Though sixth-grader Isabella Camberos knew it was just a drill Thursday morning, she was still kind of nervous as the school intercom went off and the students were told to drop, cover and hold on.
“Back in fourth grade we had a really big earthquake,” the 11-year-old Hedrick Elementary School said. “I was pretty much unprepared for it.”
She was at home when the 7.2-magnitude earthquake hit on April 4, 2010, and she said she didn’t know what to do. She felt safe, though, because she was with her family.
Now she takes drills like the statewide one held Thursday more seriously. She said she is more prepared should another quake come.
“After I’ve been through the 7.2, I’m kind of ready for any other earthquake,” she said.
Residents from all around the county and state got to test their preparedness in the largest earthquake drill ever, the Great California ShakeOut. More than 38,800 residents locally participated, along with 8.6 million in California.
The event just keeps getting bigger, said Mark Benthien, director of communications with the Southern California Earthquake Center, one of the groups that organized the statewide shakeout.
People need to learn to react quickly when an earthquake starts, he said. They shouldn’t wait around to see how strong the shaking may be, but rather should drop, cover and hold on before it gets bad.
“What gets the people most prepared for earthquakes are earthquakes,” he said. “That’s a little too late.”
The event “allows people to practice, so in moments when an earthquake begins, you don’t have to think about what to do,” he said.
The event is not only for those who participated, Benthien said. Creating a shakeout event that is so big gets people talking with others about it, and those that aren’t participating can see others ducking under tables and holding on. It helps them learn what to do.
Those who still want to hold a drill within the next two weeks can by going to shakeout.org to find out more information about it.
Students at Hedrick agreed that drills like the one held at 10:20 a.m. are a good thing.
“It’s very important because if you don’t really know (what to do), bad things can happen, said Layla Ayon, 11.
People that aren’t prepared could get hurt if things fall down, she said. It’s also important to have a phone in order to call for help.
Her class did pretty good, though they probably have to work on getting out of class with less talking and falling, she said.
Overall the students at Hedrick School did really well this year, said Principal Rauna Fox. After the announcement came, the students did what they were supposed to do, and the drill was over in less than two minutes.
Statistics show that the more students practice disaster drills, the better they are, she said.
“I want my students to be safe,” she said. “I want them to know what to do. I want it to be so natural to them, that it’s just automatic.”
It’s especially important in Imperial County where earthquakes happen so often, Fox said. After the April 4, 2010, earthquake, students told her they got under tables or stood in doorways. They weren’t as afraid because of the practice they had done at school.
“Hopefully when they actually feel an earthquake — I wish we could simulate that part, but we can’t — that when they actually know it’s an earthquake, they’ll know exactly what to do and they’ll be safe,” she said.
Staff Writer Elizabeth Varin can be reached at evarin@ivpressonline.com or 760-337-3441.
“Back in fourth grade we had a really big earthquake,” the 11-year-old Hedrick Elementary School said. “I was pretty much unprepared for it.”
She was at home when the 7.2-magnitude earthquake hit on April 4, 2010, and she said she didn’t know what to do. She felt safe, though, because she was with her family.
Now she takes drills like the statewide one held Thursday more seriously. She said she is more prepared should another quake come.
“After I’ve been through the 7.2, I’m kind of ready for any other earthquake,” she said.
Residents from all around the county and state got to test their preparedness in the largest earthquake drill ever, the Great California ShakeOut. More than 38,800 residents locally participated, along with 8.6 million in California.
The event just keeps getting bigger, said Mark Benthien, director of communications with the Southern California Earthquake Center, one of the groups that organized the statewide shakeout.
People need to learn to react quickly when an earthquake starts, he said. They shouldn’t wait around to see how strong the shaking may be, but rather should drop, cover and hold on before it gets bad.
“What gets the people most prepared for earthquakes are earthquakes,” he said. “That’s a little too late.”
The event “allows people to practice, so in moments when an earthquake begins, you don’t have to think about what to do,” he said.
The event is not only for those who participated, Benthien said. Creating a shakeout event that is so big gets people talking with others about it, and those that aren’t participating can see others ducking under tables and holding on. It helps them learn what to do.
Those who still want to hold a drill within the next two weeks can by going to shakeout.org to find out more information about it.
Students at Hedrick agreed that drills like the one held at 10:20 a.m. are a good thing.
“It’s very important because if you don’t really know (what to do), bad things can happen, said Layla Ayon, 11.
People that aren’t prepared could get hurt if things fall down, she said. It’s also important to have a phone in order to call for help.
Her class did pretty good, though they probably have to work on getting out of class with less talking and falling, she said.
Overall the students at Hedrick School did really well this year, said Principal Rauna Fox. After the announcement came, the students did what they were supposed to do, and the drill was over in less than two minutes.
Statistics show that the more students practice disaster drills, the better they are, she said.
“I want my students to be safe,” she said. “I want them to know what to do. I want it to be so natural to them, that it’s just automatic.”
It’s especially important in Imperial County where earthquakes happen so often, Fox said. After the April 4, 2010, earthquake, students told her they got under tables or stood in doorways. They weren’t as afraid because of the practice they had done at school.
“Hopefully when they actually feel an earthquake — I wish we could simulate that part, but we can’t — that when they actually know it’s an earthquake, they’ll know exactly what to do and they’ll be safe,” she said.
Staff Writer Elizabeth Varin can be reached at evarin@ivpressonline.com or 760-337-3441.
