What should you do if you receive an early warning of an earthquake?

A new study analyzes what is the best advice people can be given when an earthquake strikes. The answer depends on where you are among other things, but the advice for the US is: drop, cover, wait!

Written by Laura Vataruso, MA, Ph.D. Candidate, UMass Amherst (@labtalk_laura)

Quote: Fattaruso, L., 2021, What should you do if you receive an earthquake early warning?, Temblor, http://doi.org/10.32858/temblor.220

Do you know what to do if you feel an earthquake while working? at home? At the gym?

Researchers who study earthquake safety want these questions to be answered with “yes.”

Over the past few years, the United States has launched an earthquake early warning system for the West Coast called ShakeAlert. When an earthquake occurs, real-time data from seismographs are used to determine the magnitude of the earthquake and the areas to be affected. Alerts are then automatically sent to individuals and facilities that are likely to experience a strong shock. The system is designed to give people a few seconds to protect themselves before seismic waves arrive, so all of this must happen very quickly for the alert to be useful.

But once people receive the warning, what should they do?

Building a rapid fire warning system was a technical feat, but understanding how people react during an earthquake and what actions reduce their risk of injury poses an entirely new set of challenges, as researchers outlined in a recent study on Best Pair Routing with ShakeAlert.

clear message

According to some studies, people who have not experienced an earthquake before are more likely to freeze or flee. They may stop to see what others are doing. But during a major earthquake, a few seconds of frequency can be costly. For the alert to be most effective, it must be accompanied by instructions.

“We know that an alert would be less effective if a warning was issued and did not provide people with practical information about what to do,” explains Sarah McBride, a USGS sociologist and lead author of the study. . Giving an alert without advice is not really an option.

The problem is, how do you give clear guidance to the 50 million people on the West Coast who are in different places, do different things and have different abilities?

McBride et al. collected data on injuries from a wide range of studies and sites. Between different earthquakes, the risks vary depending on the construction of the building, the type of earthquake, and even the time of day or season in which the earthquake occurs. Previous studies have suggested that women are affected more often than men – possibly because they are more likely to be caregivers and may move in to try to help children during a shake.

One of the challenges in understanding the causes of injuries during an earthquake is the inconsistency of data collection; After an earthquake, knowing what the injured person was doing is just as important as helping them. Scientists must also follow ethical data collection standards and consider the impact of trauma. As such, this data can be sparse and collected at varying intervals of time, confusing simple interpretations.

Some of the most common causes of injuries during earthquakes in the United States are stumbling and falling during movement, from falling and flying objects and from collapsing external buildings such as windows and facades. There is a common misconception that an entrance is a good place to go, but in truth, entrances are not a stronger part of the building, nor do they protect you from flying debris.

Damage in central Oklahoma from the 5.6-magnitude mineral earthquake in 2011. Credit: Brian Sherrod, US Geological Survey, public domain, via Wikimedia Commons

In their study, McBride et al concluded that the best accompanying message for the alert is “drop, cover, wait.” Getting down to the floor and under a sturdy table or desk can protect people from falling objects.

This message is repeated every year during the largest international earthquake exercise, the Great ShakeOut, held in October. It has also been adapted to consider diverse levels of ability – for example, a wheelchair user may not be best served by a fall, but should instead lock their wheels, cover and hold their head.

While there is no one perfect action that takes into account every scenario, thinking about and practicing your actions beforehand gives you the best chance of survival.

The “Drop, Cover, Hold On” recommendation has been adapted for individuals of varying abilities. Credit: Qatar Earthquake Alliance

It is not a universal message

Japan and New Zealand have also adopted the “Down, cover, hold” message. In countries with buildings that are more likely to collapse, such as Haiti, officials have decided that eviction is a better bet. In Mexico City – home to the first earthquake early warning system, built in 1991 – guidance depends on an individual’s location. First or second floor? evacuation. higher floors? Drop, cover, hold.

Children in New Zealand practice ‘drop, cover and hold’ in the Chic Out earthquake exercise. Credit: United Nations Office for Disaster Risk Reduction (CC BY-NC-ND 2.0)

Chris Goldfinger, a geologist at Oregon State University who was not involved in the study, stresses that it’s important for people to know which buildings they occupy. Many buildings in Oregon and Washington were built before strict seismic laws were enacted or even before it was recognized that the Pacific Northwest was at risk of a major earthquake. If someone was in a building that was likely to collapse, and was close to the entrance, Goldfinger says getting out is probably a better idea than “drop, cover, wait.”

McBride agrees that everyone needs to assess their situation, and that educational campaigns and exercises play a critical role in this type of preparedness, but said she hopes a clear call to action during the earthquake will save lives and prevent injuries.

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