College preps with earthquake drill

NORWALK - Cerritos College took part in a mass earthquake evacuation drill - known as the Great California Shakeout - last Thursday.At 10:17 a.m., students, faculty and staff practiced "drop, cover and hold on," which experts say reduces potential injury and death during a real large earthquake. When sirens sounded soon after, they evacuated to the designated area, while building marshals checked and cleared buildings. Text messages updated students and staff on the drill status through the school's SMS-based emergency notification service for mobile phones. Several specialized drills were concurrently conducted on campus. Student Health Services set up a triage station in Falcon Square while facilities crew members responded to a simulated gas leak report from the Phsyical Science and Technology building. Electric Evac-chair practice was conducted, simulating an evacuation of a person in a wheelchair. Evac-chairs allow rescuers to evacuate wheelchair-bound persons down stairs without heavy lifting. The entire drill lasted about 30 minutes. It was Cerritos College's third consecutive time participating in the drill, which was started in 2008.

********** Published: Oct. 24, 2013 - Volume 12 - Issue 28