By: Vincent
What if the 8.8 earthquakes struck here last Saturday?
In the aftermath of the Haiti and now the Chile earthquakes, April is Earthquake Preparedness Month but wait! What would we do? Where would we go? What if the earthquake happened here on Saturday instead of Chile? It’s now days later, but relief has not arrived yet!
I would challenge you to look closely at what is happening in Haiti and especially in Chile. In 1960, Chile experienced the largest earthquake on record. One-half a million homes were destroyed leaving families homeless. Make shift tent cities were showing up. Robbery was happening because people didn’t have supplies stored to take care of themselves and their families. Look closely at what those people are going through and think about whether you are prepared for that. I don’t mean to scare you but I DO mean to make you think.
If an earthquake struck here last Saturday, my family and me would hide under a table by ourselves; which protects us. Last year, there was an earthquake that shook our house. It felt like our house was swinging side to side very hard! That was the first earthquake that I had experienced. Although it was hard, no one was harmed, and nothing fell off the walls or tables. I guessed everything was secure. Not even the clock fell off. My heart was thumping the fastest than ever! My family and me wondered what happened. It was a relief when it finally stopped.
What would you do and are you prepared?
Does your family have a plan?
Have your parents secured your tall furniture to the wall?
Do you have supplies, food, and water stored?
Does your family have a first-aid kit?
Can parents provide some medical assistance to your family if they are injured?
The source of the above questions is from Santa Clara County Office of Emergency Services. Let's all get ready for an earthquake!
10 comments:
Im actually suprised because my family doesn't have one. I think its because we aren't expecting one. But if one did happen we would go under a table and if it doesn;t end that quickley then we would go outside. We would need a supply of food plus the electricity will go out. I really think Vincent made a good point, we do need ot be ready. I will ask my dad to provide all of those material.
My family doesn't have a medical kit, but we plan on getting one, because it has been a while since the last earthquake hit. There was suppose to be an earthquake a couple of years ago, but it didn't occur, so next time, it will hit harder. The kit has to supply your family for at least 3 days until rescue comes. During earthquakes, you should not stay under trees or next to buildings. If you want to get out of the building, watch out for falling rubble. Put a pillow over your head to protect your head. It is best for me to prepare a medical kit and earthquake kit.
To tell you the truth, my family doesn't have a plan to protect us from an earthquake. It happened in 3rd grade that Cupertino experienced a 5.6 earthquake, and my family was surprised by it. It's because there are very few major earthquakes around here. Vincent made a point that we should have necessary provisions with us, and that we should have an evacuation plan. Another strategy is to stay in the doorway of a room. You will get hurt less that way.
My family has the first aid kit, incase someone will get hurt. We have the supply of food and water, so we can have extra food and water during an earthquake. My parents can provide medical assistance for my sisters and I. In school we have the earthquake drill so everyone knows what to do in case if an earthquake. If I were in an earthquake I would go under a stiff, steady table.
My parents were discussing about what to do at emergencies last week. They were talking about putting some foods and drinks in a small backpack in case there isn't any food in reach. My parents also decided where to go when a flood comes. I just hope that a large earthquake won't happen again here in California just like the one that hit San Francisco in 1906. Overall, I think I'm prepared for any natural disaster to happen.
Our family have thought of how to prevent earthquakes. We clip or lock cabinets tightly and most of our fragile things are in a safe place. Most of our tables are made of solid wood so it is hard to break that too. One of our most dangerous things that we can't do during earthquakes is that we only have one first-aid kit which is locked tightly in a bathroom cabinet and we don't have any night packs in case we need to spend the night outdoors. Also, we don't have a pack of emergency food in case we also have to eat outdoors. I guess after the earthquakes in Chile and Haiti, we should be extra preprared. That's why I am stealing buckets from my brother just to make more first-aid buckets.
I have experienced an earthquake before. I was outside then when it happened. The earthquake felt like that something was moving underneath me. If gigantic earthquake strikes our house one day, we would go under our dining table. After the shaking stops, I would get food from the cache in the kitchen. If our house is badly damaged enough so that we can’t live in it anymore, we will sleep in the tent we have in the garage if we are lucky enough to have them not destroyed. We also have another cache that stores food in the pantry so that our family can feed on it if the food in the cache in the kitchen runs out. If someone in my family gets hurt during the earthquake, we have a first aid kit. We also have a ten gallon tank of water in our garage just in case we need water.
My mom has made an earthquake prepareness kit (or bin, rather) that has food, water, blankets, and a first aid kit in case of an earthquake. My mom made me and my brother help her get the stuff together and we also had to get out the old ones because we had one earlier but it was getting old. We put in canned stuff like beans, ravioli, and others. I think we are pretty prepared for a disaster.
I think what my family and I will do would be ducking underneath our dinner table and wait till it's over. We do have a first aid kit, but we do not have a plan if a earthquake strikes.
Last year's earth quake we didn't feel because we were in a car moving on our way to a restaurant, so as soon as we got there it stopped. Basically I never felt an earthquake.
I know that I am going to hide under the kitchen counter. We have a first aid kit.I have been through two earthquakes. One was when I was in the car. I didn’t feel it, but my dad, who was at home jogging, felt it. The other one was when we (that is- Room 24) were in the classroom. After recess, Mrs.Yu told us that the other teachers asked her,” Did you feel the quake?”
There is also another earthquake I know of. One time, the fifth grade math class was doing jumping jacks. The fourth grade math class thought it was an earthquake, so they did Duck and Cover.
Great post Vincent!
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