 "Earlier this week, northern
Illinois residents experienced a small earthquake, which,
fortunately, was not serious," Quinn said. "It was, however, an
important reminder for people to brush up on earthquake safety,
which can help save lives if a major earthquake occurs. I encourage
everyone to learn more about earthquake preparedness and to take
part in the Great Central U.S. ShakeOut drill next week."The
second annual Great Central U.S. ShakeOut drill will take place at
10:15 a.m. on Tuesday. To date, more than 400,000 Illinois residents
have registered to take part in the drill, which should take only a
few minutes. The intent of the drill is for people to practice the
"Drop, Cover and Hold On" protective actions.
"Drop, Cover and Hold On" reminds people to drop down to
the floor, take cover under a sturdy desk, table or other
furniture, and hold on to the furniture item and be prepared
to move with it until the shaking ends.
"We are very excited that more than 400,000 people in Illinois
have already registered to participate in the Great Central U.S.
Shakeout," said Illinois Emergency Management Agency Director
Jonathon Monken. "This drill is helping to raise public awareness of
the earthquake risk in our region and teaches people what they can
do to stay safe if an earthquake occurs."
Monken said the lessons learned from the drill could also prove
valuable when people travel to other parts of the U.S. or foreign
counties where earthquakes may occur.
More than 2 million people in nine states have registered to
participate in the ShakeOut drill. Besides Illinois, states
participating in the drill are Alabama, Arkansas, Indiana, Kentucky,
Mississippi, Missouri, Oklahoma and Tennessee. To register for the
Great Central U.S. ShakeOut, visit
www.shakeout.org/centralus.
[to top of second column] |
To help people learn more about the earthquake risk in Illinois
and how they can prepare, IEMA has an "Earthquakes
in Illinois" section on its website,
www.iema.illinois.gov.
The section features comprehensive information about steps people
can take before, during and after an earthquake, as well as an
interactive "Earthquake
Home Hazard Hunt" to help people identify and correct hazards in
their homes.
One of the most important steps people can take to prepare for an
earthquake or other emergency is to develop a disaster preparedness
kit. The kit should include water, nonperishable food, flashlights,
a battery-operated radio, extra batteries, a first-aid kit and other
supplies to help people survive for a minimum of three days
following a disaster.
For more information about earthquake and disaster preparedness,
visit the Ready Illinois website at
www.ready.illinois.gov.
[Text from
Illinois
Emergency Management Agency
file received from
the
Illinois Office of
Communication and Information]
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