What to do and what not to do during Earthquake

Earthquake:
An Earthquake is a sudden, rapid shaking of the earth caused by the breaking and shifting of rocks beneath the earth surface. Over time, stresses build beneath the Earths surface. Occasionally, stress is released resulting in the sudden and sometime disastrous shaking we call an earthquake. An earthquake (also known as a quake, tremor or temblor) is the result of a sudden release of energy in the Earth's crust that creates seismic. The seismicity, seismism or seismic activity of an area refers to the frequency, type and size of earthquakes experienced over a period of time. Earthquakes are measured using observations from seismometers. The moment magnitude is the most common scale on which earthquakes larger than approximately 5 are reported for the entire globe. The more numerous earthquakes smaller than magnitude 5 reported by national seismological observatories are measured mostly on the local magnitude scale, also referred to as the Richter scale. These two scales are numerically similar over their range of validity. Magnitude 3 or lower earthquakes are mostly almost imperceptible and magnitude 7 and over potentially causes serious damage over large areas, depending on their depth. The largest earthquakes in historic times have been of magnitude slightly over 9, although there is no limit to the possible magnitude.

Earthquake fault types

There are three main types of fault that may cause an earthquake: normal, reverse (thrust) and strike-slip. Normal and reverse faulting are examples of dip-slip, where the displacement along the fault is in the direction of dip and movement on them involves a vertical component. Normal faults occur mainly in areas where the crust is being extended such as a divergent boundary. Reverse faults occur in areas where the crust is being shortened such as at a convergent boundary. Strike-slip faultsare steep structures where the two sides of the fault slip horizontally past each other; transform boundaries are a particular type of strike-slip fault. Many earthquakes are caused by movement on faults that have components of both dip-slip and strike-slip; this is known as oblique slip. Reverse faults, particularly those along convergent plate boundaries are associated with the most powerful earthquakes, including almost all of those of magnitude 8 or more. Strike-slip faults, particularly continental transforms can produce major earthquakes up to about magnitude 8. Earthquakes associated with normal faults are generally less than magnitude 7.

WHAT TO DO
Past experience in earthquakes may give someone a false sense of safety; someone didn't do anything, or someone ran outside, yet someone survived with no injuries. Or perhaps someone got under the desk and others thought its overreacted In MOST situations, we can reduce our chance of injury if we:

DROP down onto your hands and knees (before the earthquakes knocks us down). This position protects us from falling but allows us to still move if necessary. COVER our head and neck (and our entire body if possible) under a sturdy table or desk. If there is no shelter nearby, only then should we get down near an interior wall (or next to lowlying furniture that won't fall on us), and cover our head and neck with our arms and hands. HOLD ON to our shelter (or to our head and neck) until the shaking stops. Be prepared to move with our shelter if the shaking shifts it around.

WHY RESCUERS AND EXPERTS RECOMMEND DROP, COVER, AND HOLD ON Trying to move during shaking puts us at risk: Earthquakes occur without any warning and may be so violent that we cannot run or crawl; we therefore will most likely be knocked to the ground where we happen to be. So it is best to drop before the earthquake drops us, and find nearby shelter or use our arms and hands to protect our head and neck. "Drop, Cover, and Hold On" gives us the best overall chance of quickly protecting ourself during an earthquake... even during quakes that cause furniture to move about rooms, and even in buildings that might ultimately collapse. The greatest danger is from falling and flying objects: Studies of injuries and deaths caused by earthquakes over the last several decades show that we are much more likely to be injured by falling or flying objects (TVs, lamps, glass, bookcases, etc.) than to die in a collapsed building. "Drop, Cover, and Hold On" (as described above) will protect us from most of these injuries. If there is no furniture nearby, we can still reduce the chance of injury from falling objects by getting down next to an interior wall and covering our head and neck with our arms (exterior walls are more likely to collapse and have

windows that may break). If we are in bed, the best thing to do is to stay there and cover our head with a pillow. Studies of injuries in earthquakes show that people who moved from their beds would not have been injured if they had remained in bed.

we can also reduce our chance of injury or damage to our belongings by securing them in the first place. Secure top heavy furniture to walls with flexible straps. Use earthquake putty or velcro fasteners for objects on tables, shelves, or other furniture. Install safety latches on cabinets to keep them closed. Building collapse is less of a danger: While images of collapsed structures in earthquakes around the world are frightening and get the most attention from the media, most buildings do not collapse at all, and few completely collapse. In earthquake prone areas of the U.S. and in many other countries, strict building codes have worked to greatly reduce the potential of structure collapse. However, there is the possibility of structural failure in certain building types, especially unreinforced masonry (brick buildings), and in certain structures constructed before the latest building codes. Rescue professionals are trained to understand how these structures collapse in order to identify potential locations of survivors within "survivable void spaces." The main goal of "Drop, Cover, and Hold On" is to protect us from falling and flying debris and other nonstructural hazards, and to increase the chance of our ending up in a Survivable Void Space if the building actually collapses. The space under a sturdy table or desk is likely to remain even if the building collapses- pictures from around the world show tables and desks standing with rubble all around them, and even holding up floors that have collapsed. Experienced rescuers agree that successfully predicting other safe locations in advance is nearly impossible, as where these voids will be depends on the direction of the shaking and many other factors. The ONLY exception to the "Drop, Cover and Hold On" rule is if we are in a country with unengineered construction, and if we are on the ground floor of an unreinforced mud-brick building, with a heavy ceiling. In that case, we should try to move quickly outside to an open space. This cannot be recommended as a substitute for building earthquake-resistant structures in the first place!

Taking action in different situation during earthquake: If we are indoors:

DROP to the ground; take COVER by getting under a sturdy table or other piece of furniture; and HOLD ON until the shaking stops. If there isnt a table or desk near, cover the face and head with arms and crouch in an inside corner of the building. Stay away from glass, windows, outside doors and walls, and anything that could fall, such as lighting fixtures or furniture. Stay in bed if we are there when the earthquake strikes. Hold on and protect our head with a pillow, unless we are under a heavy light fixture, window or anything else that could fall. In that case, move to the nearest safe place (i.e. under a desk or in an inside corner). Use a doorway for shelter only if it is in close proximity to us and if we know it is a strongly supported, load-bearing doorway. Brace ourself on the side with the hinges to avoid the door swinging at us. Stay inside until shaking stops and it is safe to go outside. Research has shown that most injuries occur when people inside buildings attempt to move to a different location inside the building or try to leave. Be aware that the electricity may go out or the sprinkler systems or fire alarms may turn on. DO NOT use the elevators, even if they are working. There may be aftershocks. If we are in a restaurant, get under the table.

If outdoors:

Stay there. Move away from buildings, streetlights, and utility wires. Once in the open, stay there until the shaking stops. The greatest danger exists directly outside buildings, at exits, and alongside exterior walls. Many of the 120 fatalities from the 1933 Long Beach earthquake occurred when people ran outside of buildings only to be killed by falling debris from collapsing walls. Ground movement during an earthquake is seldom the direct cause of death or injury. Most earthquake-related casualties result from collapsing walls, flying glass, and falling objects.

If in a moving vehicle

Pull over to the side of the road and stop as quickly as safety permits and stay in the vehicle. Avoid stopping near or under buildings, trees, overpasses, and utility wires. Proceed cautiously once the earthquake has stopped. Avoid roads, bridges, or ramps that might have been damaged by the earthquake.

What not to do
These three actions are not recommended to protect our self during earthquakes: DO NOT run outside or to other rooms during shaking: The area near the exterior walls of a building is the most dangerous place to be. Windows, facades and architectural details are often the first parts of the building to collapse. To stay away from this danger zone, stay inside if we are inside and outside if we are outside. Also, shaking can be so strong that we will not be able to move far without falling down, and objects may fall or be thrown at us that we do not expect. Injuries can be avoided if we drop to the ground before the earthquake drops us. DO NOT stand in a doorway: An enduring earthquake image of California is a collapsed adobe home with the door frame as the only standing part. From this came our belief that a doorway is the safest place to be during an earthquake. True- if you live in an old, unreinforced adobe house or some older wood frame houses. In modern houses, doorways are no stronger than any other part of the house, and the doorway does not protect us from the most likely source of injury- falling or flying objects. we also may not be able to brace our self in the door during strong shaking. We are safer under a table. DO NOT get in the "triangle of life": It is "Drop, Cover, and Hold On" advice. The so-called "triangle of life" and some of the other actions recommended The "triangle of life" advice (always get next to a table rather than underneath it) is based on several wrong assumptions:

buildings always collapse in earthquakes (wrong- especially in developed nations, and flat "pancake" collapse is rare anywhere); when buildings collapse they always crush all furniture inside (wrong- people DO survive under furniture or other shelters); people can always anticipate how their building might collapse and anticipate the location of survivable void spaces (wrong- the direction of shaking and unique structural aspects of the building make this nearly impossible) ; and during strong shaking people can move to a desired location (wrong- strong shaking can make moving very difficult and dangerous).

What to do if earthquake occurs when you are in IUB

There are some steps that we can follow during earthquake when we are inside the IUB campus. These follows: Keeping calm! Is mostly important Never get panic because sometime panic may cause more damages than others Never use the lift during earthquake period If there is time then we should take stairs for reaching open place If earthquake seems more serious then we should not go here and there rather need to find a shelter which is near of us and take place beneath the shelter. Its important to take place in open place in front of the campus Its better to use all the stairs rather giving pressure on a particular stair. We need to understand that it is not only my rescue period where everyone gets stuck inside the building and trying to rescue themselves. We should give chance to everyone to avoid the hazardous situation Need to follow the instruction that given by the authority of the university

We have emergency exit. Which we can use at the earthquake moment. Its mandatory that we never should use the lift during earthquake time rather stairs is the only alternative. But still the exit stairs are not enough for the entire student. There is high chance for accident in exit point during earthquake. So its important to take care this issue before any accident happens during earthquake.

(Exit door and stairs)