By: Zoe Strickland Managing Editor
On Thursday, Oct. 20 at 10:20 a.m. Western will be one of the many locations around the world participating in the Great ShakeOut. The Great ShakeOut is an international earthquake preparedness drill. The drill emphasizes the three basic steps in earthquake safety: drop, cover and hold on.
Interested in participating? An email sent out by Campus Public Safety informed students about how they can do their part in the drill, “You will receive a WOUAlert if you are signed up for the service … When you receive the alert, we would like for you to immediately ‘Drop, Cover and Hold On’ for the next few minutes. Then, we would like you to exit the building a go to a pre-determined meeting place. Building Managers will be able to fill you in on the evacuations plans for a building,” said Rebecca Chiles.
According to the Oregon Department of Geology and and Mineral Industries, earthquakes in the Pacific Northwest can create a significant amount of damage, even without being high-magnitude. With the Cascadia subduction zone 216 years overdue for an earthquake, it’s important to be prepared.
You can find out more about the Great ShakeOut by visiting shakeout.org.
Contact the author at journalmanaging@wou.edu
