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Your survival during an earthquake depends entirely upon the choices you’ve made up to now.  Are you preparing yourself and your family or are you a non-believer that denies it will happen; but if it does you’ll worry about it then?  Will you be one of those who panics, dials 911 or your law enforcement office, and finds it’s too late to get help because communications are already down?  You could be on your own for days, camping out at your house, stuck in your car, or at work.  Will you be one of those who helped make the disaster a catastrophe because you did nothing to prepare yourself?  It’s your choice and the outcome depends upon you.  Those who have taken CERT training or set up an emergency preparedness program on their street have been trained to do the following:

• DO NOT use a cell phone or land phone.  The lines will be down or overwhelmed.  Stay where you are.  DO NOT get on the roads.  They must be kept open for first responders.
• Check your house, family and contain pets.  Gather up emergency supplies for evacuation if necessary.  Get proper clothing, leather gloves, and flashlights.
• Turn on your battery operated radio to your AM emergency response stations – 980, 1070 or others.
• Check your house for gas leaks, water leaks, and broken electrical lines.  Unplug electronics, and turn off and unplug major electrical items or switch off power at the breaker panel.  Always turn off gas if you smell gas and BEFORE you flip electrical switches at circuit breakers.  (Make sure a wrench is available and you know how to use it.) Turn off your water valve if you suspect broken lines.  This is essential to protect the water supplies in water heaters and toilet tanks, water which you can drink in an emergency.  You cannot drink swimming pool or spa water.  Check your neighbors’ homes.
• Put out your HELP/OK sign to signal for assistance or to let rescuers know they can pass on.
• Go to pre-designated assembly area in center of your block, away from trees and power lines.
• Join your pre-designated team (per the Household Survey form in ShakeOut 4).  Trained CERT people are specially trained to handle this phase of the disaster.  If you have no CERT members, your EP Block Captain(s) will take charge.  The ASSESSMENT TEAM checks all homes with no sign displayed, or with a HELP sign, identifies trapped or missing people, checks neighborhood utilities, fallen trees, etc., then relays the information to the COMMUNICATIONS TEAM - your amateur radio operators.  The SPECIAL NEEDS TEAM sets up a first aid/emergency medical station, checks all elderly/disabled and special needs residents, assists non-English speaking people, and takes care of small children.  Keep a log of all homes, assistance provided and mark buildings.
• If fires develop, turn off gas and electricity and fight small fires with fire extinguishers.  If you live on narrow, winding roads and have to evacuate, be sure that all remaining vehicles are parked on the same side of the road so emergency equipment can get through.  Take planned items with you.

SCENARIO  It is 9:50 AM on Nov.  13, 2008.  200,000 commuters have made their way from outlying communities into the L.A. area, joining 7.5 million other residents in workplaces and schools constructed of steel, concrete, brick or wood.  A steady flow of trains and trucks cross the San Andreas Fault at multiple locations moving goods between the ports and the rest of the country.  These “lifeline corridors” are the veins and arteries that sustain economic life in So. California.  They also convey natural gas and fuels, water, electrical lines and telecommunication cables.  It is sunny with a light breeze, hopefully not a Santa Ana wind.  A major earthquake is about to occur.  It will wreak physical and economic havoc on thousands and will change So. California markedly for untold years to come.  It will test the courage, training and grit of thousands of first responders and medical workers, but it will also test the residents who made choices on how to survive this disaster.  Have you prepared by making the right choices?  Only time will tell.

As of now, 4.7 million people have registered and are preparing for a major disaster.  But what about the other 17 million who haven’t registered?  What will happen to them?  Please make sure you register at www.ShakeOut.org/register so that CalTech, the U.S. Geologic Service, first responders and medical personnel can expect your support.