Earthquakes

This is California, and earthquakes are a part of life here.  When you arrive at Ames, you will receive a safety briefing that will include information on what to do during an earthquake.  Also, many public gatherings both inside and outside of Ames will begin with a brief statement on what to do if the ground starts shaking under your feet.  Pay attention to this stuff.

There are also a number of useful information sources for learning about earthquakes in general, finding out when and where they've struck, and planning what to do before one hits.

Note:  Running around shouting "It's the Apocalypse!  It's the Apocalypse!" is considered tacky.

A twitter feed that updates on earthquakes as they happen in northern California.

http://twitter.com/sfearthquakes

The USGS site which shows recent earthquakes across the US.

http://earthquake.usgs.gov/eqcenter/recenteqsus/

Zoomed and centered near our area:

http://earthquake.usgs.gov/eqcenter/recenteqsus/Maps/US2/37.39.-123.-121.php

FAQs about earthquakes:

http://earthquake.usgs.gov/learning/faq.php?showAll=yes

History of earthquakes in California

http://earthquake.usgs.gov/regional/states/california/history.php

Fact sheets and papers

http://earthquake.usgs.gov/learning/publications.php

Sites about preparedness

http://earthquake.usgs.gov/learning/preparedness.php

http://www.redcross.org/services/disaster/0,1082,0_583_,00.html

27 things to do to be prepared (PDF)

http://www.redcross.org/pubs/dspubs/27thingsEng.pdf

Subscribe to earthquake updates via SMS or email

https://sslearthquake.usgs.gov/ens/