When the earth shakes, make sure you have what it takes!

Our attention these days is focused on fighting the COVID-19 pandemic, wildfires, and other emergencies but an earthquake can happen in California at any time. Join us for The Great California ShakeOut this Thursday October 15, 2020 to make sure that you know how to keep yourself and others safe. Don’t put off preparation until an earthquake or other disaster occurs–then it might be too late. The good news about earthquakes is there’s a lot of simple things you can do before the earth moves that make a huge difference afterward (check www.sf72.org to learn more—we bet you will find you are more prepared than you think!).

When an earthquake occurs, it is human nature to act on instinct. Make sure that your instinct is the result of smart preparation. Join us at 10:15 a.m. this Thursday to practice the safest thing to do during an earthquake: drop, cover and hold on. That means at 10:15 a.m. wherever you are, drop down to your hands and knees and cover your head with your arm, or if you are by a table or desk take cover under it and hold on until the virtual shaking stops. This practice drill will help you to remember the drop, cover and hold on move during the real deal—think of it as creating muscle memory.

In addition to participating in the drop, cover and hold on drill, take the following steps and get prepped today.

• Make sure that you have supplies like toilet paper (sure don’t want to go through that shortage again), non-perishable food, water, prescription medications, flashlights, a portable radio, batteries, and other essentials.
• Create an emergency plan with family, friends, and neighbors to identify meeting locations and contacts.
• Sign up for AlertSF to be informed about emergency situations (text your zip code to 888-777)
• Get the MyShake app for your Apple or Android phone. It will send a warning if a magnitude 4.5 or greater earthquake is detected. It will also send a simulation alert each year during the Great California ShakeOut.

We are dealing with so many emergency situations, it makes you wonder what’s next? Who knows? But we do know that you’ll be in the best position, if you prepare for the worst. To learn more about the Great California ShakeOut go to: www.shakeout.org/california.