Earthquake Preparedness Day Comes Just In Time

The folks at Marin General Hospital didn't need to simulate an earthquake … not at 2:30 p.m. Thursday when a real 4.0 magnitude struck Berkeley and was felt around the Bay Area. A 3.9 aftershock hit the Hayward fault at around 8:16 p.m.

Still, the jolt and minor shaking of Berkeley's quake wasn't as wild as the 8.0 shocker simulated in the Quake Cottage at Marin General during the Great Shakeout. Hospital staff and volunteers signed a waiver before entering the simulator, where they sat down and then held onto the handlebars for dear life as the unit rocked violently back and forth and up and down.

"You feel like you're in a cocktail shaker," said Ryan Rodriguez, the hospital's safety coordinator.

People came out of the tiny room smiling and wobbling down the stairs, feeling a little shaky.

A video playing on a television in the unit showed dramatic scenes of a terrified child at home during the Big One. A fax perched on shelf within the simulator didn't move during the whole ride, showing the effect of simple safety precautions, such as a piece of plastic that can strap down a computer, tv, or fax and keep it from falling.

Workers sold emergency preparedness kits that included packs of drinking water, food rations, flashlights, radios, batteries, ponchos and everything a person might need for 72 hours after a disaster.

"You don't think it can happen here (in Marin), but it can. The entire Bay Area is susceptible to a big earthquake," Rodriguez said.

The Rodgers Creek Fault runs past Marin County and slides past the Hayward Fault. Seismologists have predicted there is a 27 percent probability of a quake of 6.7 or greater magnitude on the Rodgers Creek Fault.

Schools around the area also participated in the statewide event designed to teach people what to do during and after an emergency.