The Nisqually earthquake hit at 10:54 AM on Wednesday, February 28, 2001. Its magnitude was measured at 6.8 on the Richter Scale, and caused an estimated $ 300 million in damage to both public (government, selected non-profit agencies), and private (individual citizens and businesses) in King County alone. The King County Emergency Operations Center (EOC) is located on Boeing Field (King County International Airport) just south of Seattle's main downtown section. The building is a brick façade one-story structure that had been seismically retrofitted in 1996, prior to the Office of Emergency Management taking up residence.

For some strange reason, (fate, luck, karma, etc.), the entire OEM staff (all six of us), were on site when the quake hit. We are "cube dwellers", so when the shaking first hit, most of us thought that the vibrations were from a passing freight train just to the east. That perception lasted for about three seconds, followed by "oh (expletive deleted)****! "Every one Drop, Cover and Hold"! It is amazing how time slows when you are under your cube desk holding on to the cube. The vibrations felt like they were coming in a west to east direction. In what seemed like minutes, but was actually probably 10 seconds, the shaking stopped, and we checked for injuries and damage, followed by callouts and the quickest activation of the EOC that we have had.

Two messages are clear; seismic mitigation and Drop, Cover and Hold work! Our 1950s building that was retrofitted in 1996, had no damage to the structure. Because we tied down our computers, printers, copiers, secured our cubes, filing cabinets, and equipment, we had no internal damage that prevented us from immediately responding to the quake. Secondly, the training on the Drop, Cover and Hold procedure, enabled our staff to react individually to protect themselves, so as not to be part of the problem (injured/killed personnel) but so that they could accomplish the mission of responding and recovering from the earthquake. If you are planning for your business, public or non-profit agency, or your family, we hope that you will include the following: Before- Know the hazards, contact your local emergency management agency for a copy of their HIVA (Hazard Identification and Vulnerability Analysis) and emergency preparedness brochures; Develop a plan on how your family or organization will respond to an event; Spend the money for seismic mitigation both structural and non-structural within your office or house; Prepare disaster supply kits for your home, car, and place of work; Spend the time that it takes to train your family or employees on Drop, Cover and Hold, Utility turn-off procedures and first aid. During- Drop, Cover and Hold where you are; If in a building, stay in the building; if you are driving, carefully pull over to the side of the road and stop; stay in the vehicle until the shaking stops; if possible avoid overpasses, and power lines. Listen to your radio for emergency instructions. After- Check yourself and others for injuries; Evacuate damaged buildings and have a place to evacuate to. Stay off the phones unless you need 911. Turn off utilities if needed. Monitor your radio for emergency instructions.

For more information about disaster preparedness, contact your local or state emergency management agency, or your local American Red Cross Chapter for brochures, training and information, and remember, seismic mitigation and drop, cover, and hold work!