Advance earthquake alerts and drills can save lives when seconds count

You can now get advance earthquake alerts, thanks to improving technology. Here’s how millions worldwide are better preparing for earthquakes:

How do you survive a strong earthquake? Advance preparation and advance earthquake alerts are key. Experts say the best approach is to be notified as early as possible about the potential earthquake risk — no matter where you are. But how are advance earthquake alerts possible?

International Shakeout Day

Every October, tens of millions of people worldwide learn and practice how to prepare for an earthquake during International Shakeout Day. Now in its 12th year, the event features earthquake drills called the Great Shakeout. In October 2019, more than 61 million people participated worldwide.

Each Great Shakeout drill provides important information and resources to participating people, businesses and communities. The drills also highlight the power of early warning systems and mass notifications. To that end, drill participants opt to receive email or mobile earthquake alerts.

Email and mobile earthquake alerts

If you’re in California, you can choose to install the MyShake mobile app managed by University of California Berkeley, or the ShakeAlert earthquake alerts app, which currently covers the Los Angeles area. Both the MyShake app and ShakeAlert app are available for iOS and Android devices.

Though the ShakeAlert app was launched by the US Geological Survey (USGS) to the public in 2019 for just the greater Los Angeles area, the USGS hopes to expand it along the west coast this year.

If you don’t live in California but still want to participate in the Great Shakeout, you can organize drills or receive alerts by email, SMS texts or calls sent by technology partners. Alerts are offered in several languages. And thanks to new geo-sensing technology, alerts can sometimes be sent seconds before a quake hits.

A few seconds may not sound like much time, but that can be just enough time for you to take cover in a safe place.

During the October 2019 Great Shakeout for example, San Francisco based Regroup Mass Notification delivered more than 1.1 million earthquake alerts. Of those, more than half were mobile SMS text alerts.

After each Shakeout drill, the resulting data and user feedback are shared with the USGS and technology partners to further improve the mobile earthquake alerts app and other delivery methods.

What to do in an earthquake

Besides getting email or mobile earthquake alerts, Great Shakeout participants are educated and trained on how to prepare for an earthquake. This includes the standard advice to “drop, cover and hold”. That means to drop down to your hands and knees, take cover if possible under something sturdy (but not near glass), and hold on or cover your head and neck with both hands.

You can see earthquake preparedness demo videos on the Shakeout.org website, and see how one California college held a full earthquake simulation — both on campus and inside a furnished van that shakes.

How Regroup delivers other emergency alerts:

As one of the Great Shakeout program’s key partners, Regroup has been involved with earthquake safety and emergency preparedness since 2014. In late 2017 the company launched a partnership with the USGS and its ShakeAlert program at the Southern California Earthquake Center.

Besides mobile advance earthquake alerts, Regroup provides mass alerts for other emergencies, including fires, dangerous storms, bomb threats, and active shooters. The cloud-based Regroup Mass Notification platform enables two-click messaging to mobile devices, landlines, social media, email, websites, PA systems, digital signage and more.

Part of the mass communication platform is a free emergency alerts app called AlertMe. This app lets admins access the platform on any iOS or Android device, and use pre-programmed “QuickMessage” templates to get information out with just two-taps. AlertManager admins can also see recipient replies in real-time, which is critical for fast decision-making.

Regroup’s AlertMe emergency alerts app is a consecutive Mobile Star Awards Winner. You can learn more about the app and quickly connect with Regroup here on MobileVillage.