Science

EARTHQUAKE DRILLS AT SCHOOLS
Disaster doesn't always occur when we're at home with our families. "Drop, Cover, and Hold On" is the appropriate action to reduce injury and death during earthquakes.Methods like standing in a doorway, running outside, and do the "triangle of life" that methods are considered dangerous and are not recommended.
WHAT TO DO IMMEDIATELY WHEN SHAKING BEGINS
Your pastexperience in earthquakes may give you a false sense of safety; you didn't do anything, or you ran outside, yet you survived with no injuries. Or perhaps you got under your desk and others thought youoverreacted. However, you likely have never experienced the kind of strong earthquake shaking that is possible in much large earthquakes: sudden and intense back and forth motions of several feet persecond will cause the floor or the ground to jerk sideways out from under you, and every unsecured object around you could topple, fall, or become airborne, potentially causing serious injury. Thisis why you must learn to immediately protect yourself after the first jolt... don't wait to see if the earthquake shaking will be strong!
In MOST situations, you will reduce your chance of injury ifyou:
* DROP down onto your hands and knees (before the earthquakes knock you down). This position protects you from falling but allows you to still move if necessary.
* COVER your head andneck (and your entire body if possible) under a sturdy table or desk. If there is no shelter nearby, only then should you get down near an interior wall (or next to low-lying furniture that won't fallon you), and cover your head and neck with your arms and hands.
* HOLD ON to your shelter (or to your head and neck) until the shaking stops. Be prepared to move with your shelter if the shakingshifts it around.
WHY RESCUERS AND EXPERTS RECOMMEND DROP, COVER, AND HOLD ON

* Trying to move during shaking puts you at risk: Earthquakes occur without any warning and may be so violent that...