Full Notification

At 10:19 a.m. on October 19, Millions of people worldwide will practice how to Drop, Cover, and Hold On during the Great ShakeOut Earthquake Drills, which began in California in 2008.

Participating is a great way for your family or organization to be prepared to survive and recover quickly from big earthquakes– wherever you live, work, or travel. ShakeOut is also a major activity of America's PrepareAthon!

Drop, Cover, and Hold On when the earth shakes.
Taking the proper actions, such as “Drop, Cover, and Hold On”, can save lives and reduce the risk
of injury.

Everyone, everywhere, should learn and practice what to do during an earthquake, whether at home, work, school or traveling. In MOST situations, you will reduce your chance of injury if you:

DROP where you are, onto your hands and knees. This position protects you from being knocked down and also allows you to stay low and crawl to shelter if nearby.

COVER your head and neck with one arm and hand

• If a sturdy table or desk is nearby, crawl underneath it for shelter
• If no shelter is nearby, crawl next to an interior wall (away from windows)
• Stay on your knees; bend over to protect vital organs

• HOLD ON until shaking stops

• Under shelter: hold on to it with one hand; be ready to move with your shelter if it shifts
• No shelter: hold on to your head and neck with both arms and hands.

For more information on earthquake preparedness please visit www.shakeout.org or www.earthquakecountry.org.