FEMA February Podcast Transcription
Broadcast: February 22, 2018
Host: Michael Cappannari
Produced by Brenda Gustafson and Steve Zumwalt, FEMA 
Music.

HOST: I?m Michael Cappannari with FEMA external affairs and this the FEMA podcast. How many of you remember this clip from the 1989 World Series?  
AUDIO CLIP: I think we?re having an earthquake??(sound coming on and off), are we on the air? I can?t hear?.well I don?t know if we?re on the air, we are in commercial I guess. We hear you, I guess. I don?t hear a thing. Well, folks that?s the greatest opening in the history of television.
HOST: It was amazing to hear this while you?re watching Game 3 of the 1989 World Series between Oakland A?s and San Francisco Giants. The game was scheduled to start at 5:35pm and the earthquake hit at just after 5, with thousands already in the stands at Candlestick Park, many didn?t know what to do. Amazingly a lot of Midwesterners don?t realize that we have a fault that runs through the Midwest called the New Madrid.  And, that we?ve already had several earthquakes.  
Today, our guests are Cheickh Koma one of our earthquake experts here at FEMA and Jeff Briggs, the Earthquake Manager for the State of Missouri. They are here today to tell us what we need to know about earthquakes. 
HOST: Welcome gentlemen.
CHEICKH & JEFF Thanks for having us.
HOST: Cheickh let?s start with you. What do we need to know about earthquakes?
CHEICKH: Thank you Mike. 
I think it is fair to say that no matter where you live or work, you are exposed to natural hazards. Many of these hazards may be known to you, but possibly not well understood. An earthquake (or quakes, tremors) is the shaking of the surface of the earth, caused by the sudden movement in the Tectonic Plates. Earthquakes can range in size from those that are so weak that they cannot be felt to those violent enough to toss people around and destroy whole cities.
The good news: by understanding your risk, you can take the right steps to minimize or avoid injuries, damage, and long-term financial consequences.
HOST: Thanks Cheickh. Now, turning to Jeff and interested on getting your take in how the Midwest affected and wanted to state that February is Earthquake Awareness Month for the state of Missouri. Is that right Jeff?
JEFF: That?s right Mike, every February we and other states too but Missouri definitely focuses on letting people know about the New Madrid Seismic Zone. Some people don?t know about earthquakes here in the Midwest. They hear about it in California where the shaking is more frequently felt but there is a substantial seismic zone based in the boot hill, the southeast section of Missouri and it actually averages more than 200 earthquakes per year. Now a lot of those are too small to be felt but it does tell the scientists it an active earthquake zone. And we focus on February because 1812 where we had the largest series of earthquakes. There was a magnitude of about 7.5 which is very, very large. And the shaking from those earthquakes a little over 200 years ago were felt not just in Southeast Missouri but throughout the region in fact the shaking was felt all the way to the east coast. Hundreds of miles in every direction because this seismic zone is very strong and the shaking goes a long way. There were three main shocks all over magnitude 7 over a several week period in late January and early February. And then there were hundreds, literally hundreds of aftershocks that were felt for the weeks and months after that. So that was the last time we had a major series of earthquakes that happened. The largest happened in February. And we emphasize this every year during earthquake awareness month and we know because the scientist tell us it?s an active earthquake zone, it?s only a matter of time that it will hit again. 

HOST: Jeff, that 200 number that jumps out to me. I don?t think that most people realize that there are on average about 200 earthquakes per year in the state of Missouri. So talking about the magnitude of a 7 or 8 and if we were to get that type New Madrid event again as opposed back in the early 1800?s.  What would be the impact to the area? In that area, everybody knows that earthquakes happen and they feel it. The good news I suppose to a degree in that there weren?t many people living in the area, not a lot of structures. So the damage to human lives was minimal because there were many people there. But the effects were felt far far away, we had numerous reports on the east coast, church bells ringing in Boston, sidewalks cracking in the nation?s capitol. President James Madison, at the time, wrote in a letter to Thomas Jefferson that ?I felt another shaking this morning.? There are letters in the library of Congress between the two that talk about the fact that they felt it and guess that?s 800 miles or so away. 
HOST: Wow
JEFF: So the shaking was remarkable and it happened. The damage was so great that is hard to imagine it. Down in the boot hill area the geology the area actually changed there were uplifts. The course of the Mississippi River changed and briefly ran backwards.  Because the land lifted up, caused waterfalls and water briefly running backward in that area. There?s a large lake called Real Foot Lake, 15-20000 acre lake in western Kentucky. 250 years ago that lake wasn?t there. It was a low dry spot. But due to the Mississippi River changing course as a result of these subsidence of the land during the earthquake it actually filled up that lake. Eventually the river cut back and went back to its normal pattern.  But that lake was created by the New Madrid earthquakes. If that were to happen again and you consider there are several million people about 7 million that live in the area that would be impacted by the seismic zone. You can imagine the kind of devastation we?d be talking about. 
HOST: Well thanks Jeff for walking through the history there certainly 1811 is not 2018. And can only imagine what those impacts and damages would look like in this day and age. Want to turn now to Cheickh about how we know when something like this is going to occur.  In the Midwest, there are a number of different types of natural disasters. Earthquake as we?ve been discussing isn?t one that most folks think of as something that?s going to happen as much so how will we know when something like this is going to happen?
CHEICKH: Earthquake is one type of hazard that cannot be predicted as it can  occur without warning and effect everyone in a region within seconds and the amount of shaking depends on many factors such as magnitude, location, the type of soil under your building, the type of building you?re in, etc. Floods are slow to arrive/Tornadoes give us warnings ? not earthquakes. 
HOST: So it would fair to say that earthquakes, we?ve heard the phrase no notice event, this would be a no notice event.
CHEICKH: That?s correct.
HOST: So what about before  hand? Thinking about preparedness what can we do before an earthquake happens? Jeff?
JEFF: A number of things you can do and as Cheickh just said we?re not going to get a notice that it?s going to happen. It?s going to be extra important in an earthquake scenario to be prepared ahead of time because the shakings going to start and we?re not going to have any idea that it was coming and it?ll be too late. You?re not going to have a few minutes like you do with a tornado, for example. The key thing to remember about earthquakes is people get hurt by falling debris. That?s the risk. People are going to get hurt by things that fall on them. And so anything you can do in advance to minimize the chances of things falling on ya, that?s what you can do. And it?s a lot of it is very simple, low or no cost stuff. Look around the room you?re in, your home, your school, your business. Are there things on the ceiling? Are there things that are not well secured? Then move them or secure them. Do you have a tall bookcase that maybe is next to your bed that might fall on you while you?re asleep. Do you have a heavy object on a high shelf. That?s something you can easily move and get out of the way. A key thing to remember is your water heater if you?re a home owner and you have a water heater that is not secured to the wall, that?s an easy and smart thing to do in advance. Take a strap, easy to get at any hardware store and secure it to the wall. In an earthquake and some other natural disasters for that matter, but especially in an earthquake, the shaking might cause your water heater to fall over. And not only does that cause a big mess, but you?ve also lost your best source of fresh water. And in an earthquake people could be without water for a long time. If can take a simple step now to preserve that water heater that could really make a huge difference for you and your family. Simple preparedness things like that that you can think about and do now could make a big difference in an earthquake. 
HOST: Thanks Jeff those are some great practical tips that folks can take action on now. What about if someone finds themselves in a position of going through an actual earthquake when its actually happening. So Cheickh are there some things that folks should be thinking about if they actually experiencing an earthquake and its happening? 
CHEICKH: Drop. Cover. And Hold On. Drop to the floor. Take cover under a sturdy desk, table or furniture. Hold on to it and hold the position. Be prepared to be there until the ground shaking has stopped and it?s safe to move. If that is not possible seek cover again on an interior wall. When driving, pull over to the side of the road and stop. Avoid overpasses and bridge and power lines. Stay inside of the vehicle until the shaking stops. 
HOST:Thanks Cheickh for going through that. Again, obviously hopefully none of us are in that situation but if we are its important to think ahead of time whether you?re driving inside outside what to do while that earthquake is actually happening. Also wanted to mention ready.gov/earthquakes is a great resource for additional information, that?s ready.gov/earthquakes. Just wanted to mention that as we?re talking now. Its just a great resource for all things earthquake preparedness. So now that we?ve lived through the earthquake turning to Jeff. What?s next?
JEFF: Well once the shaking has stopped and you?ve dropped, covered and held on. You and your family are likely going to be safe and you?ve done everything you can to avoid falling debris. First thing you want to do is find your family and check for injuries. A lot of people are going to want to call 911, we encourage people to only call 911 if you truly have an emergency. Leave that line open for those that really need it. Preparedness as well as a recovery thing is to know how to turn off your water, your gas and now would be a great time to do that. Always be careful to avoid live power lines and broken glass and listen to the news for the laters emergency information. And this is the real key for earthquakes. That make it different. An earthquakes is not going to happen once, they always happen in bunches. There are always going to be aftershocks. So once you?ve survived this one and you?re in the midst of preparations be aware that there will be other aftershocks. Could be in one minute, could be in a day could be in a week but they keep on coming. So always be ready to drop, cover and hold on all over again.
HOST: I really like the point that you made about gas valves and knowing how to shut them off. We recently purchased our first home. And up until that point had lived in apartments and condos and never thought about how to turn off the gas in an emergency type of event. And I do think its really worthwhile to hammer that point home, you know sometimes folks just get caught up in their lives and they don?t think about some of the things that we just take for granted. 
JEFF: That?s right.
HOST: So I think it?s a really worthwhile point to make there Jeff. Now talking about Missouri and what the state?s done to be more prepared. And you?ve talked about some general preparedness measures. But if you could maybe talk a little about what Missouri has done to be more prepared. And we talked earlier or you did most of the talking earlier about New Madrid earthquake but can you talk a little bit about how it would be different from the ones that everyone kind of hears and thinks about in California. 
JEFF: Yeah, we did talk about this a little bit but it does bear a little elaboration because its crucial. Everybody thinks about what they see in California Everybody in Missouri will likely feel shaking from a large earthquake in the southeast part of the state. That?s how far the earthquake shock waves travel. And its because of the way the geology is here in the Midwest. Out in California the ground is broken up, rocky and mountainous. And the shock waves do not travel that far. A large earthquake in Los Angeles for example is very unlikely to be felt in San Francisco. A large earthquake that happens here in the New Madrid zone will be felt for hundreds of miles in every direction. And it?s because of the way the soil is here, the geology is flatter, and a lot of it is around rivers with loose, wet sandy soil. Unfortunately, earthquake shock waves go very efficiently in those types of conditions. So the damage and the shaking is going to be far more wide spread and people in the region need to be aware of that. The two largest hot spots are St. Louis and Memphis Tennessee. Lots of people live there about 7 million people live in the impact area of the New Madrid seismic zone and a lot of them are going to feel the shaky and perhaps even be damaged by that. And that?s a key thing to remember and another key thing is remember because the soil is different, we have a threat to consider that they don?t have to worry about on the west coast mainly and that is liquefaction. What that means is when the type of soil we have that loose wet soil shakes turns to mush. It happened 200 years ago it will likely happen again if there?s another large earthquake. So in addition to the shaking that causes debris that can hurt people the ground underneath you may very well turn soupy, will not support structures, it will change the geology. And between that ground turning mushy and it re-firms up after the shaking would stop and think about that happening over and over again with all of the aftershocks. You?re going to be with an area that after the shaking stops some people not be coming back to they won?t want to live there anymore or comfortable rebuilding structures on land that is susceptible to liquefaction. Something we take into account when we do our planning and our exercises. It?s truly going to change the fundamentals about the ground we live on in this area. 
HOST: And when you talk about soil Jeff, I have to admit I wouldn?t have thought that the type of soil whether it?s in the Midwest or the Northeast or the west coast would really have any impact on the aftermath of an earthquake. But it sounds like its not the case at all. It very much matters.
JEFF:Its exactly, it very much does and because we haven?t had a big one lately people have become sort of apathetic about it they are not familiar with it because they have not had to live through it themselves. But when we plan for it it?s crucial that we keep in mind that the damaged area is going to be about 10 times greater than we see on the west coast. And its not only going to be shaking but we?ll have liquefaction we are going to have to respond to as well. 
HOST: You mentioned the word apathy. That?s something we all want to guard against. Each year there is an event that?s held throughout the country known as the great shakeout. And the great shakeout is an opportunity for folks to practice drill exercise just thinking about what to do when an earthquake hits. How you?re going to be prepared. And it?s always held the third Thursday of October. And for those who would like to participate you can register at shakeout.org and again one of those ways in which we try to push back against complacency and get folks thinking about the topic of earthquake preparedness and what to do when an earthquake comes. Cheickh if our audience does have any other questions can they reach out to you, give you a call? 

CHEICKH: You can email me at Cheickh.koma@fema.dhs.gov or you can reach out to Jeff Briggs. 
JEFF: Sure my email address is jeff.briggs@sema.dps.mo.gov. And my phone number and you can call me anytime is 573.526.9232
HOST: We?ve linked this episode on our Facebook page and we invite you to join the conversation in the comments. Thanks for listening. 
Music