• Home
  • About Us
  • Work With Us
  • Social Media News
  • Privacy & Terms
  • Thunderbolt Social Media
  • Skip to primary navigation
  • Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar
  • Skip to footer

Dangerous Cupcake Lifestyle

  • Entertainment
  • Travel
  • Food & Wine
    • Cupcakes
  • Disney
  • Marvel Geek
  • Crafts, Cars & Cool Things
    • Crafts
    • Cars
    • Cool Things
    • Technology
  • Family & Life Over 45
You are here: Home / Lifestyle / Southern California Earthquake Safety and Readiness

Southern California Earthquake Safety and Readiness

July 6, 2019 By Donna Biroczky Leave a Comment

Tweet
Share37
Pin
37 Shares

If you’ve been watching the news at all — or if you’ve experienced them firsthand — you’ve aware of the Southern California earthquakes centered in Ridgecrest. First, there was a 6.4 on July 4th, followed by an even larger quake on July 5th, which turned out not to be an aftershock as the 6.4 was the preliminary quake, a precursor. Scary stuff when you start paying attention to the things that the USGS (United States Geological Survey) start sharing and learn that big quakes may not even be “the big one.” This means California earthquake safety is a big priority for any resident or visitor.

Living this Southern California lifestyle since I was 13, minus a few years we’d moved away due to the military or our three-year hiatus in South Carolina, I’ve experienced quite a few large quakes, with the biggest being Landers and Northridge. I was taught in middle school to duck and cover. Get under the nearest table or stand in a door jamb and ride it out. I knew all the rules, but in last night’s 7.1 earthquake, I forgot them. I mean, not just forget them but I did ALL the wrong things.

The earthquake hit as we were all sitting out back under the patio cover, a large new aluminum structure less than two years old, around a high-top table. Five of us on those high-top chairs, drinking cocktails and talking about my son’s visit to the emergency room and the incident of someone’s hubcap rolling away from an errant car at the hospital and damaging my Challenger. (I’m still teary.) Laughing, chatting and then boom, the drinks started sloshing, the patio heater started swaying and the table was moving side to side.

What the heck…wait, what’s happening…OMG IT’S ANOTHER EARTHQUAKE.

Reason went out the window. We didn’t get off the swaying chairs and get under the table…which was a good thing, in the big picture, as it’s glass. We also didn’t go stand in the door jamb. We also ignored the obvious of going inside.

What DID we do? Stand there. Nervously laugh. Watch each other sway. Watch the orange tree branches bouncing. Watch the hummingbird feeders swing wildly. Listen to car alarms going off. Watch my wine slosh. There were some curse words. What felt like forever later, it stopped. No damage at all, as at around 105 miles away from Ridgecrest, we’re too far for that, but we did learn later we’d almost lost a TV as it had crept to the edge of its shelf. A few bottles on our bar shelf had shifted to the edge. Otherwise, you couldn’t tell…except for our nerves. And we’re the lucky ones, without any injuries.

Up in Ridgecrest and Trona, they’re dealing with fires from broken gas lines, injuries from things falling onto people, cuts from broken glass and auto accidents when the power at intersections went out and the roads literally cracked in two. It’s insanely scary, and my heart goes out to those people.

Earthquake preparedness is one of those things we all think we know, but when the ground under your feet moves, it all leaves your head…and that’s bad, because the right decision can make or break how well you survive an earthquake.

So what DO you do?

California earthquake safety

Plan ahead. Read up on California earthquake safety and go through the steps with your kids.

Stay away from falling objects, both inside and out.

If you’re inside, head for a door jamb or if you can’t, under a sturdy table.

If you’re outside, get away from tall buildings, power lines and trees.

Have a known family contact that everyone calls. Put this in everyone’s phone AND have them memorize it and put it on their handwritten list. If cell services go down or land lines and you are all scattered, if you each call one out-of-state or out-of-area person, that person can help pass along messages and be a main hub for your family. This will help your college student across the country know you’re okay or help you and the spouse coordinate arrangements to meet or gather the rest of the family. Don’t forget to make sure this person knows about your California earthquake safety plan ahead of time!

Keep a small amount of lifesaving medications in a place where you can grab them in a hurry, as well as an envelope your most important documents, like passports, birth certificates, etc. Make sure the whole family knows where to find them.

If earthquakes have been happening, consider putting those things in a pile near an exit. Keep your purse there as well, so you can grab it if you have to leave.

If you live in an earthquake-prone area like California, consider a go bag in your car. Keep an extra outfit, sturdy shoes and a list of numbers as well as a spare phone charger. Since phone batteries can die if you’re not able to get to a power source, having that list of phone numbers in writing will help you have access to important contacts in the event you have to use someone else’s phone or a land line, if services are still available.

I’ve seen a lot of people talking about that go bag in their car, but it’s important to consider that in the event of a severe earthquake, you may not be able to drive your car. It could be under rubble, stuck in your garage, or the roads may be impassable. That go bag may be inaccessible.

Storing some bottled water and emergency food in your garage or a closet can help if your power or water supply goes out. If you can only store a little, it’s better than nothing! Earthquake preparedness isn’t all or nothing.

A flashlight next to your bed can be a literal lifesaver. Many injuries after an earthquake occur because people fall in the dark, trip over broken things or step on glass.

After a quake, do a careful inspection of your house but first, put on sturdy shoes. Check for gas leaks and fallen items, particularly broken glass. Open all your cabinet and closet doors very cautiously to see if anything has shifted. Put items back where they belong and take note of what you see that’s moved and is dangerous, to consider if you need to rearrange things permanently. Decor is awesome as long as it’s not dangerous.

Hardware stores sell straps to attach furniture, tvs, etc., to the wall. In California, we’re required to have straps on our water heaters, and they are well worth the expense and installation time.

Lastly, know where your valuables are, like the photos and other things that you can’t replace. Tell the family and keep a list since we tend to forget things when we’re stressed. Should something happen to your home, you can direct someone to get them out if you can’t. Just last month, I moved all of our digital phones since 2004, a monumental task, to a large portable hard drive. It’s easily accessible and may be the most important one item to take with us other than our documents and purses.

Follow USGS on Facebook, too, for current information and safety updates directly from the pros.

Southern California earthquake safety is much more inclusive and large than I can cover in one post, as we all have different situations and lifestyles, but in general, stay safe. Get your family together. Have your most important items accessible, but remember your lives are the most important thing of all.

For more information about disaster preparedness, check out my post on evacuation prep lists. After spending a few years on the southern east coast and much of my life in California, I’ve had to learn a lot about keeping my family safe so I’m sharing my tips that may help you, too!

Tweet
Share37
Pin
37 Shares

Filed Under: Lifestyle Tagged With: california, southern california

Previous Post: « What is Gym Etiquette and Why is it Important?
Next Post: Healthy Creamsicle Dip Recipe for Fresh Fruit »

Reader Interactions

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Primary Sidebar

Follow Us

dangerous cupcake lifestyle club 33 profile
I’m Donna, Marvel geek and creator of Dangerous Cupcake, a Southern California lifestyle blog dedicated to moms who are refinding or reinventing themselves as their kids grow up.  As my four kids enter different stages of their lives, (like college or marriage or parenthood) I get to do the same, having fun, loving Disney, watching Marvel, and not letting my age define anything. Phase 2 of life is pretty amazing. Join me in changing focus and enjoying life during our next adventure, without totally starting over. However you do it, life is short, live a little dangerously.
Donna@DangerousCupcakeLifestyle.com

We are an Amazon affiliate, which means some Amazon links you click may be our affiliate links. In that case, we may make some money IF you purchase using those links or other affiliate links.
We appreciate you!

STUFF WE WRITE ABOUT

Footer

dangerouscupcakelifestyle

SoCal mom changing focus as the kids grow up!
Entertainment 📽 Food 🥘 Travel 🚘
Disney 🏰 Marvel ✴ Thor ⚡

Donna Biroczky
Instagram post 18111128377071988 This week's Spies in Disguise red carpet premiere was pretty rad. We saw the movie at the El Capitan, then partied with the cast at the Hollywood Roosevelt. Meeting Will Smith was a highlight, and he was so genuine and kind, as was Masi Oka. I even talked with Tom Holland for about six seconds! Thanks to Disney for the invite to another magical night!

#disneypartner #spiesindisguise @spiesindisguise #disney @disney #movie @elcapitanthtre #elcapitan #elcapitantheatre #hollywood #willsmith #masioka #tomholland #redcarpet #premiere #losangeles #hollywoodroosevelt #hollywoodboulevard #press #media
Instagram post 17905089130386487 Paying it forward takes on a whole new meaning when you are able to give charitable people a free ticket to a Grammy-nominated concert! That's exactly what Enterprise did last week when they paired up with OneRepublic for this year's Share the Code. Hit the Road. event. All the guests were recipients of a free code, selected in honor of their random acts of kindness, which allowed them to pass along the code to another three people doing good works in their community. The concert was a blast, and it was the most polite and fun group of concertgoers I've ever been a part of. Keep doing good and paying it forward, and maybe you'll be invited to next year's Share the Code event!

AD #SharetheCode @Enterprise @OneRepublic @PappyandHarriets #nationalkindnessday #bekind #onerepublic #music #concert
Instagram post 17907349897386355 If you're looking to go see Santa, Victoria Gardens has a festive setup that will put everyone into the holiday spirit. Don't miss the snow at 7pm and 8pm in Chaffey Square...and if you're lucky, you may catch Santa strolling through the flurries with you!

@victoriagardens #victoriagardens #ranchocucamonga #santa #christmas #christmastree #holidays #snow #shopping #shoplocal #shop #christmasshopping #ie #inlandempire #santaclaus #santaphotos #christmaslights
Instagram post 17999332039274878 My son took this photo of our gorgeous mountains over the weekend, when temps dropped just in time for a cold Thanksgiving. I think it's safe to say that winter came early.

@chephhstephh #snow #mountains #winter #cucamongapeak #ranchocucamonga #ie #inlandempire #sangabrielmountains #sanbernardinocounty #socal #california #foothills #hikeinlandempire #altaloma #thanksgiving
Instagram post 17876416210482576 I can't ever get enough of this view. I literally just stood there like a child, soaking in the Disney magic of every twinkling light. I'm so lucky to live close enough that Christmas in the parks is a part of every holiday season.

#disney #disneyparks #disneymagic #sleepingbeautycastle #castle #disneysmc #disneylove #disneyfan #disneymom #disneylife #disneychristmas #christmasatdisney #socal #socalmom #california #disneycalifornia #disneyland @disneyland #disneyfans #disneyatnight #christmas #christmaslights
Instagram post 17858001733606935 I used my Cricut EasyPress 2 last week for the first time to make my daughter a t-shirt for her wedding. With Cricut's Design Space, I chose a graphic of intertwined wedding rings and put their hashtag below. Projects like this are fast and easy with Cricut and now I can turn out gifts for my family and friends whenever I want to! If you're thinking about getting crafty for the holidays, now's the time! Lots of products will be on sale this week for Black Friday, so head over to my blog post for links to some great sales. See you in the craft aisle!

#sponsored @officialcricut #cricut #cricutcrafts #cricutcreated #tshirt #crafts #crafter #crafting #cricutmade #cricutexploreair2 #cricuteasypress2 #easypress2 #ironon #christmasgifts #wedding #bride #igcraft #designspace #GettingTiched
Load More... Follow on Instagram

Life is short, so it should never be boring. Dangerous Cupcake Lifestyle is all about enjoying life, finding yourself as your kids grow up and above all, keeping it real. Live dangerously. We'd love to hear from you -- let's work together!

Copyright © 2019 Dangerous Cupcake and Thunderbolt Social Media

This website uses cookies to improve your experience. We'll assume you're ok with this, but you can opt-out if you wish.Accept Read More
Privacy & Cookies Policy

Necessary Always Enabled