In a bid to highlight preparedness in the face of potential earthquakes and storms, Gov. Jay Inslee proclaimed October as Washington State Disaster Preparedness Month and NOAA Weather Radio Awareness Month.
The highlight of the month is the Great Washington ShakeOut “drop, cover and hold” earthquake drill at 10:15 a.m., on Oct. 15. The drill emphasizes the urgent need for people, organizations, schools, communities and businesses to practice what to do to be safe and to be ready before an earthquake strikes. In addition, most coastal communities will test their tsunami alert sirens at the same date and time using the real sound of the siren, not the Westminster Chimes that typically happen during the monthly tests. NOAA weather radios set to receive the required monthly test will also activate during this test.
People and organizations can sign up to participate at www.shakeout.org/washington. As of Oct. 8, with one week to go, more than 970,000 have registered. Last year, more than 1 million residents registered.
