San Diego County’s government offices, businesses, and schools are poised to “drop, cover, and hold on” during an annual statewide earthquake preparedness drill.
Now in its 14th year, the Great California ShakeOut of 2022 is scheduled for 10:20 a.m. on Oct. 20. There are 9.2 million Californians and 800,530 people in San Diego county who will participate in the annual drill.
The program has seen increased participation compared to last year’s 7.6 million participants. Government employees in San Diego, Del Mar, Encinitas, El Cajon, Chula Vista, Santee, and Solana Beach are participating.
“What we do to prepare now, before this big earthquake, will determine how well we can survive and recover,'' according to a statement posted to ShakeOut.org. “Great ShakeOut Earthquake drills are annual opportunities to learn and practice earthquake safety with millions of people.''
San Diego County agencies and most San Diego area community colleges and universities will participate in the drill. A majority of the county's kindergarten through 12th-grade school districts, along with private and charter schools, will have students and staff participating.
According to state officials, the drill emphasizes the precautions during a 7.8 magnitude or larger quake along the southernmost portion of the San Andreas Fault. Officials say that such a tectonic shift could produce waves of movement for hundreds of miles, over four minutes.
The San Andreas Fault is a continental transform fault that extends roughly 750 miles through California. It forms the tectonic boundary between the Pacific Plate and the North American Plate.
According to the U.S. Geological Survey, studies have shown that over the past 1,400 to 1,500 years large earthquakes have occurred at about 150-year intervals on the southern San Andreas fault.
As the last large earthquake on the southern San Andreas occurred in 1857, that section of the fault is considered a likely location for an earthquake within the next few decades. The San Francisco Bay area has a slightly lower potential for a great earthquake, as less than 100 years have passed since the great 1906 earthquake.
State officials say Californians should prepare for major disasters with kits that can sustain the entire household for at least 72 hours. Kits should contain first-aid, medications, food, and enough water for each household member for at least 72 hours.
For more information, visit https://www.earthquakecountry.org/prepare/.
