ST. LOUIS — Thursday is International ShakeOut Day. It's a reminder to have a plan in case of an earthquake.
ShakeOut Day happens every year on Oct. 21 to educate people about the importance of planning ahead. It's also a reminder to make sure your emergency or earthquake safety kit is up to date. That kit can include things like canned goods, important documents, and electronic power chargers.
Earthquakes happen all over the world every day. The map below shows the magnitude of each quake before 3 p.m. on October 21, 2021, in the United States. Most of the quakes happen out on the West Coast because the faults out there are more active than the fault closest to St. Louis, The New Madrid seismic zone.
Most of the quakes are smaller. You see a lot of magnitude-two quakes on the map, and most of those aren't even felt. A magnitude-four quake is when you really start to feel the shaking. When you hear of a magnitude six or higher, strong to severe shaking could result in damage to buildings. The higher the magnitude, the more likely to be deadly.
The red areas in the map above, are the seismic zones. You can see the red just south of St. Louis all the way into the Memphis region. That is the New Madrid fault. Our fault is deep, so when earthquakes happen, shockwaves travel farther due to the bedrock in our area. Back in 1811 and 1812, our region had three very large and destructive magnitude-seven up to magnitude-eight earthquakes.
What do you do if you feel the ground begin to move below your feet? DROP, COVER, HOLD
DROP to your hands and knees and get under a table or desk if possible.
COVER your head & neck with your hands & arms.
HOLD on until the shaking stops.
For more information about ShakeOut Day and what you can do to get prepared, click here.