, using pillows to cushion your head.
In a small earthquake, a head injury from something falling is your biggest risk.
Wait until it stops before leaving the building. Most injuries happen from falling debris when people are leaving or entering buildings.
If you're outside, remain outside. If you can, move away from buildings, trees, and utility poles and wires. You're safest out in the open, so stay there.
If you're in a car, pull over to the side of the road and stay there.
