Be ready for earthquakes Published Sept. 21, 2015 By Airman Christopher R. Morales JBER Public Affairs JOINT BASE ELMENDORF-RICHARDSON, Alaska -- Earthquakes happen in Alaska every day, so what's the big deal? The second largest earthquake ever recorded happened here, according to earthquake.usgs.gov. The 1964 earthquake reached a magnitude 9.2 on the Richter scale. "The earthquake of 1964 almost destroyed Anchorage. [It] wiped out Valdez [and] Seward, and a chunk of Anchorage slid into [the] Cook Inlet," said Air Force Capt. Ted Labedz, JBER Emergency Management flight commander. "It was a very catastrophic event. That is the worst-case scenario we plan for." Those earthquakes are ground-breaking, but rare. Still, the Last Frontier sees a lot of seismic activity. "In the U.S., four out of five earthquakes occur in Alaska," said Michael West, Alaska Earthquake Center state seismologist. Every time the Lower 48 has a 6.0 earthquake, Alaska would have already had four, West said. Most earthquakes here are far from populated cities, so the damage is miniscule despite the magnitude. All it takes is a 6.0 right under a city to do the most damage. The prime example of this is the Christchurch earthquake of 2011 in New Zealand. The earthquake was a magnitude 6.3 but, with a shallow epicenter right under a city, it reached an intensity of 10 on the Modified Mercalli scale, which measures the energy release and effects. Since the impact of an earthquake is unpredictable, each one should be taken seriously. "For general practice, going under a table or desk is your best bet," Lebadz said. "Most people during earthquakes get injured by falling objects, so it used to be advised to run outside your home. After some research, it is better to take cover inside your home or your work, just go underneath something. "If you have a ton of bookcases or shelves, things start to shake and fall so it's good to anchor them to the wall," Lebadz said. "Otherwise, during a seismic event, things can fall over and that [could] cause some grievous harm." Most of the disasters and damage from earthquakes are not from the shake itself, but the after effects like landslides, liquefaction, soil slumping, tsunamis and flooding. "What you really need to focus on is what you need to survive," Lebadz said. "It's recommended to have at least a week or two of food and clean drinking water, or the means to produce it, prescription medication and making sure never to go below a week's worth [of supplies] because [stores] might not be readily available." "In any major natural disaster you may not have access to electricity, the [Internet], cellular service and things like that, so you need a plan," Labedz said. "A good thing to have is a rally point with your loved ones." In the case your home is unserviceable, there are options. "[Emergency management] work[s] with the Force Support Squadron to provide a sheltering program for personnel who cannot go back to their homes," said Jilene Reichle, JBER Emergency Management plans and operation manager. "Who knows if any of the hotels might be full or [even] able to take anybody, in case of building damage?" Some helpful links are www.fema.gov, www.earthquake.usgs.gov, www.pdc.org, www.avo.alaska.edu, and www.ready.gov/build-a-kit For more information, visit the JBER Emergency Management office or call 551-7526.