In less than three months, individuals and communities throughout five states and the District of Columbia will practice “Drop, Cover, and Hold On”, the recommended response in the event of an earthquake, during the first ever Great SouthEast ShakeOut earthquake drill on Thursday, October 18, 2012 at 10:18 a.m. EDT.
This regional earthquake drill comes on the heels of the one year anniversary of theAugust 23, 2011 M5.8 Mineral, Virginiaearthquake and 2012 National Preparedness Month in September. Georgia, South Carolina, North Carolina, Virginia, Maryland, and the District of Columbia are encouraging their schools, businesses, organizations, government agencies, communities, and households to participate. These states are being supported by CUSEC, the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), and many other local, state, federal and volunteer partners. CUSEC coordinates a similar drill across nine Central U.S. states, with more than 2.4 million participants in February, 2012.
CUSEC is pleased to have the opportunity to serve as the central coordinating organization for this effort, and will work closely with the participating State Emergency Management agencies. Several of the participating states are CUSEC Associate Member States. The first ShakeOut drill was held in California in 2008, with over 5 million participants. For a history of the ShakeOut, click here.
