I work in NH and we felt the quake all the way up here. We were on a call with people in NYC and it was weird to hear them experience the quake first and then Bring on Irene!

We felt it here in SW Ohio too. I was in a 4th floor meeting room and felt the floor vibrate.

Lisa_a - I'm surprised someone in PDX even knows what Hanford is. I live near Tri and my friends/family in PDX are clueless until I tell them. Like you, I'm glad it's closed and mostly contained.

kevinw1 - My fire extinguisher is in the pantry. It could be just about anywhere, as it is small, but the pantry seemed the most visible for guests.

I think my kitchen is fairly earthquake proof... all the latches on the uppers will keep them locked tightly. My pantry is another story. That would be a mess with liquor bottles flying everywhere. What a sad thought!

I'm in Richmond, VA abut 40 miles from the epicenter but it seems like there was more damage in the DC area than here. I haven't been home yet so I don't know but my husband said he didn't think we had any damage. Part of the brick roof parapet collapsed on my neighbor's c. 1900 house but I haven't heard of any other serious damage in the downtown area.

I'm from California, where tremors happen all the time, but here an hour north of Atlanta this little tremor signaling a happening somewhere far away managed to grab my attention.

As for quakeproofing your kitchen, I did all the usual stuff in California. Here, I'd just move heavy stuff from overhead to where it can only break a foot and move treasures to safe places or strongly strongly secure in place. Like cabinet latches for boats on top cabinets seldom accessed. Let the everyday dishes fall where they may if it comes to it. In California I probably lost 3 items in a quarter century with some serious shakers in the region (centered 30 miles away is extremely different from underfoot :).

Much more important than dishes, go to the bedrooms and strongly secure whatever's over your heads while you're asleep to the wall studs. Then bolt tall heavy furnishings that could fall over and kill someone to the wall studs. Just because they should be.

Then...that's mostly it. Earthquake putty does a nice job of holding not-too-heavy decoratives in place. I probably wouldn't bother keeping thick-soled slippers by the bed out here, although we always did that in SoCal. Injuries from jumping out of bed and slashing feet on broken whatever are many, many, many times more common than those from structural failure. In one of our very worst quakes 2 people in all of L.A. died--one when a parking garage fell on her, the other from leaping out of a 2-story window. The poor guy was from the Middle East and it apparently seemed like a good idea at the time.

Although...many old east coast, pre-later-earthquake code buildings have never been given a good shaking down, including some very fine old buildings. For homes of the last 50 years or so, older split levels are particularly prone to breaking apart (as in standing in the street and seeing a thin wedge of back yard) where the levels join, although even then fatalities are very uncommon. I'd buy earthquake insurance, even out here, if I had one of those, though. Note, codes have been updated a number of times; buildings constructed to later codes are significantly stronger than those to earlier codes.

Queens, NY here. I was sitting in Panera Bread having lunch. I was deep in thought about something when I gradually became aware that things were shaking... it felt like a subway train was passing underneath the restaurant, except the nearest subway was several blocks away. Took a moment for that cognitive dissonance to register. I looked up and everyone was looking around at each other, like hunh???

People who were standing didn't feel a thing. Only the people who were sitting.

A short time later I went into the new Pier 1 that had just opened yesterday (yay). I had an interesting conversation with the greeter - she had been in much larger earthquakes in other parts of the world where people were killed and there was extensive damage. Still, she was very sympathetic that people might be feeling shaken up by this (no pun intended), and was offering for everyone to sit down. Lovely woman.

My son's office is in Kings Park, L.I. and he texted me, "I survived the earthquake" while I was at school. (it was just dismissal time). I thought he was being his goofy self and just trying to get my blood pressure up.

Another Marylander here. Definitely felt the earthquake today. We had to evacuate our office building in Owings Mills. Very weird feeling, that was my first quake. I'm glad that it appears no one was hurt though.

South-central Ohio here, and I felt it as well. I had put my daughter down for a nap a few minutes prior, and she was fighting it (standing in her crib and shaking the rails). I was sitting on my bed, which shares a wall with her crib. I felt the bed shaking and wondered how the heck she got strong enough for me to feel the crib's movements through the wall. My husband told me 10 or 15 minutes later about the earthquake (I'm not plugged into the 24-hour news cycle and stay blissfully ignorant of the majority of garbage clogging cable news networks).

I hope to use the old-fashioned cabinet latches on my upper cabinets and the under-sink cabinet. Those should help keep things from falling out of the cabinets, at least for any earthquake we'd feel in this part of the country. Any furniture should have anti-topple devices installed, but that's not exclusive to EQ prone territories. Any materials that don't have a lot of flex to them (tile, stone, and drywall/plaster) will get cracked, so keep plenty of extra tiles in storage in case of damage - you'll never be able to find a match when you need it! Wood floors have enough flexibility to undergo some movement without problem. I guess my kitchen will be unintentionally EQ-resistant after all!

PS: Happy birthday, Buehl! Enjoy it!

I live in CA, always have, and used to teach Earth Science to middle schoolers. Which is to say that I did earthquake safety every year. As Rosie said, your bedroom is really the most important place to make quake safe. I always see TV designers put stuff on the wall over the bed. David Bromstad did it when he was in SF. Don't put stuff over the bed! Also don't put your bed under the window, especially windows that still have guillotine glass in them. EQ straps are a good idea for tall furniture.

For kitchens, the most annoying thing is that the heavy stuff needs to go low and the Tupperware high. I hate having the Tupperware fall on my head every time I want to use it, but there it is. There's something to be said for the new fashion of no uppers. It takes a pretty good shake, definitely more than 5.9, to shake the cans and whatever off the cabinet shelves. Let them fall. If you're really worried about it, you can use kiddie latches or whatever, but that seems pretty inconvenient for a rare occurrence. Better to put stuff you really care about lower. For knick-knacks you'd rather not get broken, earthquake putty works well.

Someone suggested turning off the gas. The gas co. will be so annoyed with you if you and everyone else turns off their gas!! They've got to come back out and turn it all back on. Only turn it off if you actually smell it - and you will if it's an issue.

Maryland's Eastern Shore here, downy-ocean - yes, we felt it all right! After reading about the furniture straps, I'm so glad my husband did NOT listen to me when I told him to not worry about screwing the tall linen cabinets into the wall. Now I know even if the house sinks into the ground, the cabinetry will be in tact! In our kitchen, the plastics are high and heavy pots & ceramics low. (this is more because I am short, think I can balance on the step-stool instead of getting the stairs & get a little 'dropsy' sometimes) Prepping for Irene; what a miracle it is to have warning to prepare! Happy Birthday Buehl! My husband shares this birthday with you!

Another Marylander here - just north of the Baltimore City line. I was at work when my monitor and the floor started shaking a bit. At first I thought it was the air handling system turning on, as there are slight vibrations on the third (top) floor when the roof-units turn on. It was only a second or two before I realized what it really was - by then everyone was in the hallway, scared. Thank goodness for the internet, and after a quick "earthquakes today" search, we knew what it was and where it happened.

Scratch "feel an earthquake" off my bucket list! And pray I never feel one again!

lolauren, I'm surprised they don't know about Hanford because it is in the news now and then. Maybe I just zero in on those stories.

suzannesl, I wrote that we should know how to turn off the gas but didn't mean to imply that you should turn it off if there's a quake. The only reason to turn it off - at the main feed, not at the connection to your gas cook top or range - is if you smell gas. That means the gas line could be damaged and the power company needs to check it out.

Just got an email from a HS friend who lives in Rockville, MD. She happened to be in a liquor store buying beer when it happened. I'm thinking liquor sales increased after the quake. ;-) But what a place to be - all those glass bottles on shelves! Nothing fell, though.

She did tell me that the pinnacles from 3 of the 4 turrets at the National Cathedral fell. That's a pity.

Someone mentioned noise. I remembered being so surprised how loud a quake can be. I expected shaking but not noise, which is silly because buildings flexing and items bouncing around is going to cause a heckuva lot of noise.

(Doubtful you'll forget what happened this year on your birthday, buehl!)

Brooklyn, New York here. And, would you believe it? Biggest natural phenomenon to hit the City in ages and I missed it! At the time that the quake hit, I was actually trying to park my car in an underground garage. The car was in motion the whole time and my only concern was not to scratch the car that was in the bay next to mine! But, once I got out onto the street, I was amazed at how many people were out on the sidewalks. Everywhere. And, everyone was talking about the earthquake. All that drama, and I missed it! Still, when I got home, I saw proof of the shaking. A few of my art pieces which are displayed on pedestals had apparently been knocked to the floor during the shaking. Oh well, even though I'm sorry I missed all the action, I'm by no means asking for another one just so I can have some direct experience!

I live in Oakland, CA, and I did get a chuckle--not at the folks in VA or DC, because a 6.0 is a big event, but at the flurry of emails at work from offices further away from the epicenter, who can't have felt it that strongly. I rarely notice anything less than a 3 (less than that and it feels like someone walking heavily). When one hits 4 it starts to feel like something. I've never been through something much more than that (some of the quakes were bigger, , but I was further away. The Northridge quake woke me up in San Diego). 6.0 sounds scary.

Lolauren, I grew up in Connell, which as my dad often noted, is downwind of Hanford. We had an escape plan. But the area really isn't prone to earthquakes. My first job was in Richland at Battelle and I had to wear a dosimeter.

I was working at a house in Leesburg VA (my usual haunts) and had just finished having lunch when I was met with the discomfiting feeling that somebody had "pumped up the volume"(bass) to a ridiculous level.The facade of the house was resonating at a powerful subliminal frequency, like a 64' organ pipe. Then the 20' tall columns of the 1910 portico _under which I was sitting_ started to sway, totally outside my experience. I briefly thought I was going to be buried, thought "earthquake" and "get the f out of here" about at the same time. It finally tapered off. The shaking lasted some 40 seconds, the peak swaying was 6 or 7 seconds. Seemed like forever. Really disturbing; I was beside myself. Went home in semi-shock, after inspecting the house for my client friend.
Casey

We're in SE coastal Virginia, about 100 miles from the epicenter, and definitely felt the quake. Like many others, I wasn't sure at first what it was -- it seemed to go on for a long time -- at least a minute, maybe more. While I was wondering what it was, I briefly considered diving under the desk. In retrospect, that's exactly what I should have done, just in case!

I was at the office when it hit, but at home, the tile guy was installing the backsplash in our kitchen, and another worker was on the garage roof replacing some rotten siding boards on the adjoining main house exterior. They both told us the house was visibly moving & buckling with the shaking. A couple of backsplash tiles that had been recently affixed were popped off the wall -- and the guy on the roof thought he was going to die for sure!

But luckily, no damage & no harm to anyone we know. I will chalk it up to another "first" in my life. But I don't need a second.........

In answer to the question, this was such a rare occurrence in this area I don't think I would be concerned about quake-proofing anything.

Now after all that excitement, we are watching Hurricane Irene. Latest news is that we may get a direct hit this weekend. I'm so glad I had a gas range installed with my kitchen reno. Last hurricane we had, we lost power for five days (and we were lucky compared to many around us). Then, we figured out how to brew coffee on the grill!

I work in emergency management in Maine -- believe it or not, we had a lot of reports of people feeling the quake. Getting earthquake questions from people interrupted the hurricane questions ... you'd think people actually want the thing to come north.

For what it's worth, my agency just published a bunch of earthquake preparedness information.

Here is a link that might be useful: More than you want to know about earthquakes

Another marylander! I was driving from Rockville to Annapolis on 495 and I didn't feel anything. I was talking to my Dh at the time and when he said they were having an earthquake at our office near BWI, I thought he was kidding or that BWI was bombed. Had no idea an earthquake was happening. How bizarre! On another note, the workmen at our house said the house was flexing like crazy so I'm glad I wasn't there. We are going for our certificate of occupancy tomorrow so hopefully we can weather mother nature's next curveball while we unpack! :)

In Boston, we do get earthquakes that feel like a truck rumbling by reasonably often. But a real earthquake is so far outside of most people's ken that they can't even recognize one happening. Around here, some folks did have a pretty clear earthquake experience--but others, including me, just thought we were getting lightheaded from staring at our computer screens.

Same with hurricanes--they are absolutely possible in NE but most just become nasty tropical storms by the time they make it up. So even now, folks who aren't following the reports don't know that we may get a direct hit from Irene and 10-15" of rain, as well as Category 1 winds, maybe worse if we're on the NE side of the eye.

All of this is to say, we aren't very good at dealing with fat tail risks--those with low probability but high impact if they do occur. We know that we can get both serious earthquake damage and serious hurricanes, but they happen so rarely most people do absolutely no preparation at all.

In fact, with Irene, most of us really have no idea how to prepare. Even if the weather reports say the worst is coming, we don't have storm shutters, HD won't have enough plywood and most people aren't really capable of nailing up the windows on 2+ story houses.

Central nj here...my husband and I were sitting in our office...I was starting to feel nausea suddenly and then noticed my chair was shaking. In addition, I have vinyl verticals ...there were swinging back and forth. I looked at my husband who looked puzzled and I told him that we were having an earthquake...he scoffed, but then realized that was the only logical explanation. The shaking continued for probably about 30-40 seconds. My son, who had just walked into the house but hadn't felt anything, told me to check out usgs.org. I saw that the epicenter was in VA a minute earlier. I have no damage, but a friend of mine nearby had her grandfather's clock stop.

Helene

I was sitting in my driveway with the car idling. The 3 youngest kids were with me. I thought they were bouncing up and down. I scolded them and they were like " We're just sitting here." So I listened. Engine is quiet. Why is it bucking. Great, what needs to be fixed now...
With that my daughter runs out of the house. "Mom, my bed was bouncing up and down. At first I thout it was the cat but she wasn't there. It must be a ghost!" LOL!
From there we figured it out pretty quickly, but I will admit, I grabbed the holy water. LOL!
BTW- We live in PA.

I'm very close to Asbury Park, NJ
They were doing repair work on my street and I thought they hit a gas or water line - I felt my entire townhouse lift up - sway - and lift up again -

My first thought - gee I'm glad I didn't do my kitchen yet! My house may be caving in.

My second thought - I'm getting out of here! It feels like an earthquake and that makes no sense.

My third thought after watching CNN - let's all meet at the boardwalk for a drink!

In So. Cal. we have our favorite members of the USGS (US Geologic Survey), Lucy Jones and Kate Hutton. I caught their news conference today--that's how I heard about it. The way Dr. Jones explained it is that the earth here has lots of cracks, and back east it doesn't; that an intact bell will ring louder and longer than a cracked bell (something like that). That's why such a relatively small magnitude earthquake (small for a major earthquake) was felt so far away and for so long. It was significantly higher on the intensity scale than on the magnitude scale.

Something Dr. Hutton said years ago is very important: An earthquake safe building is one the people get out of.

What the other West Coasters have said about earthquake safety is important, especially strapping the tall furniture, and securing your upper cabinets properly. That said, I have some tall pieces that can't be strapped to the walls (it's done behind them--it's a way of attaching). It's important to be aware of such things and if you feel tremors, get out of the way fast. Even if the quake isn't that big, the harmonics can multiply and give you a higher magnitude than a ways away at the epicenter. They can also cause enough vibration to topple the tall stuff even when it's relatively gentle.

Some folks in particularly prone areas use cabinet latches, but as far as I know, if the quake is big enough the latches will fail. For smaller quakes, however, ones that aren't going to do a lot of damage, latches or spring hinges (like the Euro hinges so many of us have), or even magnet closures, can keep dishes and glasses that "walk" during a quake from falling out. If you've ever played one of those electric games where you set up the "players" and then watch them vibrate across the board, you know how the dishes walk.

It actually takes a very big quake to make the kitchen come down. In '94, I could actually see the sine waves undulating across the floor, but the only thing that fell in the kitchen was the stockpot lid that had been left inverted and balanced on its knob on the stovetop. Lots of books and shoes came down. There was at least one broken window in the building. At my work, where it was felt more intensely, lots of light things fell, and a pedestal display fell over and broke. The art was hung with nylon line and about half of it was down (as one artist said, "Prepare for the big one: buy soft art."). The plate glass was twisted in the frames.

That's something to always be aware of: Earthquakes can have twisting motions. It's very important to check for gas leaks after an earthquake and if you're not sure, turn off the gas. Here, automatic gas shut offs are required--if they vibrate enough, a ball falls and shuts off the gas flow. You also need to check for gas leaks before the meter, and if you have propane tanks for your barbecue or camping stove, or other flammable substances, check on them as well. Never use a flame to check for a gas leak. You should be able to smell one. Check around all gas appliances, furnaces, hot water heaters, etc., and follow the path of the pipes, both inside and out, checking for the gas smell.

In a big earthquake there may well be a blackout, so having adequate heating and cooking alternatives is important. Like that camping stove--never put it away with an empty bottle. Also, it's a good idea to bury a critter-proof barrel with emergency supplies in your yard, a distance from your structure, if possible. That's food and water, first aid kit, flashlight/radio (crank kind), etc., but also blankets, a change of clothes, sturdy shoes especially, and coats for all family members. They can be ugly and worn, but if an earthquake takes out your house when you're sleeping, you're not going to stop to put on clothes, and roads may be blocked, so you may be camping in the garden for awhile. Have an emergency kit in your car, too, for if you're caught away from home.

The latest advice, besides getting away from glass, is to get into a position that will give you a "safe triangle". That's next to a sofa or table or bed, for instance, rather than under. Something that will hold up whatever topples onto it, and will give you a clear space underneath. That's a good idea if you're hemmed in. In a house, however, where you're never far from some kind of exit, it feels better to be on your feet, so you can move as things change. Then, a structural doorway is best, if it's away from windows. Though you might feel like you need to get out, that can be dangerous. There may be flying shards of glass, power lines coming down, etc. Also, in an earthquake, even though you feel it more the higher up you are, it's the people on top who survive, and the people below who are crushed.

There really isn't much to be done to earthquake proof a kitchen, other than the latches, straps, and good connections for the gas and water. Earthquake putty (now called Museum putty or Museum wax) for the less used breakables that might fall. The gas meter with the ball, and knowing where your water shutoff is. Have supplies at hand, especially drinking water. Either you'll have damage or you won't. Then you clean up and get on with things.

Also a Marylander -- was in our 8th floor office in Chevy Chase and we were rocking and rolling and the floor to ceiling glass was flexing. A person sitting next to the window said he could see another building with the outside glass flexing like waves on the water. I've been a Tokyo highrise hotel during a quake with the clothes in the closet swinging and the toilet water sloshing but this one had it beat.

Everyone in my family emailed me but didn't ask how I was doing -- they all asked "how is your house" that we just moved into after more than a year of renovation. LOL!

The house is fine, soapstone counters in great shape and the Capital Culinarian didn't budge.

Billy

cawaps ----- Connell! eek! :) yeah....... Hanford, the site, was picked because of its isolation from people and natural disaster.... I'm not as worried about earthquakes as I am about being downwind :)

I'm in Brooklyn and felt a solid lurch while I was eating lunch in the ground-floor kitchen. First thought: subway, which runs underneath the street one block away but is rarely felt. Second thought: neighbors doing renovations must have a crane on the street lifting something heavy onto their roof. I walked to the front window to look for the crane/heavy equipment and the house started moving again, and there were lots of creaky, cracking noises, and then I knew. I stood in a doorway until it was over.

Nothing moved at all in my kitchen, even on the open-shelved pantry. Even the schoolhouse lights didn't sway noticeably. Some of the art hanging on the second floor of the house was a little askew. I can see the importance of not hanging anything heavy over the headboard.

We lived in Southern California for a few years and had some small ones. Our friends lived in Sherman Oaks during the Northridge Quake; pretty much all of the contents of their kitchen were destroyed. A big goopy mess of foodstuffs and broken glass and ceramic. Crate and Barrel plates and all. They were the first foodies I ever knew. Taught me who Wolfgang Puck was and the differences between Wusthofs and Henkels. I felt terrible for them.

I'm in SoCal also and had a scary ride in '94 (a 6.7). It hit at 4:30 am, so we were still in bed. We were very lucky that the large mirrored waterbed headboard did not fall on us as it was not anchored to anything. It left the building the next day. My husband and I both got foot injuries because we were not thinking clearly and ended up walking in the middle of the kitchen that was covered with broken glass and dishes in our bare feet.

The other advice posted here, especially from plllog covers it pretty well. I keep a flashlight (and shoes)next to the bed. You don't realize how really dark it can get when ALL the lights go out.

Microchip your pets, have important papers (or copies) readily available, keep extra water and a few canned goods just in case, strap tall shelves to the wall (into the stud), keep flashlights with fresh batteries, fresh first aid supplies - the usual emergency suspects.

Looking at the news at the moment, this must have been really scary for you non-quake people. I would worry about buildings not retrofit for quakes.

My policy for earthquakes was always count to 60 before you do anything - saves on tons of running around. I prefer earthquakes to hurricanes.

Oh, yeah! Ae2ga, I totally don't get hurricanes. The no-warning kind of disaster is much better. :)

I'd like to point out that the kind of damage Colorfast's friends had, is the kind I was talking about where there's not much you can do. You can live every day battened down for a big blow with marine latches, or you can clean up a lot of sharp goo once every thirty years or so.

Experienced the '89 quake in the Bay Area and other small quakes while in grad school at Berkeley. Not fun.

Yesterday I was upstairs at our renovation meeting with the master carpenter when the quake hit NC. I smiled and joked about it being a quake when I thought it really was the cabinetmaker working in the kitchen. He was installing the sliding glass doors at the back of the counters where there will be storage for appliances, spices, oils and vinegars, and the like.

Now I have to get them to clean up outside in case that hurricane affects us later this week. I'd like them to get rid of the port a potty!

So we picked the southeast, Md, Carolinas, for our vacation by car, and here we are now in Bedford, Pa, which is within the first earthquake circle! Dh and I were getting out of car, and walking into a gallery when the woman said, 'did you feel it? An earthquake!

This was just after we learned about the hurricane projected for the Carolinas on just about the dates we were to be there. Yes, we will still go to ANAPOLIs but then likely turn around and go Where? Cleveland? oy oh well

I felt it here in NE Ohio. I was sitting on the couch when my vertigo (which I deal with everyday with my brain injury) got so intense I almost fell off the couch. I looked outside and everything looked fine. I just felt like I was on a spinny ride. It lasted about 30-45 seconds. But my vertigo is still will be a day later. I've spent most of the last 24 hours in bed with one of the worst headaches I've had in a while. (Which says a lot, because I live with headaches every day, too).

Fortunately, no damage though, and no damage to the new house. Looks the ICF is doing it's job. Based on what everyone else has said, I'm glad we're doing almost all lower drawers, and few upper cabs.

I was driving and missed it! And it wasn't a "normal" time to drive, I had to go home to check on my brick path that is finally being installed after 10 years of wanting one. So, now that we are moving it's going in. Geez.

Anyhow, regarding Buehl's question, I suppose that the whole open-shelves look in kitchens is probably not the best idea if you are prone to Earthquakes.

This has been a fun and interesting thread! Thank you for the birthday wishes...I had very fun birthday thanks to the earthquake! I got together with neighborhood women to, ostensibly, play Bunco...but in reality, we usually end up talking and visiting...which we did last night! Good wine, good friends, the best gluten-free cake I've ever had...all in all a great evening (that lasted far longer than it should have!)

I wanted to say something about the earthquake strength...yesterday we were told it was 5.8, then 6.0, then 5.8 (again), and now, 5.9....pretty close to 6.0, regardless of the "actual" strength!

There was an aftershock of 4.2 at 8am this morning...did anyone feel that? I didn't...I was sleeping in (remember the late night? :-D) but I did wake up around that time (b/f my alarm went off)...I wonder if it woke me up...

There was also a 3-something at 12:45am...but were busy with our wine, cake, etc...and never noticed it!

plllog in the otherwise excellent post, mentioned the "Safe triangle" aka "triangle of life". This has been repeatedly debunked and rejected - see link below for one reference, but you can find many more by searching.

plllog, sorry if this s not what you were referring to - but others may well have come across the Doug Copp "triangle of life" email and not realize the problems with it, so I think it's worth pointing out anyway.

Here is a link that might be useful: American Red Cross response to

Another Marylander here--I was at home in northern Balt Co, sitting at the kitchen table eating a PBJ. When the shaking started, I went through the usual--big truck going by? wait, the washing machine isn't running so it can't be off balance... what the HECK are the kids doing now?... to realizing it was a earthquake. Once it was over, we ran to the yard, which I guess we should have done in the first place, to discuss it with all the neighbors who also ran outside. My other priority was to make sure my husband, who was in the courthouse in Annapolis, was OK; I think it was more intense there than in B-more as he said the walls of the courtroom were actually moving. No damage, nothing fell so no harm no foul here. I heard there were aftershocks and was up before 8 today but didn't feel anything other than the initial quake. Don't want to feel any more either! :)

billy g, Tokyo buildings are built to withstand earthquakes, even ones as powerful as the March quake, so if I have to be somewhere for a major quake, I'd rather be there than in many other places in the world. A HS friend of mine was away during the March quake but his wife and son experienced it - and all the many, many after shocks, some of which measured quite strong - in their high rise Tokyo condo building. The building remained intact although my friend wrote that they have discovered that it didn't survive unscathed. It's disconcerting to know that can happen even with Japan's stringent earthquake code. Guess we just can't fully prepare for how awesome earth's power is.

I'm glad all you GWers have come through without any problems, only good stories. When my hubby realized that we were okay and nothing was damaged after our Spring Break Quake in '93, he turned to me and said, "if I'd known everything would be okay, I would have enjoyed the quake." Wha? It wasn't the first time I looked at him and told him he was nuts. ;-)

Tuesday I was on the phone with a tech support guy in RI who asked if I felt the quake, and I said no, we hadn't been at home. This is only amusing (and perhaps only to me, sorry) because of course he was talking about the VA quake and I was talking about the CO quake!

~12 hours before the VA quake, Trinidad CO had a 5.3 (waaay not as severe than a 6!) quake that was supposedly lightly felt in our house's neighborhood but nothing at home was at all out of place.

I'm not sure what's more amazing: the earthquakes or a tech support guy in RI lol.

We lived in LA during the 1987 5.9 Whittier quake (I watched the earth "waves" from a doorway in the condemned building I was working in, sheesh) but Escaped From LA before the '89 Northridge quake. To keep On Topic, nothing in our very unprepared kitchen moved during that quake and our one tall bookcase had been fastened to the wall.

I'm sure glad to hear everyone here's ok!

I felt it here in central West Virginia. Sitting in my office at the church, no one else in the building, I couldn't believe it was an earthquake. I thought maybe I was having a stroke or some other brain oddity that made it feel like the world was rocking.

We lived in Los Angeles for four years so I should have know what a quake felt like. I literally had nightmares about the "big one" hitting till we moved back east. I'd say what I felt here yesterday was equivalent to a 3.5.

--Amy

200 years until the next one.

Lisa A, I'll repeat, an earthquake safe building is one from which the people get out. Your friends in their Tokyo high rise got the good out of that. Highrises on cushions or rollers, which are built to sway rather than tilt, and have dampeners to prevent Galloping Gertie harmonics from building, are, when built correctly, like your friends' building, earthquake safe. There's no way to build a building that won't have some kind of damage if the quake is strong enough where it is.

Low, stud and stucco houses survive quakes pretty well. I'm not sure about metal studs though. They can twist, but then they might stand longer than wood. And considering the prevalence of termites here, at least they haven't been eaten. My friend always jokes about how the three little pigs may have been right for storms, but had it all wrong for earthquakes. The house made out of bricks would fall down (though in '94, the city had skip loaders out in the streets before noon, picking up the fallen bricks from the streets, which I thought was very efficient. :) The one made out of sticks (stud and stucco) is the best of the three, but straw (daub and wattle) isn't bad.

Kevin, I'm happy to be corrected or enlarged upon!! I, being too used to it, left out the most important part, which is to stay where you are if it's safe, drop and cover your head. That's what you're supposed to do next to the supporting piece of low furniture for the "safe triangle" rather than going running for doorways. I'm not familiar with that e-mail cited, but that's a very good link you appended. The mis-information e-mail claimed that getting under objects like tables is dangerous and so was bed. The sum of it is:

The American Red Cross has not recommended use of a doorway for earthquake protection for more than a decade. The problem is that many doorways are not built into the structural integrity of a building, and may not offer protection. Also, simply put, doorways are not suitable for more than one person at a time.

The Red Cross, remaining consistent with the information published in "Talking About Disaster: Guide for Standard Messages," (visit http://www.disastereducation.org/guide.html ) states that if you are in bed when an earthquake happens, remain there. Rolling out of bed may lead to being injured by debris on the floor next to the bed. If you have done a good job of earthquake mitigation (that is, removing pictures or mirrors that could fall on a bed; anchoring tall bedroom furniture to wall studs, and the like), then you are safer to stay in bed rather than roll out of it during the shaking of an earthquake.

Also, the Red Cross strongly advises not try to move (that is, escape) during the shaking of an earthquake. The more and the longer distance that someone tries to move, the more likely they are to become injured by falling or flying debris, or by tripping, falling, or getting cut by damaged floors, walls, and items in the path of escape. Identifying potential "void areas" and planning on using them for earthquake protection is more difficult to teach, and hard to remember for people who are not educated in earthquake engineering principles. The Red Cross is not saying that identifying potential voids is wrong or inappropriate. What we are saying is that "Drop, Cover, and Hold On!" is NOT wrong -- in the United States. The American Red Cross, being a U.S.-based organization, does not extend its recommendations to apply in other countries. What works here may not work elsewhere, so there is no dispute that the "void identification method" or the "Triangle of Life" may indeed be the best thing to teach in other countries where the risk of building collapse, even in moderate earthquakes, is great.

By all means, get under a large, sturdy table unless under it is the place right in the path of flying dishes or light fixtures. If you're in a dining room, under the table is probably the best place to be. What the Red Cross leaves out in the above quote, since it's directed at the problem e-mail in question, is that people who learned to get under their desks at school don't fit in the knee holes of their current desks. The "drop, cover and hold on" works. If you do that and you want to stick your head under the desk, and expose your bum, your head will be better protected, but when people just go for the "get under the table" they often stick their bums under and have the more delicate extremities--their faces and tops of their heads--sticking out! Also, people try to get under their beds and end up with injuries they wouldn't have if they'd just stayed in bed or dropped beside it. Bed is safe IF there isn't a chandelier or ceiling fan above it, a tester, artwork, or other heavy thing on the wall beside it, a tall dresser, armoire, or mirror that's not strappped to the studs close beside it. If you're in bed, pull the covers over your head. Literally!!

Teach your kids to do that too. Make sure when you set up your nursery that there's nothing that can fall on Baby's crib--good advice even if you never have earthquakes--and, for Goodness's sake! don't run to Baby when the shaking starts! Baby is safer in the crib than in your arms, and you're safer staying put. Most earthquakes that are big enough to do damage last less than a minute. You can put on your shoes and go get Baby after the shaking stops, and before the first aftershock. If things are falling on you and you don't feel safe where you are, find a structural doorway, or a strong support for the "void area" (the safe triangle). Staying put is good if crap isn't falling on you, but if you can see a place within a few strides that has less falling crap, go for it. It's only going to get worse.

The big difference between the safe triangle notion that's current in the U.S. and the triangle of life idea from that e-mail is that the former is supposed to shelter you from falling bookcases, partitions and other tall crap that's coming down and trying to bonk you on the head, and the latter is trying to find you an open pocket when a whole building comes down. I'm not sure that will work in a falling building situation since you don't know which directions the walls and beams are coming from. It's more shear luck if the way the building falls gives you an open space.

To Buehl--a belated happy birthday wish. I got distracted yesterday by comings and goings and forgot to write it down. :)

westsider40, when are you due in Annapolis? That's where I live! Hope you have a great time touring my cute little town. We are supposed to get some rain tomorrow night and then, depending on the path of Irene, maybe Saturday and Sunday. Hopefully you can get your sightseeing in before the weekend. I'm supposed to run in a big local race on Sunday and they said they aren't canceling even if the hurricane hits, which REALLY irks me since I paid a lot of money for it but I'm not running in hurricane winds. I've already dealt with a tropical storm in 2003 which downed lots of trees and limbs and knocked out our power for 5 days, so no way will I run in hurricane winds!

I thought we weathered the earthquake pretty well, but then I went into dd's room yesterday afternoon and several things, including a glass of water, and a few "paint your own" pottery pieces she made had fallen from the back of her desk onto the carpeted floor and everything broke. She was totally bummed. This morning I noticed something I bought in Germany had fallen over in my china cabinet, but thankfully it didn't break. We are reasonably prepared for the hurricane - our power goes out *all* the time, so we always have batteries, water, food, etc ready. The biggest drag is that we have well water so when the power is out, we have no toilets, no running water in the sink, etc. We usually fill our tub in anticipation so we can flush the toilets. And thankfully, we installed a propane range in May so we can still cook if we want.

I actually have fond memories of Tropical Storm Isabel as it was a great bonding time with all of our neighbors. Unfortunately thought, several families in my neighborhood, which is a waterfront community, lost their homes due to flooding. That's the main worry here during big storms.

Another voice from earthquake country in Washington state. Hi Lolauren and nearby Lisa!

I honestly gave not one wit of thought about earthquake preparedness in our new kitchen. I won't have many uppers and won't store heavy items up there. Of course, I already have stockpiled the requisite water, food, and other safety supplies and know where the nearest disaster barrel is in my neighborhood.

Our last big one here was in 2001, about a 6.8. The epicenter was about 15 miles from my house. We had a few books fall of tables and some glass tipped in a antique secretary. DH thinks one of the drywall cracks came from the quake, but I'm not sure. My nerves were shot. Someone mentioned the noise. Yes, the noise adds to the excitement. I was in the shower so the noise level was already up with the running water, but I could clearly HEAR the quake. It felt like it lasted a couple of minutes.

Our city had to rebuild an historic bridge and deal with other damage to some older buildings downtown. Nothing too horrible.

We had a much smaller 4.0 quake in November, 5 y.o. DS's first time awake for one. He has earthquake drills as school every month, but never knew what one actually felt like. He was clingy for the rest of the morning. All in all, I'd take earthquake country over hurricane and tornado country any time.

Buehl, happy belated birthday! Glad you enjoyed your evening.

That's why drawers are good for dishes and those cute annoying icebox latches are trendy.

I have child-proof latches on some cabinets that store china. It might break but it might as well stay neatly in the cabinet...

I actually posted an inquiry on EQproofing kitchens a while ago (before east coasters cared haha!) and got a lot of the stupid "if it's that bad it won't matter". That's silly of course--I have family in Cambria which had a medium sized quake several years ago and damage among neighbors varied by orientation of the kitchen. Did stuff slide side to side or plop out? A little quake can cause a mess that can be avoided by something as simple as old-school lipped cabinets (that tend to not open easily for anyone).

I've lived in CA all my life and been through many, many earthquakes, including Loma Prieta (7.1) in 1989. Had trouble walking through the house while it was jumping up and down. At the time, we lived 15 miles south of San Francisco and 40 miles north of the epicenter. We had minimal damage - no cabinets opened but we lost several pictures off the walls. We had done no earthquake-proofing in the kitchen - no damage there at all. Lots of neighbors had chimney damage. Much more damage farther away in S.F. due to the soil conditions.

Now we're just waiting for the BIG one! Honestly, we don't ever think about it until the weather gets a little still and humid - we call that earthquake weather. Seems it usually happens in April and October...or maybe it's just me.

Happy Belated Birthday, Buehl! We arrived in Annapolis last nite and had dinner at Mike' s last nite. Thanks for the welcome 4kids fourus. hi! waving to you! Not very nice to continue the race in a hurricane. Hard to understand how some people think.

It is a cute little town, what we saw of it last nite in the dark, from hotel to Mike's and back. Now watching the weather channel-we don't want to drive in the mountains, or anywhere in torrential rains and winds.

This is the first time we've taken our laptop on a trip and it's coming in handy to recalc our trip.

So everyone stay safe and make the best of it. Irene, go fizzle out.

Thanks again everyone!

BTW...I was at work around 1am last night (Wed.) and all of a sudden I heard the same sounds I heard during the earthquake, but no desk shaking. It happened twice, one right after the other. I found out this morning the strongest tremor yet occurred at the same time...so I'm guessing that's what I heard.

And now...it's time to brace for Hurricane Irene's effects!
(What is it with hurricanes that being with "I"? The last hurricane to have a major impact on us was Isabel...now it's Irene!)

I luvs me forecasts for 6 inches of rain in 24 hours.

Happy belated bday, girl.