
It was October 17, 1989 just before 5:00 PM and all was well. My 19-month-old daughter was taking a late nap, dinner was warming in the
microwave, the TV tuned for the World Series, and my husband would be home soon. Then without warning it all changed in seconds.
The TV flickered and then almost simultaneously everything was in motion. Books fell off of the shelves, the microwave cart started to move from the kitchen to the front room, and I was running for my daughter. Fortunately my family suffered no injuries.
The sorry plight of the people trapped in the Cyprus Freeway collapse made quite an impression, so I do carry bottled water in the car. But this many years later I am not prepared for the next big one. Is anyone?
Tomorrow morning we can participate in “The Great California Shake Out” and learn to help keep ourselves safe.
Radio & TV Broadcasts
October 15th at 10:15 AM
* KCBS 740 AM – 106.9 FM
* KPIX TV 5
San Jose: The Tech Museum is the epicenter for Northern California.
As the key ShakeOut venue, the museum will be staged to carry out the “drop,
cover, hold on” drill with more than 400 student visitors and other guests
including Matthew Bettenhausen, acting secretary of the state’s Emergency
Management Agency, Karen Baker, secretary of Service and Volunteering for
California Volunteers, museum President Peter Friess and officials with the
USGS, American Red Cross, San Jose police and fire officials, among others.
More than 400 visitors participate in an actual earthquake drill in
three museum locations. The museum earthquake platform will be shaking all
day with eight different simulated earthquakes from around the world –
including the Loma Prieta. An ambulance and police and fire vehicles will be
stationed outside the museum along with the “Big Shaker,” an earthquake
simulator where visitors are rattled for up to 10 seconds in what feels like
an 8.0 quake.
1989 Loma Prieta Earthquake – KTVU TV 8:15pm
USGS twitter