Set a reminder for 10:15 a.m. on Thursday, Oct. 15. That's when the Great Alaska ShakeOut drill happens, and the Alaska Earthquake Center wants as many Alaskans as possible to practice the basics: drop, cover, and hold on.
According to Your Alaska Link, state emergency management leaders say more than 100,000 Alaskans have signed up this year. Schools, businesses, and regular households can all join in. The center's Elizabeth Nadin also made the point that in a place with this many earthquakes, getting ready shouldn't be a once a year thing.
Our take: the Alaska Earthquake Center is right up the hill at UAF, so this one feels a little homegrown. Most of us in Fairbanks have felt the house rattle and just kept eating dinner. That's fine until the big one shows up and the tall bookshelf comes down with it. Two minutes under the kitchen table on Thursday won't kill anybody. Bonus points if the kids get to pick which table.
Once the drill is over, take a slow look around the house. Is the bookshelf strapped to the wall? Is the water heater secured? Is the heavy mirror hanging over the bed? Little fixes like these are a quick job for a Fairbanks handyman, and Good Hand Co. can line one up for you. And if a good shake leaves the shelves a mess, The Alaska Cleaning Company can help get the place back in order.
Photo: Glenn Highway damage at Mirror Lake after the Nov. 30, 2018 Anchorage earthquake. By Alaska DOT&PF, CC BY 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons.