Community, Fire Department, Public Safety

The Great ShakeOut—a great way to learn and prepare for when disaster strikes

October 15, 2019

White stick figures depicting drop, cover and hold on

The Hayward Fire Department encourages residents, businesses and other Hayward organizations to join millions of Californians in the largest earthquake drill ever by participating in the Great California ShakeOut on Thursday, Oct. 17, at 10:17 a.m.

Earthquakes can happen anywhere you work, live, or travel.  Great ShakeOut drills are a great way to practice together to learn how to protect ourselves and become prepared.  The goal is to save lives and prevent disasters from becoming catastrophes.

Register at ShakeOut.org/register to involve your family or organization.  You will receive information on how to prepare for earthquakes, and what actions to take during and after the shaking, as well as other ShakeOut news and updates.  You also can see who else is participating in your community at ShakeOut.org/whoisparticipating.

As a reminder, the ShakeOut takes place on the anniversary of the Loma Prieta Earthquake, which occurred Oct. 17, 1989, a magnitude 6.9 seismic event centered in the Santa Cruz Mountains that caused 63 deaths, 3,757 injuries and $6 billion in damage.

The anniversary and drill also are an opportunity to take additional steps to plan for a disaster.  Sign up for AC Alert, our emergency mass notification system at AC Alert.  And please visit our City Earthquake Preparedness website for guidelines on how to plan, make a kit, be informed, and get involved.