write an essay on "don't be scared be prepared keeping in mind with an earthquake that may occur anytime in your area
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Earthquakes regularly rattle our planet, striking somewhere in the world every hour of every day. Such events are the result of the slow-motion march of tectonic plates that build stresses in Earth’s crust and upper mantle. Eventually the stress hits a breaking point and releases in a ground-shaking quake that can send blocks of the Earth careening out of place..
The stuff inside your home is just as important as the walls themselves. Take a tour of each room to look for things that could fall or break if the ground starts to wobble. Sometimes this can be solved with a little reorganization, moving large or heavy objects to lower shelves. Other times fixing issues takes a bit more handiwork, such as bolting bookcases to wall studs, installing latches on cupboards, and securing any large appliances like water heaters.
While inspecting your home, make sure you know how to shut off your utilities. And while you’re at it, check out the connections of gas appliances; it’s best if these are flexible rather than rigid so they can bend with the rolling ground.
Assemble an earthquake emergency kit that includes food, water, and other supplies for at least 72 hours. When preparing your kit, consider each member of your family and their needs—and don’t forget your pets. The Department of Homeland Security has a detailed guide about putting together a kit for many different contingencies.
When the ground starts to roll under your feet, resist the temptation to run outside. Instead, take cover in place. But if you are already outdoors, stay outside and move away from buildings and power lines. If you are driving, pull off the road. But do not stop under an overpass or other structure that could crash down.
Coastal quakes can be particularly dangerous since the shifting ground can disturb the water column and produce a tsunami. If you are on a coast when a strong earthquake strikes, get to higher ground as soon as you can.
While tsunami warning systems can help give some notice, it’s often too risky to wait for the alert to get to high ground. For one, the time between the siren and the wave crashing onshore may be small. And if the tsunami is local, it might evade warning system detection entirely. For example, a surprise tsunami devastated parts of Indonesia in 2018, thanks in part to the particular geometry of the channel that funneled the water to land. What’s more, as was the case in Indonesia’s 2018 tsunami, cellphone towers toppled by the shaking can prevent transmission of potential alerts.
After the shaking subsides
Even after the ground grows still, the danger is not necessarily over. As the Earth settles from its trembling it can produce a series of smaller quakes known as aftershocks. On rare occasions, a second earthquake that’s even bigger than the first might follow. When that happens, the first quake is called a foreshock, and the second temblor is called a main shock. This was the case for the two large earthquakes—a magnitude 6.4 followed by a magnitude 7.1 event—that rocked California in the summer of 2019.
Still, once the shaking subsides it’s time to start getting yourself and others ready for more. First, check for injuries. Sometimes people won’t initially feel pain because of the adrenaline that courses through the body during life-threatening events. Next, check the gas and electric lines, and turn them off if you can do so safely. And if you are inside a heavily damaged structure, get yourself and others out as soon as possible.
If you’re trapped, stay calm. Protect your mouth, nose, and eyes from the dust and call or text for help. Make noise by whistling or shouting to get responders’ attention. But if you are outside, keep an eye out for hazards like fallen electrical lines, ruptured gas pipes, or precarious structures.
Turn on the radio—perhaps one you stowed in your earthquake emergency kit—and listen for updates. Heed warnings and instructions from official organizations like the United States Geological Survey, and careful about what you see shared on social media..