How to Survive an Earthquake.docx

How to Survive an Earthquake.docx

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HowtoSurviveanEarthquake

HowtoSurviveinanEarthquake

Alittleknowledgeandafewprecautionarymeasurescanenormouslyincreaseyourchancesofsurvivinganearthquake-oranyothertypeofhazard.Thekeysareeducationandpreparinginadvance.Theearthquakesafetytipsbelowwillnotmakeyouanexpert.However,theycouldmakealife-savingdifferenceifyoufind yourselfinanearthquakesituation.Investinyourpersonalsafetybystudyingbelow.

BeforetheEarthquake:

∙Learnhowtosurviveduringthegroundmotion.Thisisdescribedinthe"DuringtheEarthquake"sectionbelow.Theearthquakesafetytipstherewillprepareyouforthefastactionneeded-mostearthquakesareoverinsecondssoknowingwhattodoinstinctivelyisveryimportant.

∙Teachallmembersofyourfamilyaboutearthquakesafety.Thisincludes:

1）theactionsyoushouldtakewhenanearthquakeoccurs,2）thesafeplacesinaroomsuchasunderastrongdesk,alonginteriorwalls,and3）placestoavoidsuchasnearwindows,largemirrors,hangingobjects,heavyfurnitureandfireplaces.

∙Stockuponemergencysupplies.Theseinclude:

batteryoperatedradio（andextrabatteries）,flashlights（andextrabatteries）,firstaidkit,bottledwater,twoweeksfoodandmedicalsupplies,blankets,cookingfuel,toolsneededtoturnoffyourgas,waterandelectricutilities.

∙Arrangeyourhomeforsafety:

Storeheavyobjectsonlowershelvesandstorebreakableobjectsincabnentswithlatcheddoors.Don'thangheavymirrorsorpicturesabovewherepeoplefrequentlysitorsleep.

∙Anchorheavyappliancesandfurnituresuchaswaterheaters,refrigeratorsandbookcases.

∙Storeflamableliquidsawayfrompotentialignitionsourcessuchaswaterheaters,stovesandfurnaces.

∙GetEducated.Learnwhattododuringanearthquake（seebelow）.Thenyouwillbereadyforthefastactionneeded.Makesurethatallmembersofyourfamilyhavethisimportanteducation.

∙Learnwherethemainturn-offsareforyourwater,gasandelectricity.Knowhowtoturnthemoffandthelocationofanyneededtools.

DuringtheEarthquake:

∙Ifyouareindoors,staythere.Quicklymovetoasafelocationintheroomsuchasunderastrongdesk,astrongtable,oralonganinteriorwall.Thegoalistoprotectyourselffromfallingobjectsandbelocatednearthestructuralstrongpointsoftheroom.Avoidtakingcovernearwindows,largemirrors,hangingobjects,heavyfurniture,heavyappliancesorfireplaces.

∙Ifyouarecooking,turnoffthestoveandtakecover.

∙Ifyouareoutdoors,movetoanopenareawherefallingobjectsareunlikelytostrikeyou.Moveawayfrombuildings,powerlinesandtrees.

∙Ifyouaredriving,slowdownsmoothlyandstoponthesideoftheroad.Avoidstoppingonorunderbridgesandoverpasses,orunderpowerlines,treesandlargesigns.Stayinyourcar.

AftertheEarthquake:

∙Checkforinjuries,attendtoinjuriesifneeded,helpensurethesafetyofpeoplearoundyou.

∙Checkfordamage.Ifyourbuildingisbadlydamagedyoushouldleaveituntilithasbeeninspectedbyasafetyprofessional.

∙Ifyousmellorhearagasleak,geteveryoneoutsideandopenwindowsanddoors.Ifyoucandoitsafely,turnoffthegasatthemeter.Reporttheleaktothegascompanyandfiredepartment.Donotuseanyelectricalappliancesbecauseatinysparkcouldignitethegas.

∙Ifthepowerisout,unplugmajorappliancestopreventpossibledamagewhenthepoweristurnedbackon.Ifyouseesparks,frayedwires,orsmellhotinsulationturnoffelectricityatthemainfuseboxorbreaker.Ifyouwillhavetostepinwatertoturnofftheelectricityyoushouldcallaprofessionaltoturnitoffforyou.

Whetheryouliveinanearthquake-proneregionlike California orJapan orincalmerlands,theideaofeverythingaroundyoushakinguncontrollably--andpotentiallycatastrophically--canbeterrifying.

There'saparticularsenseofhelplessnessthatcanaccompanyearthquakes,especiallybecausethereisnoestablishedscientificmethodofpredictingthem.Withthatinmind,preparationisthebestdefense.

IfyouresideinaplacelikeCalifornia'sBayArea,wherethereareeightormorefaultsthatcouldproduceaseriousearthquakewithamagnitudeof6.7orworse,knowinghowbesttoweatheranearthquakeisasessentialasaFloridian'sknowingwhattodowhena hurricane approaches[source:

 USGS].

Withthatinmind,we'lltakealookatwhattodobefore,duringandafteranearthquakeinthisarticle.Fromsuppliestoretrofittingtoemergencycommunication,we'llcoveritall.We'llalsoseewhetherduckandcoverisindeedthebestmethodandwhyDougCopp's"TriangleofLife"techniquehasattractedsomuchcontroversy.

First,let'sseehowtosecureyourhome.

EarthquakeSurvival:

SecuringtheHome

It'simpossibleforabuildingtobeconsidered"earthquake proof."Earthquakesvaryintype,locationandmagnitude,andevensomeofthebestretrofittingmaynotstanduptoanoverwhelminglypowerfulearthquake（say,an8.5）.Evenso,youcantakemeasurestosecureabuildingbeforeanearthquakeandtopreventpotentiallydangerouscomplicationsafterward.Itstartswithmakingsureyourhousedoesn'tmovefromitsfoundationduringtheearthquake'sresultinggroundmotion.

A seismicretrofit generallyinvolvesboltingthehousetothefoundation--ifit'snotalready. Plywood isusedtobracethewalls,whichinturnareattachedtostructuralsupportsknownas floorframing.Thefoundationitselfmightneedsomework.Forexample,anexpertmightrecommendthatanoldbrickfoundationbereplacedor"capped"withconcrete [source:

 Burnett].Theseefforts,whendoneproperly,canhelptoshifttheearthquake'sforce.Insteadofdamagingthestructureofthehouseorknockingitoffitsfoundation,thefoundationitselfabsorbsthebruntoftheshaking.

Usuallytheactualshakingofthequaketendstodothemostdamagetobuildings.Thedistancefromtheepicenterandthemagnitudedeterminehowmuchdamagemightbecaused,butthetypeofsoilandconstructionofthehouseareimportantaswell.Aweakfoundationontopofsoft,sandysoilposesmorehazardsthanafirmfoundationonsolidbedrock.Inadditiontoshaking,earthquakesmayalsobringwiththem fire, water leaksandotheraftereffects.

Retrofittingcancoststensofthousandsof dollars,thoughitmaybemuchless.Somecontractorsspecializeinretrofitting,butastructuralengineermaybeneeded.

Besidessecuringthefoundationandstructure,individualitemsshouldalsobeconsidered.Largepiecesoffurniture,particularlythosethataretallerthantheyarewide,shouldbeboltedtothewall.Storebreakableitemsonlowshelvesorincabinetsthancanbesecuredshut.Becarefulofplacingpicturesorotheritemsthatcouldfalloverbeds.Finally,makesureyouhaveaworking fireextinguisher.

Duringtheretrofittingprocess,it'sagoodtimetoidentifyplacesthatwillbesafeduringaquake,thoughwe'lldiscussthistopicmorelater.Alsokeepinmindthatemergencyinstructions（suchasforshuttingoffgas）shouldbehandy,andmakesureyouhaveapairofgoodshoes,aflashlightandwarmclothingreadilyaccessible.

KEEPINTOUCH

Makeaplantocommunicateorrendezvouswithfamilymembersincaseyouaren'ttogetherwhenanearthquakeoccurs.Keepinmindthatcellphoneservicemaybeinterrupted.

EarthquakeSupplies

Asupplyof food and water isessentialforanyonein earthquakecountry.Keepwaterstoredinplasticbottles.Athree-daysupply,madeupofadailyrationoftwoquarts（1.9liters）ofdrinkingandtwoquartsforfoodandsanitation,shouldbeconsideredaminimumguideline.Expertsrecommendchangingthiswatersupplyeverysixmonths[source:

 SanFranciscoChronicle].

Asforfood,keeponhandcannedgoodsfromvariousfoodgroups（andacanopener）.Theseprovisionsshouldbereadytoeatorrequireminimalornopreparation.Makesureyouhaveastashofanyrequiredspecialfoods,especiallyforfamilymemberswhoaresickorhaveparticulardietaryneeds.Focusonnutritiousitemsloadedwithgood calories,likenuts,peanutbutter,crackersandgranola.Avoidprovisionsthatrequireanythingmorethanaminimumamountofhotwater,suchasriceorpasta.Bettertostickwithinstant coffee, tea oroatmeal.Yourfoodsupplyshouldbereplacedorrestockedonceayear.Itcanalsobehelpfultokeepastockofvitaminsonhand.

Afirst-aidkitisveryimportanttohaveincaseanyonesuffersaninjury.Manyearthquake-relatedinjuriesareminorones,suchassteppingonbrokenglassortwistinganankle.Youcanbuyagoodpremadefirst-aidkitormakeyourown;itshouldbefilledwithdisinfectants,gauze,gloves,bandages,athermometerandothersuchitems.

Youshouldalsohaveabackupsupplyofanyprescriptions,aswellasavarietyofnonprescriptiondrugs,suchaspainrelievers,antacidsandmedicationsforabdominal/intestinalproblems.Similarly,goodsanitationiskey,bothforpersonalcomfortandpreventingdisease.Makesureyouhaveacacheoftoiletpaper,soaps,handsanitizers,garbagebags,bleachanddisinfectants.

We'vetakencareofnutrition,hydrationandhealth,butclothes,toolsandpersonaldocumentsarealsoessential.Agoodsweatshirtandsturdyshoeswillnotonlykeepyouwarmiftheheatdoesn'twork;theywillalsoprotectyoufromexposednails,shardsofglassorotherhazards.Ifyourequireglasses,makesurethey'renearyourbedincaseyou'retherewhenaquakestrikes,andkeepabackuppairinyourkit.

Yoursuppliesshouldalsoincludeblankets,flashlights（withfresh batteries）,tape,awrenchorothertooltoturnoffthegas,cash,a fireextinguisher andabattery-orhand-operated radio.Documentslikep