Great California ShakeOut 2010 earthquake exercise 10-21 at 10:21 a.m.
October 20, 2010
By Peggy Kelly
Santa Paula News
On Thursday, 10/21 at 10:21 a.m. you can save a life - perhaps your own - by practicing earthquake safety during The Great California ShakeOut 2010, a statewide preparedness exercise.
On October 21 at 10:21 a.m., all residents are asked to Duck, Cover and Hold On, said Santa Paula Fire Captain/Emergency Preparedness Coordinator Steve Lazenby, who said Ready Santa Paula AM 1610 will also offer a special broadcast of a real earthquake scenario, as well as prior information on the drill.
The broadcast will last two and a half minutes and offer “sound effects relating to earthquakes and a narrative” mimicking an actual emergency broadcast centered on a severe seismic shaker. The AM 1610 broadcast will offer safety tips for those at work, home and school, as well as motorists, who should pull over in a clear area when an earthquake strikes.
Information on the drill will be broadcast on AM 1610 days prior to the drill. Lazenby urged residents to “Tune your radio to AM 1610 no later than 10:21 a.m. on October 21 to make this short but important drill more valuable and educational. “Then, when the shaking stops, the broadcast will tell you what you should do” in the aftermath of a major earthquake.
Lazenby said businesses, schools and families should all take part in the 10/21 at 10:21 a.m. exercise. The City of Santa Paula will participate: “Every employee is going to Duck, Cover and Hold on. Hold On was added to hold, because you don’t want the ground to shake whatever you’re holding to shake away from you... or you away from it. So you hold on tight.”
Following the simulated earthquake broadcast and its own readiness excise, the city will activate its Emergency Operations Center (EOC) for an approximately 90-minute earthquake tabletop drill.
It is vitally important to be ready for earthquakes, which strike without warning and can cause widespread destruction. Lazenby said the Great ShakeOut exercise is also geared to raise awareness to get people thinking about preparedness and to “Act now to be ready now.” The Great California ShakeOut 2010 participants are being asked to go online and register by visiting the website homepage at www.ShakeOut.org.
Lazenby said every family and business should have basic emergency supplies (including a basic kit in vehicles), as well as a plan for emergencies - flood, fire and earthquake - that can occur in the area. Resolve to be Ready in 2010. By visiting www.ready.gov or calling 1-800-BE-READY, individuals can access materials that will help them make and keep a resolution that will bring peace of mind.
“What you practice and learn today can save your life, literally,” said Lazenby. “Everybody should think about emergency preparedness all the time and get their kids ready... it’s not if, but when” an earthquake or other disaster will strike.
For more information related to emergency readiness specific to Santa Paula, call Captain Lazenby at 933-4297.
