Earthquake Warning California Education Sectors (K – 12) Toolkit

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For Teachers and School Staff

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Natural disasters, like earthquakes, happen unexpectedly and can create major disruptions to K-12 campuses that last long after the event is over. Emergency situations may force faculty and students to quickly find shelter or be displaced from their campus or their home. By being prepared and planning ahead, faculty and students can quickly take life-saving actions to keep them safe in an earthquake. It’s important for all campuses to prepare a disaster plan; for students and faculty to identify safe spots to take cover in the classroom, on campus, or at home during distance learning; identify emergency escape routes; and for each classroom to have an emergency supply kit readily available.

To ensure all faculty and students are earthquake prepared, the California Governor’s Office of Emergency Services (Cal OES) developed Earthquake Warning California, which is the nation’s first statewide earthquake warning system that provides several seconds of warning to mobile device users in the area before shaking occurs.

Earthquake Warning California offers no-cost earthquake warning resources, including:

• MyShake App. A mobile app that can be downloaded for mobile devices at no-cost from Google Play the Apple App Store. App location services must be set to “always on” so that ground sensors can alert those in the nearby area when shaking is detected.
• Android Earthquake Alerts. An earthquake warning system available to any new or updated Android devices that uses that same technology as the MyShake App.
• Wireless Emergency Alerts (WEAs). Text-like messages from the government during emergency situations. This includes: Presidential, Imminent Threat (fire, earthquake, floods, etc.), and AMBER alerts.

We encourage faculty and students to utilize the Earthquake Warning California resources, which notify users to quickly take protective action such as drop, cover, and hold on. These resources are important for when students are on and off campus (remote learning), for an earthquake can strike at any time. These earthquake warning tools can help protect lives and prevent damage to properties in the areas hardest hit during an earthquake. During serious shaking situations, individuals may be knocked down to the ground, so knowing how to Drop, Cover and Hold is critical.

To learn more about Earthquake Warning California, the no-cost warning tools, and additional resources available to the public, visit earthquake.ca.gov.

A school that prepares together can diminish the catastrophic impact of a major earthquake. Subscribe to Earthquake Warning California newsletter on the website to receive campaign toolkits, graphics, and the latest news & updates, or email earthquakeinfo@caloes.ca.gov.

For Parents

 Did You Know? Most Californians say they are very or somewhat knowledgeable about the steps they can take to prepare for a natural disaster such as an earthquake, yet 60% remain highly concerned about the potential impact of a disaster on their household. To ensure all Californians are prepared, the California Office of Emergency Services (Cal OES) recently launched the “Don’t Get Caught Off Guard” campaign to promote awareness of critical earthquake warning resources available at no-cost through Earthquake Warning California.

Earthquake Warning California’s “Don’t Get Caught Off Guard” campaign is a statewide education effort to help the public learn about earthquake warning tools and resources. Cal OES, in collaboration with the California Integrated Seismic Network Partners from United States Geological Survey (USGS), University of California – Berkeley (UCB), California Institute of Technology (Cal Tech), and California Geological Survey (CGS) launched the nation’s first State Earthquake Early Warning System in October of 2019. The system uses ground motion sensors and sensors in smartphones to detect an earthquake before humans can feel it and issues a ShakeAlert^® Message in real time so they can take cover before shaking happens. An earthquake warning can provide additional life-saving seconds for people to Drop, Cover, and Hold On.

Earthquake Warning California resources include:

• Information about constructing an emergency plan
• How to protect yourself and your family before, during and after an earthquake
• Android Earthquake Alerts developed in partnership with Cal OES and USGS
• The MyShake App — a smartphone app developed in partnership with Cal OES and UC Berkeley that can provide users with a few seconds of notification that shaking is about to occur
• Wireless Emergency Alerts (WEA) — free notifications delivered to cell phones in emergency situations
• Information for education sectors to plan for life-saving actions in the event of an alert, such as safely slowing mass transit systems, powering down equipment, or bringing elevators to an emergency stop
• Links to the California Integrated Seismic Network Partners for additional technical and system information

Parents can help students and their family members stay safe by downloading the MyShake App and ensuring they are familiar with how to receive warnings and respond to them. Location services must be “always on” for the technology to connect to nearby ground sensors. Consider implementing Earthquake Warning California tools to your own personal mobile devices and incorporate earthquake warnings into at-home disaster drills. By being prepared ahead of time, California hopes to reduce the devastating impact of earthquakes and keep Californians and visitors safe.

To learn which resources are available to you and how to react, visit www.earthquake.ca.gov. There, you can also sign up for Earthquake Warning California monthly e-newsletter with the latest news and information about California’s earthquake warning system.