Connect with us

Uncategorized

Learn to prepare for earthquakes during ShakeOut 2022

Learn to prepare for earthquakes during ShakeOut 2022

 


Written by Catherine Wheeler.

For many, San Juan County feels disconnected from the rest of the world, and thus from the world’s problems. The islands seem to move more slowly, and mundane chaos, such as the natural disasters of fires and floods seen across the Salish Sea, often do not find their way here. This separation can give the impression that the islands are immune to these issues.

That was until 10:20 a.m. on October 20, when the annual ShakeOut Earthquake exercise, in which 2,027 county residents, half of them schoolchildren, took place this year. The annual event reminds many islanders that the underground world is full of massive activity and destruction.

The annual ShakeOut exercise — a collaboration between the Federal Emergency Management Association and six US geological organizations and research centers — began in Southern California in 2008 as a way to educate residents on how to prepare for earthquakes in the county’s most earthquake-prone state. The exercises are simple: Three steps are lifesaving in the event of an earthquake.

“It’s not complicated but the hard part is doing it,” said Brendan Cowan, director of the county emergency management since 2003.

The exercise attempts to build a muscle memory response in the event of an earthquake, which will allow the person to act, rather than think first, saving precious seconds in the event of an event. Although it is rare for islanders to feel the tremor of an earthquake, small, non-erupting earthquakes frequently occur in San Juan.

The attached map shows the prevalence of earthquakes since 2000.

‘Almost all of the [those earthquakes] Too small to feel them, but we discover them and locate their centers. “Data like this tell us about the locations of faults and the buildup of stresses in the Earth’s crust,” says Harold Tobin, an expert in seismology and geohazards and a professor in the University of Washington’s Department of Earth and Space Sciences.

Washington state faces the second highest risk of damage from earthquakes in the country, second only to California. This is largely due to its location atop the Cascadia Subduction Zone, a region where a single tectonic plate, an ever-changing subsurface plate of rock, slides eastward below the North American continental plate, a process known as subduction. Eventually, the sliding plate would come to a stop at the immobile mass of Earth in the middle of the continent. When this happens, the Cascadia subduction zone will give way, causing a large earthquake, expected to be between magnitude 8-10 (the scale stops at 10).

This type of massive earthquake naturally seems like a terrifying prospect, and many of the indigenous tribes that experienced this earthquake were exactly around the year 1700, according to oral records of the event. Many of these residents were wiped out along Puget Sound as land fell into the sea and a large tsunami crashed into the coast.

However, this fate is something scientists are working hard to avoid and times have changed dramatically. Preparedness efforts, such as ShakeOut drills and emergency alert systems, aim to protect many from such devastating consequences.

According to Tobin, an earthquake of this magnitude – which scientists have called “the largest” – is estimated to occur approximately every 200-550 years based on historical records. This means that the “big event” could happen tomorrow or in another 200 years. However, what most worries Tobin are the smaller, more frequent earthquakes. These small events tend to be far from people’s minds because they feel less threatened, yet have more frequent and reliably devastating outcomes.

The Devils Mountain Fault, located just south of the islands, causes one of these earthquakes to be more frequent, causing a major earthquake every two decades. Veteran islanders may remember the 2001 Nisquale earthquake, the 6.8-magnitude earthquake that shook Puget Sound and was felt as far as Idaho. Although there were no direct casualties, many were injured, and property damage was estimated at $1-4 billion.

While the earthquake threat is very real, Cowan and Tobin believe there is plenty of good news for the islands, which have unique characteristics that may be game-changing in major earthquake events. This begins with the geology of the islands, which have rocky, high shores that are more avalanche-resistant and not prone to erosion from the high seas.

According to Cowan, the islands’ culture of resilience can also be a lifesaver. The islanders are used to power cuts and are more thoughtful about how to provide their food in a place with little lifeline to the mainland. In the event of a major disaster, this can be a better preparedness as long as residents remain aware of the fact that the islands are isolated, and preparation is essential. Kwan also thinks it’s important to “make sure we don’t abandon the culture of neighbors who take care of each other and help people prepare.”

A number of other changes could be implemented to better prepare the islands for natural disasters, including modifying buildings to be more stable and securing any heavy objects in homes and public buildings. Tobin oversees an extensive database of Washington buildings that are structurally sound enough to handle an earthquake. The data shows that the Pacific Northwest is woefully ill-prepared for an earthquake, as most buildings are ill-equipped to avoid collapse.

However, according to Tobin, the islands do much better than the rest of the state. Most buildings are made of wood, not glass or old stone, and stop at two stories, making them sturdier and better able to keep the structure upright in case of vibration.

The islands also have a uniquely small community filled with citizens whose votes tend to have more power than a place like Seattle, with greater and less local governance. If preparedness becomes a priority for residents, it may be easier to implement better safety measures more quickly — modifying any unsafe buildings, helping residents to equip their homes, and getting more people to participate in annual ShakeOut exercises.

Moreover, according to Cowan, it is simply a matter of being aware and knowing what to do when an earthquake occurs. It’s important to remember that “earthquakes are a fact of life…there are a lot of things we can do to overcome them safely,” Tobin said.

For Kwan, this means reducing one’s panic and anxiety through simple methods of preparation. In a world of growing anxiety, he says he “spends more time reassuring people than he does persuading them to do something.” He sees the ShakeOut exercise as a way to reduce this common fear.

“The message I like to give people is that disaster preparedness doesn’t need to be complicated or time-consuming or expensive, it can really be very simple. The only thing that is challenging is taking the time to do it,” says Tobin. The seemingly simple ShakeOut exercise of “drop, cover, hold” can actually be formidable when disaster strikes.

For more information on ShakeOut, go to https://www.shakeout.org/howtoparticipate/. To receive emergency alerts of an earthquake, download MyShake, which can be found in the iPhone App Store, and is already built into Android phones.

Sources

1/ https://Google.com/

2/ https://www.sanjuanjournal.com/life/learning-earthquake-preparedness-during-shakeout-2022/

The mention sources can contact us to remove/changing this article

What Are The Main Benefits Of Comparing Car Insurance Quotes Online

LOS ANGELES, CA / ACCESSWIRE / June 24, 2020, / Compare-autoinsurance.Org has launched a new blog post that presents the main benefits of comparing multiple car insurance quotes. For more info and free online quotes, please visit https://compare-autoinsurance.Org/the-advantages-of-comparing-prices-with-car-insurance-quotes-online/ The modern society has numerous technological advantages. One important advantage is the speed at which information is sent and received. With the help of the internet, the shopping habits of many persons have drastically changed. The car insurance industry hasn't remained untouched by these changes. On the internet, drivers can compare insurance prices and find out which sellers have the best offers. View photos The advantages of comparing online car insurance quotes are the following: Online quotes can be obtained from anywhere and at any time. Unlike physical insurance agencies, websites don't have a specific schedule and they are available at any time. Drivers that have busy working schedules, can compare quotes from anywhere and at any time, even at midnight. Multiple choices. Almost all insurance providers, no matter if they are well-known brands or just local insurers, have an online presence. Online quotes will allow policyholders the chance to discover multiple insurance companies and check their prices. Drivers are no longer required to get quotes from just a few known insurance companies. Also, local and regional insurers can provide lower insurance rates for the same services. Accurate insurance estimates. Online quotes can only be accurate if the customers provide accurate and real info about their car models and driving history. Lying about past driving incidents can make the price estimates to be lower, but when dealing with an insurance company lying to them is useless. Usually, insurance companies will do research about a potential customer before granting him coverage. Online quotes can be sorted easily. Although drivers are recommended to not choose a policy just based on its price, drivers can easily sort quotes by insurance price. Using brokerage websites will allow drivers to get quotes from multiple insurers, thus making the comparison faster and easier. For additional info, money-saving tips, and free car insurance quotes, visit https://compare-autoinsurance.Org/ Compare-autoinsurance.Org is an online provider of life, home, health, and auto insurance quotes. This website is unique because it does not simply stick to one kind of insurance provider, but brings the clients the best deals from many different online insurance carriers. In this way, clients have access to offers from multiple carriers all in one place: this website. On this site, customers have access to quotes for insurance plans from various agencies, such as local or nationwide agencies, brand names insurance companies, etc. "Online quotes can easily help drivers obtain better car insurance deals. All they have to do is to complete an online form with accurate and real info, then compare prices", said Russell Rabichev, Marketing Director of Internet Marketing Company. CONTACT: Company Name: Internet Marketing CompanyPerson for contact Name: Gurgu CPhone Number: (818) 359-3898Email: [email protected]: https://compare-autoinsurance.Org/ SOURCE: Compare-autoinsurance.Org View source version on accesswire.Com:https://www.Accesswire.Com/595055/What-Are-The-Main-Benefits-Of-Comparing-Car-Insurance-Quotes-Online View photos

ExBUlletin

to request, modification Contact us at Here or [email protected]