Earthquake Safety

An earthquake is a sudden, rapid shaking of the earth, caused by the breaking and shifting of rock beneath the earth’s surface. Earthquakes strike suddenly, without warning, and they can occur at any time of the year, day or night.

The Earthquake Safety Checklist is available in 9 languages and large print.
(English |Large Print English | Arabic | Chinese | French |Haitian-Creole | Korean | Spanish | Tagalog | Vietnamese)
 

Preparing for Earthquakes

• Find safe places in every room, such as under a desk or against an inside wall. During an earthquake, these are places to take cover where nothing can fall on you.
• Practice Drop, Cover and Hold On! at least twice a year. We recommend doing so when you switch your clock to and from Daylight Savings Time. Drop under a nearby table or desk and hold on to it. Cover your head with your free arm. If you are not near a table or desk, sit against an interior wall away from anything that might break or fall on you and Hold On until the shaking ends. Be sure that everyone in your home, including children and pets, also practice.
• Eliminate Hazards by securing your furniture. Unsecured furniture may fall on you during an earthquake.
• Inform others, like babysitters or caregivers, of your emergency plan.

What Should I do During an Earthquake?

If You Are Indoors When the Shaking Starts

• Drop, Cover and Hold On! Move as little as possible.
• If you are in bed, stay there, curl up and hold on. Protect your head with a pillow. Stay away from windows to avoid being injured by shattered glass.
• Stay indoors until the shaking stops and you are sure it is safe to exit. If you must leave the building after the shaking stops, use stairs rather than an elevator, in case there are aftershocks, power outages or other damage.
• Be aware that fire alarms and sprinkler systems frequently go off in buildings during an earthquake, even if there is no fire.

If You Are Outside When the Shaking Starts

• Find a clear spot and drop to the ground.
• Stay there until the shaking stops, away from buildings, power lines, trees and streetlights.
• If you are in a mountainous area or near unstable slopes or cliffs, be alert for falling rocks and other debris. Landslides are often triggered by earthquakes.

If you are in a vehicle when the shaking starts…

• Pull over to a clear location and stop. Avoid bridges, overpasses and power lines, if possible.
• Stay inside with your seatbelt fastened until the shaking stops. Then, drive carefully, avoiding bridges and ramps that may have been damaged.

• If a power line falls on your vehicle, do not get out. Wait for assistance.

Earthquake Myths

7 Common Earthquake Myths: Exposed!

1. Myth 1 – “Go for the doorway when an earthquake strikes!”

A lasting earthquake image of California is a collapsed adobe home with the door frame as the only standing part. This image spurred the myth of doorways as the safest place to be during a quake. Modern homes are built so that doorways are no safer than any other part of the house. You are much safer under a table.

2. Myth 2 – “Big earthquakes always happen in the early morning!”

It’s common for people to notice the earthquakes that fit the pattern and forget the ones that don’t. Earthquakes strike at all times throughout the day. Several recent damaging earthquakes occurred in the early morning, so people tend to believe all big earthquakes happen then.

3. Myth 3 – “Earthquake faults can open wide enough to swallow people and buildings!”

A popular literary device is a fault that opens during an earthquake to swallow up an inconvenient character. Gaping faults exist only in fiction. During an earthquake, the ground moves across a fault, not away from it. If the fault could open, there would be no friction. If there were no friction, there would be no earthquakes.

4. Myth 4 – “California will split apart from the United States and sink into the ocean!”

Those envious of sunny California and its beaches like to believe this myth. The motion of plates will not cause California to sink, as western California is moving horizontally along the San Andreas fault (The land on both sides of the fault are converging and getting closer together.), and up around the Transverse ranges (mountains to the northeast of the LA basin). The ocean is not a great hole into which the state can fall, but is itself land at a somewhat lower elevation with water above it.

5. Myth 5 – “We must have good buildings, because we have good building codes!”

What if buildings were built before a code was enacted? Codes may be updated, but the older buildings are what exist. This is why retrofitting older buildings is a key responsibility of the building’s owner. Simply checking to make sure YOUR building has been retrofitted, if necessary, can save lives!

6. Myth 6 – “Everyone will panic during the big one!”

The idea that people generally always panic and run around madly during and after earthquakes, creating more dangerous situations for themselves and others, is a common belief. However, research shows that people are prone to protect themselves and help others during and after earthquakes. Most people don’t get too shaken up about being “shook up!”

7. Myth 7 – “The weather is hot and dry…you know what that means? Earthquaaake!”

It’s a common belief that earthquakes are more common in certain types of weather. However, earthquakes start many kilometers below the region affected by surface weather. People notice earthquakes that fit a pattern and disregard the ones that don’t. Every region of the world has a story about earthquake weather, but the type of weather is basically what the weather was like, when they had their most memorable earthquake!

The information here is available in partnership between the American Red Cross of Greater Los Angeles, and the Earthquake Country Alliance.  The American Red Cross of Greater Los Angeles is a member of the Southern California Earthquake Country Alliance.