ShakeOut to raise earthquake awareness

At 10:15 a.m. on April 28, millions of people will take part in the largest earthquake drill in history as the Federal Emergency Management Agency hosts The Great Central U.S. ShakeOut.

According to The Great Central U.S. ShakeOut website, www.shakeout.org/centralus, more than 2 million individuals from Alabama, Arkansas, Georgia, Illinois, Indiana, Kentucky, Oklahoma, Mississippi, Missouri, South Carolina and Tennessee have registered to participate.

Bourbon County Emergency Manager Keith Jeffers said he grew up in California and is familiar with earthquakes. He will host a tabletop discussion at the Emergency Operations Center, in the Bourbon County Courthouse basement from 9 am to noon. The public is invited to learn about how to prepare for an earthquake. You can visit www.shakeout.org/centralus/register to sign up.

"Please sign up and participate in some way, even if it to just hold a discussion of what you would do in the event of an earthquake in Missouri that would also affect Kansas," Jeffers said in an e-mail.

Geologists have said it is likely that if a 7.5 earthquake were to occur along the New Madrid Seismic Zone, areas along the Kansas and Missouri border would feel the shake in about 65 to 75 seconds, Jeffers said. The effect here would be in the 6.0 to 6.8 range.

He said the extent of the potential damage in Kansas is not known.

Jeffers said the last time the New Madrid Seismic Zone shifted was 200 years ago and there were not many people in the area that would later become Kansas to document the effects.

According to Jeffers, it is important for people in Kansas to be prepared for an earthquake. He said that although Kansas may not feel the effects as much as other areas, communities could see a wave of people who have been evacuated, looking for a place to stay.

"If there is a major quake, we in Kansas can also expect to be receiving large numbers of people that would be evacuating from the damage zones," Jeffers said. "Hospitals, Red Cross, mass care, schools, grocery stores, camping, hotels, and other service organizations will all be in very high demand, if not completely over-whelmed."

Want to take part?

Anyone can participate in the ShakeOut -- individuals, families, businesses, schools, colleges, government agencies and organizations.

How to Participate

Here are a few suggestions for what local governments and agencies can do to participate. More information is at ShakeOut.org/centralus/localgovernments.

Plan Your Drill

* Register at www.ShakeOut.org/centralus/register to be counted in the Drill, get e-mail updates, and more.

* Conduct a "Drop, Cover, and Hold On" drill at 10:15 a.m. on April 28.

* You may also want to coordinate an exercise of your emergency plan.

* Discuss what you learned and make improvements.

Get Prepared for

Earthquakes

* Check your emergency supplies and equipment; make sure they are accessible and functional.

* Inspect your facilities for items that might fall and cause injury and secure them.

* Encourage employees to prepare at home.

* Provide first aid and response training for employees.

Share the ShakeOut

* Encourage employees to ask their friends, families, and neighbors to register.

* Agencies with outreach roles can include ShakeOut messaging in their routine activities.

* Posters, flyers, and other materials for promoting the ShakeOut are at www.ShakeOut.org/centralus/resources.

* Share your experience at ShakeOut.org/centralus/share.