Safety drills to shake up State’s earthquake preparedness

Geoscience Australia and the Department of Fire and Emergency Services (DFES) are encouraging the community to know how to protect themselves during an earthquake ahead of The Great ShakeOut earthquake safety drill this week.

Fire and Emergency Services Commissioner Darren Klemm AFSM said Western Australia held the title for the most regular quakes in the nation and knowing what to do when the ground shakes could save lives.

“Earthquakes happen without warning so you need to react quickly. The safest action is to drop, cover and hold on – drop to the ground, cover your head and neck with your arms, seek shelter under a sturdy desk or table or if outside move to an open space. Hold on to your shelter until the shaking stops,” he said.

For the first time, DFES has developed audio drills for schools to use in the classroom to help students understand what to look out for and what to do. Geoscience Australia has also provided free step-by-step resources to run a Great ShakeOut drill in schools, workplaces and community groups.

DFES has also recently introduced earthquake notifications on the Emergency WA website and app, giving Western Australians instant updates from Geoscience Australia showing the earthquake’s location, magnitude and depth.

Emergency WA users with watch zones and natural hazard alerts switched on will receive real-time earthquake notifications direct to their mobile device. People can also use Emergency WA to submit a Felt Report to Geoscience Australia, improving earthquake impact modelling and risk understanding.

Geoscience Australia Chief Executive Officer Melissa Harris said having access to trustworthy and timely earthquake information is vital for community trust.

“Geoscience Australia monitors for earthquakes all day and night as the government’s trusted source of Earth science information and advice,” she said.

“The more we know about the ground beneath our feet, the better prepared we can be as a community to build resilience and prepare for the risk of ground shaking from earthquakes across Australia.”

Since the establishment of the National Seismograph Network (ANSN) in 1994, there have been 181 earthquakes greater than magnitude 4.0 recorded across WA – including the 6.6 magnitude earthquake off the WA coast near Broome in 2019, equal to the biggest recorded in Australia to date, and felt all the way to Perth.

The Great ShakeOut coincides with Geoscience Australia’s national Earth Science Week campaign from 12–18 October.

Schools can register to participate in the Great ShakeOut and download the quick and easy earthquake drills at http://www.dfes.wa.gov.au/schools