IEMA encourages participation in multistate earthquake drill Feb. 7
201st
anniversary of 2 New Madrid earthquakes
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[January 25, 2013]
SPRINGFIELD -- A little more
than 200 years ago on Jan. 23, two major earthquakes rocked the
central U.S., including much of Illinois. The Illinois Emergency
Management Agency marked the 201st anniversary of those quakes by
encouraging people to register for the Great Central U.S. ShakeOut
drill, scheduled for Feb. 7 at 10:15 a.m.
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More than 286,000 Illinois residents have already registered for the
multistate drill, with a total of 1.7 million people registered in
the nine participating states.
"History shows us that catastrophic earthquakes can happen in the
central U.S.," said IEMA Director Jonathon Monken. "The ShakeOut
drill only takes a minute or two, but the lessons learned could save
your life."
The Jan. 23 earthquakes were part of a series of earthquakes in
the New Madrid Seismic Zone that began Dec. 16, 1811, and concluded
on Feb. 7, 1812. These earthquakes , each estimated to be around
magnitude 8.0, were among the largest temblors ever recorded in
North America.
Participants in the drill will practice "Drop, Cover and Hold
On," which 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.
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Schools, businesses, government agencies, families and others can
register at http://www.shakeout.org/centralus/ to participate in the
drill. Registered participants will receive additional information
about the drill and earthquake preparedness.
Additional information about the earthquake risk in Illinois and
steps to take before, during and after an earthquake is available at
www.ready.illinois.gov.
[Text from
Illinois
Emergency Management Agency file received from
the
Illinois Office of
Communication and Information] |