No one can predict when or where an earthquake will strike, but you can prepare yourself and your family before one hits. Practice earthquake safety and make an earthquake preparedness plan today.
- Learn more about your earthquake risk and how to be prepared below, and by downloading our two-sided mailer (PDF).
- Obtenga más información sobre cómo estar preparado descargando nuestro folleto de doble cara (PDF).
- 下載我們的雙面郵件程序，以了解有關如何做好準備的更多資訊。(PDF)
Sign up for ShakeAlert®, an Earthquake Early Warning System managed by the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS), so you can be notified seconds before strong shaking arrives, allowing you to take protective action (Drop, Cover, and Hold On!).
Protect your home investment and bounce back from a devastating earthquake by considering earthquake insurance from CEA or another earthquake insurance provider.
For more, let’s take a deeper dive into all the ways you can prepare for earthquakes.
Personal Preparedness Tips
Preparing for an earthquake isn’t complicated. Commit a few hours and organize simple resources to create a safety plan for you and your family.
- Get a Kit. Learn the essential supplies to put in your family's survival kit.
- Make an Earthquake Plan. Plan effectively for you and your family in case of an emergency.
- Be Informed. Understand your risk for earthquakes in your area and what you must know to stay safe.
- Prepare. Prepare for an earthquake by securing your space, organizing needed supplies and minimizing your financial hardship.
Practice Drop, Cover, and Hold On
- Drop: Wherever you are, drop onto your hands and knees. This position helps keep you from being knocked down, and allows you to crawl to shelter.
- Cover: With one arm and hand, cover your head and neck. If there is a nearby desk or table, crawl under it for shelter. If there’s no shelter, crawl next to an interior wall away from windows.
- Hold On: If you’re under shelter, hold onto it with one hand. If there’s no shelter, hold on to your head and neck with both arms and hands.
Emergency Supplies
What would it be like to be in your home for days without water, electricity and phone service? After the1989 Loma Prieta earthquake, 16,000 housing units were left uninhabitable and people were displaced without the simple necessities. Visit the California Residential Mitigation Program's blog How to Prepare an Earthquake Emergency Kit for basic and detailed lists of earthquake preparation supplies.
Remember to refresh water and food items in your kits every six months.
How to Prepare Your Home
Prepare and protect your home BEFORE an earthquake. Decrease your risk of damage and injury from an earthquake by identifying possible home hazards. Complete your earthquake plan by identifying and securing the following hazards:
- Tall, heavy furniture that could topple, such as bookcases, china cabinets, or modular wall units.
- Water heaters that are not up to California code could rupture.
- Stoves and appliances that could move enough to rupture gas or electrical lines.
- Hanging plants in heavy pots that could swing free of hooks.
- Heavy picture frames or mirrors over a bed.
- Latches on kitchen cabinets or other cabinets that will not hold the door closed during shaking.
- Breakables or heavy objects that are kept on high or open shelves.
- A masonry chimney that could crumble and fall through an unsupported roof into your home.
- Flammable liquids, such as painting or cleaning products, which would be safer in a garage or outside in a shed.
Understanding Structural Risks Your House Could Face during an Earthquake
The violent shaking from earthquakes can rupture the earth, trigger landslides and turn the surface of the earth to liquid. Your home also may be vulnerable to serious structural damage if it was built before 1980.
Earthquake safety preparation includes your understanding of the potential structural threats to your home in case of an earthquake.
A seismic retrofit involves strengthening your home’s foundation to make it more resistant to shaking. CEA offers earthquake home insurance premium discounts for houses and mobilehomes that have been properly retrofitted. Find out about grants to help pay for retrofits under the Earthquake Brace + Bolt program.
Evaluating Geologic Hazards that Threaten Your Property
Every region of California has earthquake risk, but some of those risks can be lessened with the help of a California licensed engineer.
- Discover where the active faults are in your area. Then learn about your house’s structural risks and the steps you can take to seismically strengthen your house.
- Earthquakes often trigger landslides, causing significant and even catastrophic damage to houses. If your house is in the path of an earthquake-induced landslide, it is at risk for damage from landslide debris, as well as sliding downhill itself. California Office of Emergency Services MyHazards can help you find out if the area where you live or work is prone to earthquake-induced landslides.
- Earthquake motion can turn loosely packed, water-saturated soil to liquid—"liquefaction.” Liquefied soil loses its density and ultimately the ability to support roads, buried pipes, and, of course, houses. If liquefaction occurs on or near your property, your house may sink by inches or several feet and be surrounded by or filled with liquefied soil.
Understanding Your Local Risks & Hazards
California is earthquake country. With nearly 16,000 known faults, each region of the state holds earthquake risk. Most of us live within 30 miles of an active fault. Know your risk.
Visit the USGS interactive fault map to learn more about faults in your area. This information could be one of your first stops as you create an earthquake preparedness guide that works for you and your family.