Tricia Hackbarth removes items from the family room of her parents' home in November 2011 after an earthquake in Lincoln County toppled the chimney on to the roof.
Earthquake preparedness was not something I learned to do as a native Oklahoman.
Tornadoes, fires and even floods are things us Midwesterners know how to survive.
It never occurred to us our land would one day shake beneath our feet.
That is, until a few years ago when quite a bit of seismic activity began to take place.
The largest earthquake in the state’s history was of a 5.7 magnitude on Nov. 6, 2011, in Lincoln County.
My family was on the second floor of our house one night as the earth began rumbling and items shifted.
It happened again within the week, completely freaking me out.
Later, I found out Oklahoma has had at least 3,000 quakes between 1897 and 2010, with one in El Reno in 1954 registering between 5.2 and 5.9 magnitude.
That’s why I didn’t automatically trash the press release from California promoting a world-wide earthquake safety drill.
The
Great ShakeOut Earthquake Drills are set for Oct. 17 and are meant to inform people how to survive and recover quickly from a quake.
The website contains information for people at schools, work and home on earthquake preparedness.
The ShakeOut began in southern California in 2008 and has grown to include 40 states and U.S. territories and regions in Canada, New Zealand, Japan, Italy and other countries.
More than 20 million people are expected to participate.
You can find out more on its website,
ShakeOut Facebook page or
@shakeout on Twitter.Here are some preparation tips:
No-cost suggestions-
- Move heavy or large items to the floor or low shelves.
- Move things that can fall on you away from where you spend a lot of time.
- Move heavy or unstable objects away from doors and escape routes.
Low-cost suggestions-
- Secure a water heater to wall studs with two metal straps.
- Secure top-heavy furniture and appliances to wall studs.
- Hang mirrors and pictures on closed hooks.
- Secure computers and TVs with special straps.
- Prevent small items from falling by using museum putty or wax.
- Install latches on kitchen cabinets.
A bit more work or cost-
- Use flexible connections where gas lines meet appliances (such as water heaters and ovens.
- Secure overhead light fixtures.
- Secure free-standing wood stoves or fireplace inserts.
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