You should check out what people do in Mexico city during an earthquake. We have an alarm system in the whole city. That gives us mostly a minute to evacuate the buildings. We do evacuate when it's possible, if we are in an upper floor we might go to the roof and wait. We learned this at school and reinforce it every year on a national earthquake drill, we actually don't enforce the drop and cover action nor the triangle of life. If we cannot escape the building we should go to the restroom so if in case we're stuck we might have water access. I hope you find this information useful

I was in a 7.6 earthquake in Taiwan in 1999. It happened at 01:47 a.m. We were in bed. There was nowhere to drop, cover and hold onto. In the darkness of the night, with glass crashing all around, there was no way even to make it to the bathroom door frame. We were lucky, only 1 person dies in our 10-storey apartment block. The first earthquake in Turkiye last week happened in the middle of the night. People were in bed. The advice given to drop, cover and hold on, is only useful in daylight hours. Better advice is: if you live in an earthquake zone, have an emergency backpack prepared and placed next to your bed - with a battery torchlight, heat protection blanket, a bottle of drinking water, a charged up mobile phone, your wallet with cash in it. Before going to sleep make sure the route to the exit door has no obstacles. In reality if you are in bed when a earthquake begins, and you are lucky to survive the first shake, then do get out as you can before the inevitable aftershock hits.

I have about 40 friends who went through the 2011 Japanese quake. Several of them were on the refuel floor of Fukushima Unit 4. I went there a month later and spent 9 months. During that time we had hundreds of 5 and 6 magnitude aftershocks. One of them was a 7.3. This is spot on. Here’s something I learned. ALWAYS have a light. Your cell phone has a light. My friends at Fukushima had a hell of a time getting out. Few lights and collapsed stairwells.

Wow, 8:45 Surprised! That's picture where I lived during this 1989 Prieta quake. We were Red Tagged and not allowed back inside. Entire neighborhood was crumbled. Lived there many years, but uncontrollably moved out THAT day, with no belongings. Had beautiful views right on the San Francisco Bay. It WAS a frightening, day that I never forgot. I was at work in morning. I wore a red dress to work and an hour prior to the quake , I became suddenly deeply tearful and sad for no reason, lasting an hour. An hour later, when the quake hit, I knew exactly why. Listen to your body. Being tearful is not something one does wearing a red dress. I was working in a brick building downtown. Beware, yes, brick falls outward into streets as I saw first hand brick flying past windows. I called the people away from the exterior windows and flying brick. LOL,One lady stood between a doorway jam. I yelled for her to come to my spot, because there was nothing but interior glass walls surrounding her chosen door jam. Running to me, she looked like wabbling drunk. As soon as the quake stopped, I told everyone get home fast. Those that were slow, ended up stranded in San Francisco traffic jams all night. I was one of the first who rapidly got across Golden Gate Bridge to Marin County. Later, I co-founded our town and county's first Disaster Preparedness Plan, and Neighborhood Responses Team, including medical, fire, school children and senior watch phone-tree, and Fire and Police Dept CERT training and Certification. Now, yep, I live far away from the coast high in the pine trees. Will do without my SF view.

Lived through 2 Southern California earthquakes in different homes, both times our chimneys collapsed and belched black soot into rooms. One I was standing in doorway and dog was running in circles barking. Then he was coated in soot and just stood there in shock. Broke the tension for me…😂

I grew up on the Pacific coast of Washington state. I drove by the Ghost Forest of the Copalis River nearly every day for years. I worked in a coastal city and my final job before retirement was helping install tsunami warning sirens across the city. Being retired and knowing a bit about surviving a disaster, I started building bug out bags as Christmas presents for my family and friends. If you care about someone, helping them prep for a disaster is a gift of love. And disasters can happen anywhere, tornadoes in the south or Midwest, hurricanes in the Gulf or East Coast, earthquakes or tsunamis in the West. A few buck and a couple of hours can significantly improve your safety. Call it the cheapest insurance you can get.

We live in a little town in Oregon and we voted to rebuild our city building to withstand earthquakes. Its even a place we're told to go to if we're close and an earthquake happens ❤️ Watching them build it was amazing.

Thanks for this great, informative video. My comment and concern is this: The city of Portland backed down on a plan to have all URM buildings be made to display a sign that made it clear to residents, workers, etc that they were in a dangerous building in the event of any earthquake. The idea was shot down out of fear that this would hasten the possible demolition and gentrification of these buildings and this would unduly harm a lot of poorer folks who often live and work in these very structures. Ouch!! So instead of working on a financing mechanism "we" have decided to cover our eyes. Out of supposed concern for these vulnerable people we decided as a city to simply wait for these building to kill the very people we pretend as a city to care so deeply about. How will we explain this irresponsible neglect to the world the day after the big one?

watching videos like this feels like watching pandemic risk analysis videos in the 2010's

I moved back to Kyoto, Japan from Wakayama, where I lived 5 minutes from the ocean. The Nankai Trough subduction zone is predicted to generate a megaquake within the next 10 - 30 years with an accompanying 9m high tsunami (in my area) in about 1/2 hour. For the year that I lived there I was in constant fear of it happening. Even here, when it hits, Kyoto will get a 7.5, but at least no tsunami. I went through one that size in Hawaii. Your mind goes totally blank. I lived in Vancouver, BC and Victoria for years, and preps are still woefully inadequate. Thank you, Dr. Goldfinger - I've watched you on TED and on many other videos. Thank you PBS for this video. The CSZ and what it will do needs to be broadcast as much as possible. Denial is still an overpopulated state.

My wife and I are 2 buildings from the beach in Socal, in a 2 story wood framed stucco duplex. Less than 1/4 mile away is a hill that would climb us above all but the worst Tsunami waves. During the last big Cascadia earthquake/tsunami about 12 years ago, our tenants jumped in their car almost immediately after we got the tsunami warning to evacuate via car to higher ground. The prediction was about 60-70 minutes for the wave to get this far south. About 2 hours later, they returned home. As it turned out, they got into a massive traffic jam of people thinking the same thing and only got about 200-300 feet where they were stuck for 2 hours. They'd have made much more progress walking or on bikes. In any highly populated area, your 4 wheeled vehicle will be stuck in a huge traffic jam, even if you leave just minutes after a warning.

MY DAUGHTER Was working in a lab when the DC earthquake hit (2011?). My daughter had no idea what to do.One of her Asian lab mates grabbed her hand and said outside. There was little damage from that incident, but it was the people from places that usually have earthquakes that were prepared.

Reinforcing buildings can only go so far. One of the problems, and especially in a place like Seattle, is the risk of soil liquefication. Seattle is built primarily upon fill dirt from the Great Seattle Fire of 1889, and so the risk of the soil sifting out from under many of the building is quite high, and we saw some of that during the Nisqually quake. Sadly, much of western Washington will see soil liquefication during a 9.0+ quake, and it is hard to say with any certainty just how much damage that will cause.

I definitely think we should teach situational awareness. From someone that lives in Olympia Washington I would love to see more videos on this subject. Thank you for all the great videos!

I live on an island, directly west of Seattle, about 50 feet from the shore of Puget Sound, in a building that was constructed before the 80's... I am not sure how much riskier a living situation can be. But I can tell you that I do live in paradise, and I am grateful every day...

I live in Minnesota so the threat of an earthquake is not on anyone’s mind. A few years ago I went to a little island in Mexico with a bunch of gals from work, while sitting around late one evening discussing our plan for the next day, the cement permanent couch I was sitting on began to move 😮 We were on the 3rd floor and I don’t know why but I yelled “earthquake” and started telling each person what to do. Tammy-get the passports and cash from the safe, Tonya-get the golf cart keys and room keys, Annette-get all the water bottles filled, Nancy-get your bag of protein bars, I ran to the kitchen and got the peanut butter, cheese, granola, beef jerkey and crackers….I told everyone to get shoes and a jacket/sweater……we filed out with our backpacks full, down the stairs while discussing if we get out golf cart from the underground garage, NO was the decision! It was like clockwork ☺️ We stood outside while waiting for more trembles and instructions on what was happening and what to do. It was all fine, there was no damage, no one was hurt, it was a long ways away. The funny part is, I am not a leader, I am not a boss, I can’t make decisions and I don’t ever take charge and tell anyone what to do 🤷🏼‍♀️ we were all laughing at me, like, “who is this”?

Well done - glad to hear someone speak about the P-wave opportunity to decide what to do -- and the recommendation to have a plan ahead of time. There's not enough time to think through "what should I do" for the very first time during a quake, a lot of people just freeze (based on all the videos I've seen). : ) When I go somewhere it's habit for me now to think, "where would I go if there was an earthquake right now?" A good habit.

Congratulations Chris for getting your situational awareness message to a wide audience. We had this discussion about 5 years ago following your presentation to the Corvallis CERT meeting. Great to see you are still fighting to update public messaging.

I have been in Japan for 15 years and the differences between the same magnitude quake in Kyoto and Tokyo really surprised me. Kyoto's were a surprising and quick, violent upward jolt. Whereas Tokyo's were a slow side to side rocking motion that I prayed would not get stronger. .

I was in Tokyo not long before the 2011 quake and I was interested in engineering for quakes. I noticed things like cross road rail bridges had been retro fitted to keep them on their bearing blocks, there were lots of open areas dotting the city, buildings were retro fitted with bracing, pile wraps for anti spalling etc. After the quake, there was lots of shaking in Tokyo but no obvious real damage. A friend's 5 year old did a duck under the table in their apartment building, everything on shelves came down, bookcases and wardrobes went over but he was unscathed. We'd gone to the earthquake centre a few months before and did sessions with exercises on shaker tables etc, all good fun but handy.

Thank you. As someone living in the PNW, this is appreciated

Anyone else find it ironic that their geology building isn't made to withstand earthquakes?

The Big One striking when I'm on vacation in California or the west coast (which isn't often) is a worry of mine.... Anyone within 100 miles of the New Madrid Fault also needs to watch this and be prepared. When the New Madrid went the first time in 1811 it was on of the largest quakes in American history. It re-routed the Missisipi River, rang the bells in Philidelphia and the plains indians in the Dakota's described it as a "great thundering." Even as a Chicagoan my grandmother told us about a small earthquake in southern IL that many people felt all the way up to Milwaukee and rocked her apartment in Hyde Park in the 70's. In 2007 a similar small quake centered in Evansville, IL woke me up from bed, shook my blinds and even broke storefront windows of some businesses in my suburb near Chicago. Earthquakes can happen almost anywhere and so many places around the world (except Japan) aren't prepared for larger ones.

As someone who's lived in the pnw their whole life, I'd love to see more informative videos like this! Particularly coastal cities - what kind of damage is to be expected based on the soil types and subsequent flooding. How far inland should be safe to live? And what kind of high ground? Is it "safe" even if you are on high ground? A quake could level that anyway, right? I appreciate your videos and I love Goldfinger! I love a helpful realist!

I lived in California for a while. Most people I knew didn't have emergency food/water. Apparently in Portland they have the Emergency Toilet Project to educate people about how to deal with human waste after earthquakes.

As a Angeleno, I'm a little disappointed you didn't tap our pet seismologist, Dr. Lucy Jones, to be in our video. She's always on the news answering questions whenever there's an earthquake over 4, even if it hits at 3:00 am (shes also has several great informational podcasts about natural disasters). the woman is a saint!

One thing that isn't mentioned is that with the modern, earthquake-resistant buildings, there's a lot of glass that will end up in the street with a strong quake. Unless you can get well away from the base of these types of buildings, you're probably better off staying inside.

Be prepared, avoid injury, help others, don't worry too much.

This weathered series can actually be a full KZfaq Channel in it self! Amazing work

The safest thing to do in an earthquake is to make sure you are wearing a mask, sanitize your hands and stand 6 feet away from it

The one scary thing about all these tactics it assumes it’s mid day & you’re fully awake and ready to spring into action immediately.

As a risk manager I like the idea of a simple message, however we get the most bang for the buck when we challenge and empower our peers with strong knowledge. It isn't easy to do the complicated messaging, but doing it in an organized and equitable way should be our top priority. Thanks for the great content, and happy Great Shake-Out!

I was living in Ridgecrest when the 2019 earthquake happened. And all I can remember is screaming at my sister to get outside and away from tall objects, struggling to kick the dogs out and keep a hand on them at the same time. Her heart was in the right place, but she was thinking of the wrong disaster and trying to get to the tub. Did not let her live that down when everything calmed down.

You are such a great host. I hope they pay you well, cause you deserve it. Thanks PBS.

I experienced 2 significant earthquakes while living in California. 1st one in the middle of the night when it was too dark to see, and I woke to the terror of my bed moving back and forth on the floor. 2nd one in the middle of the afternoon when my wife and I were relaxing in the living room. I firmly agree with the evacuation strategy, but both times it was impossible to get up and walk! I since learned to stay near furniture or structure that would support the weight of the ceiling and everything above it. Same thing while driving in San Francisco after the bay bridge collapse. Whenever traffic on the freeway came to a standstill, I wouldn't stop underneath an overpass. And if I were on the lower level of a double high freeway, I'd make sure I stopped under the spaces between the overhead concrete beams.

Yes, as a resident of Eureka CA (very near the subduction zone), more specific and nuanced advice is needed. We're taking part in the Great Shake Out drill today, and all the local OES info is drop and cover. With the minimal warning time that might be most appropriate here, but I would like to know more.

This video needs a lot more than 250K views! It's so important for everyone to understand what to do in an emergency and that depends on the current situation/location.

I’m a geologist and live in earthquake-prone Northern California. If the epicenter of a quake is far enough away, and the magnitude strong enough, I generally feel the hard, sideways jolt of the P wave first before the greater shaking of the other seismic waves arrives. I can also often tell which of the major fault zones (north, south, east or west of my location) it comes from by the directional shaking of my house. I’ve lived in this home for 35 years and have gone through this many times, so I know how my old house reacts. I was actually on the bus in North Beach when Loma Prieta hit, but there were plenty of strong aftershocks in the days that followed. My poor cat jumped into my arms at every one; she had been home alone and was traumatized when I got home from work that day, about 35 minutes afterward. The smaller or closer the epicenter/focus is, the more difficult it is to tell anything about a quake. One time I was watching the SanFrancisco news live break-in reporting a quake on San Jose when it hit them in San Francisco a second later, then it hit my North Bay location within a half second or so.

The Oregon Department of Emergency Management states that 41 Cascadia subduction zone earthquakes have occured in the last 10,000 years. The most recent of these quakes was an estimated 9.0 that shook on January 26, 1700. Cascadia subduction zone earthquakes have the potential to occur every 190 to 1,200 years.

I grew up in Southern New Jersey, and vividly remember the earthquake we had in late August 2011 - if the first warning sign isn't your ears popping from the p & s wave (sounds like a distant heavy military helicopter is approaching) I'll be high disappointed. I was screwing around home alone for the first time and took the screen out of my bedroom window to recreate a physics project from the prior year that I found really interesting (I know, what a nerd/loser). I'm an avgeek and lived beneath a busy air corridor and Army Chinooks or blackhawks would fly by every so often. I heard what I thought were the helicopter and ran to my parent's master bedroom (which I realize now looks towards the south) wondering why I couldn't see the helicopters then the ground started shaking and I immediately ran downstairs to my foyer, saw our chandelier swinging back and forth, and then stood at the stairwell knowing the doorway I was in was probably the strongest part of our house, seeing the ceiling move the opposite direction of my floor was jarring, and as soon as the shaking subsided I went outside, the entire block was shocked, and we all shouted from our houses, "Did we just have an earthquake!?" Called my mom and dad, my mom was station in San Diego for over a decade in the mid-1980s to the mid-1990s, and said, yup that was an earthquake. Californians will laugh, but a 5.8 on the east coast is CRAZY, then we had a Category 3 Hurricane on the friday of that week - what an insane week that was...

Many of the buildings in my neighborhood pancaked during the last big earthquake we had here in Mexico. To be trapped under tons of concrete is one of the worst scenarios you could ever be in, so I fully recommend that people take earthquake warnings seriously and download whatever warning apps are available to help you to evacuate quickly. My family always sheltered in place before that earthquake, but now that our home is nothing more than one of many empty lots where buildings used to stand, it puts it into perspective and we've been talking about evacuation plans for where we currently live. Sheltering in place wasn't even a viable option for what they were teaching it for back in the day. It was simply a drill to make people feel more falsely prepared for the possibility of the uncontrollable scenario of nuclear war. A desk was never going to be the deciding factor in whether or not you survive an apocalyptic event, and it's no different from how standing in a doorway will not protect you if the building collapses around you during an earthquake. Don't be soothed into a false sense of security by antiquated procedures they taught you in school.

I live near the coast of Southern California and very much appreciate the updated information in this informative and useful video. Please do more on this subject with specific information and advice for the various areas with the greatest risk. I’m most concerned with the San Andreas that is not far from my location. Thank you for your work and… your spokesperson is engaging and speaks clearly. I could listen to her everyday :)

It's the sound of the building that makes you want to run outside! I've been in wood-frame buildings for basically every large earthquake I've experienced in the US since I live in California and only experienced one 5 earthquake when I lived in Peru and I was on the second story of a reinforced masonry building. In any case, buildings make terrible sounds during an earthquake and increase your feeling of anxiety that already wants to arise during an earthquake. You mainly worry about whether it will get bigger and then, if it lasts for more than a second or two, you actually start to wonder if it will ever stop even though your rational mind knows that all earthquakes have stopped shaking thus far. There was one time that I did run outside during an earthquake and it was this one that happened in Mexico in 2010 I want to say and it happened on Easter. I was at my mom's house helping her with something outside and I was just walking in the front door when the earthquake started. I felt that first little bump and I just thought, "Hell no!" and ran right back outside. Then I thought of the fact that the outside of buildings collapses first so I ran into the road. The light post looked forbidding so I kept running down the street. The trees at the end of the street also looked foreboding so I literally went running for the hills. LMAO Pretty soon, my old ass is practically sprinting uphill and it suddenly dawns on me that I've run quite a ways and so fast that I literally can't even tell if there's still an earthquake. So I stopped running to see if there was still an earthquake but it had passed and then I sheepishly walked the solid half mile or so that I had run in just a few minutes and all because I had ran back out the door and then away from the house. Literally nothing at all happened anywhere near me as far as damage but I guess it was a good bit of cardio.

Wow! You did not mention the 9.2 earthquake that hit Alaska in 1964! I was only in 1st grade but I will never forget the way the trees were dancing while the ground was shaking so bad you could not stand! It is something you would never forget! It was NOT just a little ground shaker! I am not looking forward to experiencing the future mega-thrust earthquake from the Juan De Fuca plate. Anchorage was pretty far from the fault but still got a good shaking. Olympia and the I-5 corridor wont get it as bad as Ocean Shores, Ilwaco, Aberdeen, and other coastal communities but the warnings state that everything west of I-5 will experience major damage. The last big one in this area was in January, 1700. We are past due!

There is something missing in this dicotomy: being able to evacuate or hide depends on wether you can walk. In very strong quakes you just can't keep standing up. Having experienced at least one megaquake and its many, many aftershocks, I would recommend: try to evacuate if possible, always watching for possible objects falling like furniture or electric posts outside. If it cames to the point you can't keep standing, crawl to an area free of falling objects or windows. The center of a room for example. Also, keep in mind that a building can be said to be built to modern standards but be deffective anyway. Trust the building only if it has survived a strong earthquake before. Search "Alto Rio Concepcion" to see an example of a supposedly modern building that collapsed catastrophically because of poor construction. And if you're near the sea, and the quake made impossible to keep standing, run for high ground the moment it stops. By foot, never car.

I heard a story on South American earthquakes several years ago on NPR. The reporter explained a DIY alarm that was used in remote areas. They used two common household items, a tin cooking pan and an empty wine bottle or similar. The bottle was set inside the pan, balanced upside down, and when the earth moved the bottle would tip and make a racket when it hit the pan. Maiya looks safe and happy under that desk at 1:30!

Nicely done. Smooth mix of general info with brief explanatory technical bits folded in. Many thanks.

A good recommendation for the authorities and the researchers is to develop an earthquake alarm system to alert before the shaking waves hit the zone as they have in Mexico and in Japan.

Fortunately, I live in a low seismic risk area ( St-Lawrence valley, province of Quebec, Canada). Cold winter blasts and ice storms (power outages) are our biggest concerns....along with inept politicians!!

I live about 10 miles form the San Andreas Fault in So Cal, and when I was purchasing a home, I found a wood frame house built in 1924 on bedrock, next to a mountain. From what research I have done, my biggest worry will be the chimney. My home is also bolted to the foundation which was a requirement for the seller to complete before the sale.

I felt the 1991 Quake there. It *snapped* after the weird p-waves sensation. I ran outside of a house with an infant in my arms to get out of the house. I knew the sensation the second it began. I got *out* of the house. We were safe outside. The second snap moved the entire earth northward. I watched the entire house bottom half yanked to the right while the upper whole half of the house stayed in place, appearing as if it was yanked to the left. My square house momentarily turned into a *parallelogram* The TREES *swayed* *weird* The power lines *swayed* I thought my house was going to collapse onto itself. I went to my knees to the ground as to not be thrown, with infant in my arms. Yea, I can tell you, it was SCARY.

This answered so many questions I had and so many I didn’t know to ask. Fantastic, and I’m glad to hear that a more nuanced approach is going to become the norm.

Great timing. It was October 17th yesterday and that day will forever be significant to people in Northern California.

Thank you for this excellent educational video. I’m going to share it with my son who lives in Eugene Oregon. It’s really good for anybody who lives in an earthquake area. Thank you again.

Thank you for this most important information Dr. Goldfinger and everyone else involved! I live in Newberg, Oregon and concerned about being ready. Stay safe 💙

I grew up on the Oregon coast and saw places, even where i lived, where there were ghost forests. No one knew why, but that was over 60 years ago. Oh, yes, and places where you could see whole sections of land had dropped or risen...like a broken puzzle .

Just as with other calamities, most calamities that hit people are those that were not envisioned by those people or were ignored. Earthquakes come with multiple calamities. Not mentioned in this video are other calamities that will follow the earthquake and tsunami. Fires will break out, people will start looking for relatives and endanger themselves doing so. People will panic and flee and get overrun by people and cars. People start collecting their valuables before fleeing and get hurt or killed. People will drown in floodwaters. Prevention of getting caught in all these subsequent calamities will determine wether you will get caught up in the calamities or wether you have to trust luck or Gods help. MAKE AN EARTHQUAKEPLAN FOR YOURSELF AND FAMILY AND DISCUSS IT WITH THEM AND TRAIN YOUR FAMILY.

I think situational awareness is extremely important in earthquake-prone area, and don't forget the socio-economy aspects of the region where we stay. Like, if I'm in Japan, where the building code is strictly enforced and the locals are well-prepared, I may just simply duck and cover then follow evacuation orders that being disseminated by the authority. But if I'm in a developing country that has low compliance or even doesn't have any building codes and the locals are ill-prepared, then I need to be more aware about any possible evacuation route and protective items to shield from any falling debris. That way I may safe myself independently amidst the chaotic situation.

Great video! Thanks for making. Here outside Seattle and have "dug deep" into simulations that have been done for the tidal surge here in Puget Sound. I would like to see video on preparing a "day pack" of necessities when you need to leave fast and cannot drive.

I always figured the children hiding under desks was about control: you have a lot of scared children who might not be aware of the danger around them, and not enough adults to take care of them. By teaching them to hide underneath their own desks, you eliminate the danger of a stampede on the hallways and overall panic of people trying to get out. That way they are also in recognizable areas that rescuers can focus on, rather than forcing them to dig through the rubble, pause to listen for lifesigns and then continue digging. Guess I was wrong.

So within 60 seconds I’m supposed to remember what type of building I’m in, remember where the exit is, and run on ground that is shaking while other people are also panicking to run. It can’t be too hard

Good information! There was a lot spoke about I did not know with earthquake safety and buildings.

I live on the south coast of Vancouver island about 18 meters above sea level. In the event of a mega quake I immediately head to a nearby walking path that gives me another 15m of elevation and takes about 10 minutes to get to/ascend. Then I wait as, at that point, there is not much else to do but wait to see how big the tidal wave is.

We had one in Kansas City maybe 7 or 8 years ago. Until I felt it, I couldn't comprehend the power it takes for all the dirt under a whole city to be moving. Like, its bit of a chore to move two or three cubic yards of rock and dirt. Now, all the dirt everywhere? And all the things built on top of it. That sh*t boggled my mind. My house moved like it was nothing.

1989, I was on the edge of the big 'Frisco quake. I was trucking, just unloaded near Oakland, and went to Sacramento for the night. I was out of the damaged area, just had some good shaking. A short time after, news of what happened was coming out. A few hours earlier, I was on that collapsed freeway.

I’m surprised you did not mention the mega quick in Alaska in 1964. That was a 9.2.

I live in a relatively earthquake-free zone, the piedmont of North Carolina. Some years ago, a minor quake occurred up around Maryland. We suspected that there had been an earthquake somewhere when an engine we had hanging on a chain hoist in the garage began to gently swing by itself.

Where I live now, major earthquake damage is unlikely but there are other risks. We keep (and regularly check) bug out bags, basic water and food storage, gas and generator, a repository with tools to shut off utilties and other disaster prep essentials. A few hours of prep can save your lives, yet most people don't do it. For sure more comprehensive messaging is needed.

I live in Astoria Oregon. I've told my family to head to the column if they feel the ground shake. I've watch many videos of that tsunami in Japan in 2011 to know what could possibly happen. I've an emergency tote filled with 4 days of food and supplies.

I was 40 miles south of the nisqually quake in a brick warehouse. I saw the timbers holding the roof trusting back and forth, the door was right there so i decided braving the brick facade was better then being inside so I put my hand on my moms back and ran us out the front into the middle of the street covering our heads. We moved toward the one story next door and watched the light poles settle. A few bricks came off buildings across the street, luckily it wasn't a big quake.

I've lived through some large earthquakes here in New Zealand. I have never ducked under anything unless in bed and it wakes me up. Then I burrow down in the bed with the pillows on top of my head. Usually we get outside away from falling debris etc. The biggest toll on the body is the nerves and it takes some time to get a restful night's sleep in the weeks afterwards. We are always aware of them, especially in the east Marlborough area of the upper South Island. The last one that came our way was in Nov 2016. It was over the 7 when it hit our place. We are prepared for any more with water, food cooking (camping style), thermal tents, medical supplies etc, etc.

Your message here is on topic and yes, more information on situational awareness and earthquakes are needed. Keep up the good reporting. This could save lives.

I am just imagining the experience of those two professors when they both felt the earthquake coming. All of that work studying this natural thing, and the moment when you realize you are presently feeling the real p waves coming in. Amazing

Great content. I think nuanced preparation dependant on where you live and work is probably best. We live in Northern Virginia. We do occasionally get perceptible quakes, and it is important to know that our quakes are near crust quakes. The quake that damaged the Washington Monument was centered around Mineral Virginia, very close to the North Anna NUCLEAR power station. After event reports showed that the staff of the North Anna facility knew their jobs and did them well, keeping many people safe even in a highly stressful, unpredictable situation. Quake preparedness for the win!

Hello from Oregon. We've be prepping for this quake for decades. This is very good knowledge to know.

I think situational awareness is essential. I would also like to see a video on what to do after the shaking ceases.

I didn't know about the Weathered series on PBS Terra, but I'll be binge watching all the episodes now. Well researched with the type of information I want as someone living near a large fault. Keep up the good work!

I was born near the Mendocino Triple Junction, the most seismically active place in North America, and grew up farther away but still within sight of Cape Mendocino. I was about 32 years old before I saw a brick building that did not have cracks in it.

This here is great information!!! Thank you!

I live in Christchurch (where the Cathedral collapsed in your video), New Zealand where the entire country is on the infamous ring of fire. Faultlines run more or less throughout the country with the most dangerous being the Main divide Alpine fault in the South Island and the Hikurangi subduction zone just off the east coast of the North Island both of which are capable of generating an 8+ earthquake and these seismic zones are 50 years overdue for an earthquake of that magnitude which happens about every 250 years.. I still have very vivid memories of the bigger quakes in the sequence that began in 2010 with a 7.1 at 4.35 am on September 4th, followed by the smaller 6.3 more damaging earthquake on February 22nd 2011. As young schoolchildren we were drilled in seeking a door frame which is exactly what I did before I was even awake and conscious of of what I was doing. A lot of those killed were outside or ran out of masonry buildings in the city, but most were in the two modern buildings which collapsed in the Feb earthquake. Our suburban houses are mostly timber framed and performed quite well. Christchurch is built on a swamp and there was a lot of liquefaction in many parts of the city. Earthquakes feel less severe outdoors so if you can keep on your feet then outside will feel less scary, but with ours they were often over before you were able to do anything helpful.

Beautiful presentation of this very important information. Thank you Maiya and PBS Terra!

Great video! I’ve been thru so many quakes in Central CA & LA, and as a Red Cross responder in 2009 to American Samoa we always head to open spaces out buildings. Lessons learned quickly at first shake google recent quakes near me, 150 miles away / 500mph = 0.3 x 60 min an hour = 18 minutes before landfall and for boats on a dock: stay secure with dock lines until peak of wave 1, have motor on, cut lines at peak motor to deep water. I have photos of real-time survivor. If moored stay aboard and ride the boat 400yards inland every captain survived. When on high ground looking at ocean waves look for white water of waves to stop, it means tsunami is coming as water recedes.

here in Anchorage Alaska during the 2018 7.2 quake power, internet, banks businesses closed some reopened right away knowing people needed help and food as all stores closed immediately our building shook slowly then it sounded like a truck hit the building and shook hard and rolled for a long time but the whole city came together and helped one another it was awesome to see.

Very interesting video. Thanks for the team for publishing it.

I grew up north of Seattle and there can be tremors several times a day. That's the problem with this advice. When the Alaskan quake hit, we knew it was more due to the shaking didn't end and the SOUND. It was too late by then to do much than drop and cover. I'll never forget that sound.

Around LA the p-waves from minor quakes often have a "bump" sound like a truck hitting a pothole outside, and shortly after you feel an up and down motion like starting up in an elevator.

Helpful information, thank you!

Valuable info. Thank!

I have family members that are geologist and I knew 40 years ago about the subduction plates along the west coast of North America. I find it odd that people in Portland only learned about it a few decades ago. I have a wood deck above the basement door, so I chose to use supports between the deck and supports to enable stability. There are people in wheelchairs that must use the deck and adjoining ramp to evacuate. I understand the physics behind subduction, the increase in stress then a slight reduction in the stress, but it's been climbing consistently for the last decade. The earthquake in Japan added more "push" to the Pacific plate, and in turn the stress on the subduction plates. Unfortunately the condo towers have large amounts of glass, especially some of the more expensive ones. The windows may just shatter, but that means glass shards falling. Don't underestimate the power of an earthquake.

I live in Sunnyvale in the Southern San Francisco Bay area. I am on the valley floor not far from the San Andraes faultline. I live in a Mobilehome with standard earthquake bracing underneath front and back. I remember sitting at my dining room table when the 1989 Loma Preita 7.0 hit. I remember experiencing how flexible the place is. I could feel the steel main beams under the home flexing up and down. I thought this is what it's like for these to travel down the roads in two halves before being set in place. The earthquake braces did a good job of supporting the movement and I sustained no damage. Spooky though. 🇺🇲🔜👊

Yes! Definitely educate the population to have situational awareness! It’s a concept that’s easy to grasp and can potentially save lives of those who would otherwise perish during an earthquake

As someone living across the river from Portland this is such vital information to know- I wish we were all taught this more efficiently, instead I had to seek it out because I was interested- especially for the area we live in- I never knew you should go outside!

We live far from major faults but occasionally get small quakes. I hadn't realized they can make noise until one evening I hear this rumbling noise and start to worry about the furnace. I had just called the pets and was about to evacuate when my husband called from work to ask if I heard it. I was so relieved and called a friend up the road who was also wondering and relieved. Turned out the epicenter was over 60 miles away.

I grew up in So Cal and went to school there. We have earthquake drills. They are different than fire drills, because you have to get under your desk. All the municipal entities got involved, including fire, police, hospitals etc. We practiced for the big one.

Excellent documentary! Thank you! I learned some valuable things here. Please do more!

Phenomenal video! Thank you so much!! You’re saving lives 🏆

I once had a small job up in Kodiak, Alaska. One notices the clearly marked tsunami evacuation route signs, and among the room service menus and suchlike in my hotel room was a map of evacuation routes and centers, together with a notice of the weekly alarm tests. They got clobbered in the Good Friday quake and tsunami of 1964.

Being from California I am used to many different sizes and types of earthquakes. I was in a Costco during a violent shaking 4.6 earthquake. We all ran to to front, away from the ceiling high pallets of merchandise! The metal ceilings rattled as the huge hanging industrial lamps swayed. The scariest moments of our lives!

Thank you. Very helpful.

I live right in the middle of the Cascadia subduction zone close by Portland Oregon and have a beach house on the Oregon coast as well. When i was a kid I was at the beach in Oregon and there was a tsunami warning and people started running and freaking out and a few people actually were killed during the warning and subsequent panick. It wasn't until about 15 minutes of the warning going off that at the very end of the warning they said this is just a test. It was a huge fuck up and caused some serious issues. I was on vacation in Indonesia when the tsunami that killed hundreds of thousands and I barely survived it myself, it was one of the most insane things I've ever been through in my life. It was extremely frightening and exciting at the and time, hard to explain the crazy experience to people who don't know what it's like