The Earthquake Safety Checklist is available in 9 languages and large print.
(English |Large Print English | Arabic | Chinese | French | Haitian-Creole | Korean | Spanish | Tagalog | Vietnamese)

What To Do At Home:

• Find safe places in every room, such as under a desk or against an inside wall. During an earthquake, these are places to take cover where nothing can fall on you.
• Practice Drop, Cover and Hold On! at least twice a year. Drop under a nearby table or desk and hold on to it. Cover your head with your free arm. If you are not near a table or desk, sit against an interior wall away from anything that might break or fall on you and Drop, Cover and Hold On! Don’t forget, teach your children to Drop, Cover and Hold On!
• Designate an out of town contact for your family. We all remember how phone lines go down during an emergency. When they come back up, it will be easier to call out of town or even out of state than locally. During an emergency, each person in your family should contact that person. The out of town contact will be able to tell each of you where the other is when you may not able to call each other. You can print our Emergency Contact Card and start now.
• Experts are available and very willing to help you find additional ways to protect your home, such as bolting your house to its foundation or training to use a fire extinguisher.
• Inform others, like babysitters or caregivers, of your emergency plan.

Eliminate Hazards

• Secure your furniture. Unsecured furniture may fall on you during an earthquake.

Prepare a Disaster Supplies Kit For Your Home, Work, and Car. Learn How Here.

Know What to Do When the Shaking Begins

• DROP, COVER, AND HOLD ON! Move only a few steps to a nearby safe place. Stay indoors until the shaking stops and you’re sure it’s safe to exit. Stay away from windows. In a high-rise building, expect the fire alarms and sprinklers to go off during a quake.
• If you are in bed, hold on and stay there, protecting your head with a pillow.
• If you are outdoors, find a clear spot away from buildings, trees, and power lines. Drop to the ground.
• If you are in a car, slow down and drive to a clear place. Stay in the car until the shaking stops.

Identify What to Do After the Shaking Stops

• Check yourself for injuries. Protect yourself from further danger by putting on long pants, a long-sleeved shirt, sturdy shoes, and work gloves.
• Check others for injuries. Give aid according to your level of training… sometimes the best aid can be provided just by being a caring presence.
• Look for and extinguish small fires. Eliminate fire hazards. Turn off the gas if you smell gas or think it’s leaking. (Remember, only a professional should turn it back on.)
• Listen to the radio for instructions.
• Expect aftershocks. Each time you feel one, DROP, COVER, AND HOLD ON!
• Inspect your home for damage. Get everyone out if your home is unsafe.
• Expect phone systems to be overloaded during an emergency. Use the telephone only to report life-threatening emergencies.

More on Earthquakes:
7 Common Earthquake Myths: Exposed!
7 Steps to Earthquake Safety
Common Earthquake Terms

Want to share this information? The Earthquake Safety Checklist is available for download.

Below are 3 Actions you should take to be prepared in emergencies.

Get a Kit.

Have at least three days of supplies in an easy to carry evacuation kit with additional supplies on hand.  Remember to check your kit and replace the stock every six months.

Your kit should include:

• Map
• Food
• Flashlight
• Medications
• Radio
• Tools
• Personal items
• Sanitary supplies
• Money
• Contact information
• Pet supplies

For a detailed list of items you should include in your disaster kit, click here to download and print a checklist

Store your disaster supplies in sturdy yet easy-to-carry containers, in a place that is easily accessible. Keep a smaller version of the kit in your vehicle. If you become stranded or are not able to return home, having some items with you will help you be more comfortable until help arrives.

Make a Plan.

Planning ahead will help you have the best possible response to disaster.

Talk. Discuss with your family the disasters that can happen where you live. Establish responsibilities for each member of your household and plan to work together as a team. Designate alternates in case someone is absent. If a family member is in the military, also plan for how you would respond if they are deployed. Include the local military base resources that may be available.

Plan. Choose two places to meet after a disaster:

• Right outside your home, in case of a sudden emergency, such as a fire.
• Outside your neighborhood, in case you cannot return home or are asked to evacuate your neighborhood.

Learn. Each adult in your household should learn how and when to turn off utilities such as electricity, water and gas. Ask your local fire department to show you how to use a fire extinguisher.

Tell everyone in the household where emergency information and supplies are kept. Make copies of the information for everyone to carry with them. Keep the information updated.

Practice evacuating your home twice a year. Drive your planned evacuation route and plot alternate routes on a map in case main roads are impassable or gridlocked.

Include your pets. If you must evacuate, take your animals with you. If it is not safe for you to remain, it is not safe for them.

Be Informed.

Know what may happen and how you can help.

Learn what disasters or emergencies may occur where you live, work and play.

Identify how local authorities will notify you during a disaster and how you will get important information.

Learn what you can do to prepare for disasters by contacting your local Red Cross chapter to ask about first aid, CPR and disaster training.

Share what you have learned with your family, household and neighbors and encourage them to be informed too.

What’s in your wallet? Be sure to include an American Red Cross Emergency Contact Card. (Download and print a contact card)

Join other members of your community through the American Red Cross in taking these first steps. You never know how many people your actions will affect, how many lives you might change.