More than 690,000 British Columbians have signed up to "drop, cover and hold on" as part of a global earthquake drill taking place around the world Thursday.
Dubbed the "Great ShakeOut," the natural disaster preparedness exercise is set for 10:17 a.m. local time.
"People need to have an awareness that (earthquakes) can happen," said B.C.'s Oak Bay Deputy Fire Chief Dave Cockle in a Great ShakeOut B.C. video posted on YouTube. "And if it does happen, is your family prepared, are you prepared, is your business prepared?"
Last month, 13,000 people in Quebec's Charlevoix region -- located on the north shore of the Saint Lawrence River – also took part in the Great ShakeOut drill.
The first Great ShakeOut was held in 2008 in California, the second most earthquake-prone state in the U.S. after Alaska, according to the U.S. Geological Survey. Other countries participating in the exercise this year include Italy and Japan.
In April 2011, a devastating earthquake and tsunami struck Japan, they caused widespread damage and crippled the Dai-Ichi nuclear plant in Fukushima. Radioactive water from the power plant has since been leaking into the Pacific Ocean – a problem the Japanese government has been trying to contain.
In recent weeks, powerful quakes have hit other parts of the world. In the Philippines, more than 100 people died after a 7.2-magnitutde earthquake struck the central Philippine island of Bohol. Many roads and buildings were damaged by the disaster, making rescue operations difficult.
On Canada's west coast, approximately 4,000 earthquakes are recorded every year, according to Natural Resources Canada earthquake seismologist Alison Bird.
"A lot of people assume there are no earthquakes because they don't feel them," Bird said in the Great ShakeOut B.C. video, adding that in B.C. there is a potential for a megathrust earthquake, which many people refer to as the 'big one.'
This year, organizers of the Great ShakeOut say the focus of the drill is on fires that may start as a result of utility lines ruptured during an earthquake.
During the exercises, first responders rehearse their emergency response plans and transportation departments practise slowing down trains, for instance.
"Shake out, don't freak out," Miranda Myles, Simon Fraser University's emergency and continuity planner said in the B.C. ShakeOut video. "Drop, cover and hold on so that you know what to do."
In the event of an earthquake, you should:
- Drop to the ground where you are
- Take cover under a sturdy table. If there isn't a table nearby, cover your face and head with your arms
- Hold on to something sturdy. When the shaking stops, move carefully as there could be broken glass and fallen items in the way.
