The Great Californian Shake Out

At 10 a.m. on November 13, join millions of people throughout Southern California in the Shake Out Drill, the largest earthquake preparedness activity in U.S. history!

The Great Southern California Shake Out includes the ShakeOut Drill and other events to help us get ready for big earthquakes.

It is promoting the concept of "Drop Cover Hold"

Why is important to do a Drop, Cover, Hold On drill?

Just as with anything, to act quickly you must practice, practice, practice. In a big earthquake, there may be very little time to protect yourself before strong shaking knocks you down or drops something on you. Most earthquakes have a sharp jolt a few seconds before the strong shaking, and we need to Drop, Cover, Hold On immediately when we feel the jolt. By practicing we will act quickly, rather than waiting to see if the earthquake will be large. If it is, it may be too late to protect yourself. ShakeOut. Don't FreakOut.


On July 29th 2008, magnitude 5.4 earthquake that shook southern California. This caused a huge amount of damage. However, the Great Californian Shake Out is a means of preparing people for a magnitude 7.8 earthquake, which is 5000 times larger than that in July.

As a result, the amount of damage will be much greater. The ShakeOut Scenario estimates that an earthquake of magnitude 7.8 would cause some 2,000 deaths, 50,000 injuries, $200 billion in damage and other losses, and severe, long-lasting disruption.

Fantastic video on the potential of a magnitude 7.8 earthquake below.

It's not a matter of if an earthquake of this size will happen-but when. It is possible that it will happen in our lifetime.