How to Survive an Earthquake [Earthquake Survival Kit]
Survive an earthquake by: reinforcing your house and furniture, having an earthquake survival kit and practicing the “drop, cover, hold on” survival drill.
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Did you know that earthquakes happen hundreds of times every day all over the world? That’s right!
Earthquakes with a magnitude below 2 happen continuously every day even though we do not detect them.
Stronger earthquakes with a magnitude above 7 happen more than once every month while extremely strong earthquakes with a magnitude of 8 and above happen every year.
Fortunately, only high-magnitude earthquakes are deadly and destructive which makes them the focus of this article on how to survive an earthquake.
You can survive an earthquake by reinforcing the structure of your house and bolting all the high-standing furniture.
Also, prepare an earthquake survival kit in advance and practice the “drop, cover, hold on” survival drill.
Once the earthquake stops, ensure the shaking has stopped before you move from your safety location.
Unfortunately, unlike storms, floods, and to some degree Tsunamis, we cannot predict earthquakes. We only know they are here when we experience their quake, destruction, and the loss of lives.
So why exactly can’t we predict earthquakes?
The nature of earthquakes is probably the reason why we cannot predict their occurrence until they have shaken our presumably firm planet, the earth. We shall be telling you more about that in this article.
In addition, we will give you crucial earthquake survival tips. But let’s start you off by explaining the nature of earthquakes and a few other important facts on this devastating natural disaster.
In a hurry? If you just want to get to our conclusions, here are our top picks and recommendations!
The Nature of Earthquakes: Everything You Need to Know
As the term suggests, earthquakes are natural occurrences that make the earth tremble or quake. The trembling happens when one of the blocks of the earth slips over another and eventually detaches.
At times these quakes are mild and may manifest as foreshocks before a major earthquake (mainshock) happens. An aftershock (or more of them) always follows a mainshock. Aftershocks may go on for days, months, or even years.
What causes earthquakes and how do they happen?
Earthquakes are caused by the movement of the blocks that make up the earth. To understand how this happens, it’s important to refresh our geography lessons on the earth’s structure.
The last two layers (mantle and crust) make up the fine cover on the surface of the earth. The two are also made of many pieces (tectonic plates) that move slowly, consistently bumping onto and sliding on each other.
Tectonic plates have edges and faults. The tectonic plate edges get stuck on each other and friction builds on the faults.
Once a tectonic plate has moved away enough, the plate edges give in, causing an earthquake. The place directly underneath where the earthquake occurs forms the hypocenter while the one directly above on the surface of the earth is the epicenter.
In summary, here’s what happens on the earth’s structure to cause an earthquake:
A block of the earth moves and slips past another on a fault (fault plane).
Because the fault edges are stuck together, the energy that would cause the blocks to slide past each other is stored up.
The force of the moving block overcomes the friction of the fault edges and it detaches.
All the energy stored up in the fault is released in all directions as vibrating waves known as seismic waves.
The seismic waves cause the earth to shake as they ripple through it, and once on the earth surface, they cause the ground and anything on it to tremble and vibrate, which is what we experience as the power of an earthquake.
The power of seismic waves determines the strength of an earthquake and is used to classify them.
Classification of earthquakes: Which ones hurt us?
Earthquakes are classified according to their Magnitude (M) or the amount of energy that they release. This is measured on a Richter scale, developed in 1935 by the US seismologist Charles Richter.
Earthquakes have extremely high energy that could even be higher than atomic bombs. In fact, an atomic bomb with energy amounting to 1019erg like the 1946 Bikini Atoll nuclear bomb test by the US in the Marshall Islands would be outdone by a 5.5 Magnitude earthquake which releases around 1020erg.
Surprisingly, a 5.5 Magnitude earthquake is not the strongest we could experience. See these examples of the 11 strongest earthquakes that the world has experienced in the past.
While the featured earthquakes have high Magnitudes, seismologists record earthquakes with a Magnitude as low as a 2. Hence, earthquakes are classified into these 6 categories depending on their Magnitude.
Great – Magnitude 8+ (extremely destructive, capable of destroying whole communities around the epicenter)
Major – Magnitude 7-7.9 (always felt, serious damage and lots of deaths)
Strong – Magnitude 6-6.9 (always felt, causes a lot of damage in highly populated areas)
Moderate – Magnitude 5-5.9 (always felt, causes a fair amount of damages)
Light – Magnitude 4-4.9 (often felt, causes minor damages)
Minor – Magnitude 3-3.9 or less (usually not felt)
The higher the Magnitude of an earthquake, the greater its destructive power, and the more deadly it is.
As such, even though we can’t predict the occurrence of earthquakes, we should enhance our chances of surviving them by learning what to do during an earthquake, which is what you will be reading about for the rest of the article.
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Surviving an Earthquake: The 4 Things you Must Do
We can never really be ready for an earthquake or prevent its enormous destructive power.
But we can increase our chances of surviving its wrath by taking certain preparatory and proactive measures before, during, and after its occurrence.
There are the 4 things you must do to enhance your chances of surviving an earthquake.
Know the possible signs of an impending earthquake.
Prep in advance for the eventual occurrence of an earthquake.
Act to survive an earthquake depending on where you are.
Beware and shield yourself from after-earthquake dangers.
Read on for the details on each of these earthquake survival strategies.
Know the Possible Pre-earthquake Signs
Even though there are no proven ways for predicting an earthquake, experts and non-experts are discussing some pre-earthquake signs.
These may give you some hints so you can be on the lookout for a looming earthquake and protect yourself from its dangers.
Note, however, that geologists warn against depending on these pre-earthquake signs for the following reasons:
Earthquakes don’t occur in a uniform manner and are thus hard to predict.
Detecting earthquakes depends highly on science and technology and not on weather conditions or body signs. Science has not yet made a breakthrough in predicting earthquakes.
To predict a natural disaster, definite facts like time of occurrence and exact location or area must be predicted, and that is not the case with earthquakes.
Here are 4 of the most common non-scientific pre-earthquake signs that are considered possible pointers of an impending earthquake.
“Earthquake lights”
Earthquake lights are probably the most discussed possible predictor of earthquakes among scientists.
They are light phenomena that have been reported at the epicenter of an earthquake before or during its occurrence. They have been recorded in a variety of forms including:
A steady glow
Sheet lightning
Streamers
Balls of light
There is no consensus among seismologists that these lights are herald-signs of an earthquake, which explains why we should be skeptical in relying on them until conclusive evidence is made.
Foreshocks
The low Magnitude tremors that precede a bigger earthquake can save you from the devastating impact of a high-magnitude earthquake. You can take cover and precautionary measures soon as you experience a foreshock.
Some ways of telling foreshocks are trembling objects such as a glass of water on a table or feeling tremors on your bed or seat.
That foreshocks precede most of the major earthquakes is a scientifically proven fact. For example, a study that examined the earthquake catalog in Southern California found that most mainshock earthquakes have been preceded by foreshocks, a fact that is considered a possible breakthrough in the science of predicting earthquakes.
Nonetheless, two details should be born in mind when considering foreshocks as precursors of high-magnitude earthquakes.
It is hard to tell if a stronger mainshock will follow a foreshock
We cannot predict how much time will pass before a stronger earthquake follows a mild one; some foreshocks have come days or weeks earlier than the main earthquake.
Weird animal behavior
Unusual animal behavior has often occurred before natural disasters such as earthquakes and Tsunamis.
Animals including birds, toads, and bees have abandoned their homes days or hours before an earthquake while domestic pets have shown strange behavior such as running away from home to higher places, becoming violent all of a sudden, or hiding under furniture.
Though it is maintained that unusual animal behavior is difficult to rely on and one cannot tell if animals are migrating as part of their natural rhythm or from anticipating a natural disaster, studies such as the one done in L’Aquila, Italy before the 2009 earthquake showed that toads stopped they usual breeding rhythm 5 days before the earthquake and did not resume for days after that.
Similarly, in the 2004 Indian Ocean earthquake and Tsunami, people in Indonesia reported seeing animals run to higher ground before the devastating occurrence happened.
History of earthquakes in a particular location
This may not pass as a herald earthquake sign immediately before it happens. But it may serve as a consistent warning that people living or visiting a place that is known for common earthquakes can use to stay always prepared.
One such place is the 2004 Indian Ocean earthquake spot in Northern Sumatra-Indonesia. This Earthquake Track shows consistent light and moderate (M4-5) earthquakes at or around Northern Sumatra, Indonesia. Another such place is Bio-Bio in Chile.
On our previous list of 11 strongest earthquakes, 3 have occurred at or near Northern Sumatra, Indonesia and 2 at Bio-Bio, Chile. Anyone living or visiting such areas should consider every minute a pre-earthquake minute and be prepared to take cover.
Be Prepared Before an Earthquake
Knowing the extensive destruction that earthquakes can cause to human life and property and preparing for the eventuality of an earthquake would is common wisdom.
Earthquake survival prepping can be done in several ways, including the following:
Reinforce your house for earthquakes
Earthquake proofing your house is something you should consider even before construction to preempt structural damage.
If that was not done or your house is purchased, you can think about reinforcing the foundation, walls, floors, and roof.
In addition, you should secure the contents of your house so they can withstand vertical and lateral earthquake forces.
Consider the following tips to earthquake-proof your house:
Securing the site and house structure
Remove any leaning or old trees near your house as these are potential hazards during an earthquake.
If you can, avoid houses near community supply power lines and bear in mind that electrical wires are live hazards.
Extend your house foundations into solid firm soil or make a steel-reinforced floating slab with sturdy edges if your house is on poor soil.
Avoid large water reservoirs, towers, dykes, or high buildings near your house as these can put you at risk even if your house is reinforced.
Swampy and sandy soils are the worst for the house foundation. Seek the evaluation and advice of an engineer before construction.
Support weak walls by adding concrete foundations underneath and repairing cracks as soon as they occur.
Secure gas appliances and water heaters.
Add steel t-straps and metal roof ties and use steel connectors and anchor bolts to add extra reinforcement. Add plywood sheathing to walls.
Use wired safety glass on windows or add a shatter-proof film.
If you use natural gas, use flexible pipes to prevent them from rupturing during an earthquake. Also, install a seismic-activated gas valve that automatically shuts off the supply during earthquakes with a 5.4 magnitude or more.
See in this video how a seismic-activated gas valve works.
Securing the house contents
Secure cabinets, bookshelves, and other high furniture to walls with screws or bolts.
Use hanging light fixtures and fans of light material and ensure they are well fastened, consider adding safety chains.
Use closed hooks and safety hangers for mirrors and pictures.
Add child-proof stoppers for cabinet doors.
Use non-skid padded mats under fragile appliances such as TVs, VCRs, and stereos.
Damage-proof valuable documents and items.
Keep flammable substances away from energy sources.
Practice the earthquake survival drill: “drop, cover and hold on”
Anyone teaching you the skill of surviving an earthquake will use this rule of thumb: “drop, cover, hold on.”
Drop down on your knees and hands to avoid being knocked over. Doing so also helps you crawl to a safe location.
Cover your head and neck with your arms to protect yourself from debris as you seek a safe place. If you are indoors, take cover under a table or crawl next to an interior wall away from windows if no table is available.
Hold on to a sturdy object until the shaking stops. If for some reason you are seated and unable to drop on your knees, ensure you cover your neck and head with your arms.
Subscribe to an earthquake early warning service
Considering that there is no way of telling a looming earthquake yet, subscribing to an earthquake early warning system informs you about an occurring earthquake as soon as it is reported and you have better chances of taking safety measures.
These systems also keep you updated about the earthquake’s evolution and sends you messages about evacuation services and available emergency shelters.
Not every country has an earthquake early warning service. Some of those with this service include Japan, China, Taiwan, Mexico, Romania, Turkey, and Italy.
In the US there is ShakeAlert, an earthquake early warning system for the West Coast which detects earthquakes quickly and simultaneously sends an alert so you have some seconds to take cover before the shaking starts.
Buy an earthquake insurance
It’s important to think about your life after an earthquake. If your house should be partially or completely destroyed, you’ll have to start all over with building or buying a new house.
Buying earthquake insurance will save you the stress of being without a home and not having the funds to purchase or build a new one.
Make a family communication plan
An earthquake family communication plan is an agreement between family members about where they will meet in case an earthquake occurs and what phone numbers they will use to communicate with each other.
Such a plan may also identify a contact person (family or friend) outside the state or earthquake-prone area who will act as a link-person between family members.
This is useful because being out of the affected area gives the person a better communication network and they can help the affected family members to trace each other.
Assemble or purchase an earthquake survival kit
An earthquake survival kit is a crucial preparatory detail. The basic earthquake survival kit includes a first aid kit and survival kits for all the locations where an earthquake can find you like the office, home, or in a car.
Your earthquake survival kit should include supplies enough to last for 72 hours (3 days) for you and each of the members of your family.
If you are wondering how to put together an earthquake survival kit, here’s the complete earthquake survival kit list that you should refer to when assembling your own earthquake survival kit for the office, home, and car.
Earthquake first aid kit list
Drugs and ointments
Prescription drugs (antibiotics and chronic condition drugs)
Non-prescription drugs (analgesics such as aspirins, paracetamol, and ibuprofen)
Antibiotic ointments
Eyewash and eye drops
Supplies for injuries, cuts, and wounds
First aid wound disinfectants (medical spirits or hydrogen peroxide)
This emergency earthquake kit is perfect for any natural disaster situation. It is built in different sizes, from one that is fit for 1 person to one that caters to 6 persons. All have provisions for 72 hours (3 days).
You have all you need to survive the extreme eventualities of an earthquake. For example, the 2-person Complete Earthquake Bag kit has the following items among others:
Food and water (two 3600 Cal food bars, 24 purified water pouches) with a 5-year shelf life.
Hydration bag water straw and 20 water purification tabs.
107-piece first aid kit.
Pocket tissues and waste bags.
2 emergency sleeping bags.
2-person tube tent.
12-hour bright stick.
2 emergency poncho.
Surgical masks.
Gloves, etc.
Everything in the 2-person survival bag weighs 16 pounds and has a dimension of 12ʺ x 9ʺ x 20ʺ. If you are alone, you can buy this earthquake survival kit and make a mini survival kit for your office or car by splitting the contents into two.
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Storing your earthquake survival kit
As with all survival kits, your earthquake emergency bag should be kept in a location where you can easily and quickly grab it as you head to safety:
Next to your desk in the office
In your car trunk where you can open and pull it out
In the place where you spend most of your time in the house or the most sturdy part of your home such as a garage where you can pick it if you have to leave the house.
Remember to inspect your earthquake survival kit regularly to ensure the supplies are in good condition and that none are expired.
How To Survive An Earthquake Depending On Your Location
As can be guessed from what we’ve said so far, you will have to act differently to survive an earthquake depending on where you are.
How to survive an earthquake at home / in the office:
Follow the “drop, cover, hold on” survival skill
Drop to the ground on your arms and knees.
Cover your head and neck with your arms and take cover under a sturdy table or any other appropriate furniture.
Hold on to the furniture to resist the shaking or exposure to debris.
Avoid windows or any furniture with glass.
Stay away from walls since they could crumble and cover you. Only go to a safe corner wall if you have no option for safe furniture to crawl underneath.
Beware of falling debris and heavy fixtures as these could easily injure you.
If you are in bed, stay where you are, and cover your neck and head with a pillow.
Stay inside until the shaking stops.
How to survive an earthquake if you are outside:
Stay where you are and do not try to outrun the earthquake as it would be futile.
Cover your head and neck with your arms and squat.
Do not go inside a building, instead, find an open ground away from trees and tall buildings.
Stay away from powerlines and bridges.
If you can, stay away from crowds as you could compromise your safety if people panic, and possibly trample on each other.
Stay in your position until the shaking stops completely.
How to survive an earthquake if you are in your car:
Pull over to a safe location without tall trees and buildings and use the handbrake.
Stay away from overpasses, bridges, powerlines, and anything that could collapse.
Listen to radio updates to be informed of any impending dangers in your location.
If there are looming dangers around your location such as downed powerlines, stay in your car and await rescue.
Use your hazard sign or any emergency rescue signs you may have in your survival kit to indicate you need to be rescued.
Stay where you are until the shaking stops and drive only if official updates say it is safe to do so.
How to survive an earthquake if you are using a walking stick:
Drop to the ground on your arms and knees if you can and cover your neck and head with your arms. Leave your cane beside you to help you get back on your feet once the shaking stops.
How to survive an earthquake if you are using a walker:
Lock, sit or lean on it, and cover your head and neck with your arms.
How to survive an earthquake if you are in a wheelchair:
Lock, cover your head and neck and stay on the chair.
Watch Out For After-Earthquake Dangers
Knowing what to do after an earthquake is as important as knowing how to prepare for an earthquake and what to do when it strikes.
Once you are sure the shaking has stopped, follow these tips to stay safe and avoid after earthquake dangers.
Assess yourself and anyone around you for any injuries and offer any needed help until expert help arrives.
In case you are in a damaged building, go out to open ground and await help.
If you are trapped inside a damaged building, signal for help by shouting, banging, using a whistle, and if you can, sending a text message to ask for help.
If you are on a Tsunami-prone coast, move to higher ground as soon as the shaking stops or as far as possible inland.
Follow official updates on radio or phone for instructions on rescue missions or close by rescue centers.
Be always on the lookout for aftershocks and follow the safety skills all over again if you need to.
If your home is still habitable, be cautious when cleaning up debris, and don’t try to remove heavy objects by yourself. Wear a mask, gloves, boots, and protective clothing.
Do not stay in your house if it has cracks until a professional can assess it and declare it safe for habitation.
Record all the damages to your house and property by taking photos. These will be used with the earthquake insurance claim.
Tell your family/friends you are safe using official sites such as the Red Cross “Safe and Well” space or on social media sites like Facebook. Send direct messages on your phone if you can. Reporting you are safe serves as part of the “headcount” process which is key in rescue missions
Above all, avoid any buildings, trees, bridges, and other constructions that could still be at the risk of collapsing.
How to Survive an Earthquake FAQs
Some frequently asked questions on how to prepare for an earthquake and how to survive an earthquake are worth addressing here.
Can I predict an earthquake?
No, you can’t! Even seismologists have not yet discovered a sure and scientific way of telling an earthquake before it happens.
However, some non-scientific methods such as the “earthquake light”, unusual animal behavior, and foreshocks have been used as possible but scientifically non-proven hints to the occurrence of an earthquake.
How do we know the strength of an earthquake?
The strength of an earthquake depends on how big the sliding fault is and the amount of sliding that is happening. Consistent sliding builds the friction that turns into seismic waves when a block detaches.
Because it’s impossible to measure that manually, seismologists use seismographs to record the Magnitude (M) of an earthquake. Earthquakes of M ≥ 8 are the strongest and most destructive.
Which places in the world are most prone to earthquakes?
The ten countries in the world that are most prone to earthquakes are Japan, Indonesia, China, Iran, Turkey, Peru, the US, Italy, India, and Afghanistan.
The 10 cities in the world that are most prone to earthquakes are Tokyo, Jakarta, Manilla, Los Angeles, Quinto, Osaka, San Francisco, Lima, Tehran, and Istanbul.
Final Thought on How to Survive an Earthquake
Unlike other natural disasters that give signs before they happen and can be detected in advance by experts, earthquakes do not forewarn us of their happening.
While this fact makes surviving an earthquake extremely difficult, preparing for an earthquake is an essential step to surviving this natural disaster.
Be always ready with an earthquake survival kit, secure your home against earthquakes, and learn the skills that will save you when an earthquake strikes.
Remember, it’s better to be prepared and not need the earthquake survival gear than to be caught unawares, risking your life and that of your dear ones.
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