PORT ANGELES — More than 100 first responders, CERT volunteers and elected officials came by invitation Wednesday to experience the Big Shaker, an earthquake simulator, at Peninsula College.
The big shaker is a large trailer with a hydraulic system engineered to simulate the 6.9-magnitude Loma Prieta earthquake that killed 63 people and injured many more in 1989. Big Shaker Enterprises LLC markets it as the world’s largest earthquake simulator.
Waivers were signed and short presentations on earthquake preparedness were given in room J-147 at the Student Union Building. The earthquake simulator was parked between the Student Union Building and the college library.
Kathleen Reiter, a Clallam County CERT training coordinator, gave a presentation to each group before they were ushered out to the simulation.
“We all know that ‘whooo’ the big one is coming, the end of life as we know it and all that kind of stuff, yeah, fine,” Reiter said. “But there’s also a ton of other fault lines that can affect us here in Clallam County, whether it’s the Seattle fault or our own fault running through Lake Crescent, or anything else. Those would be relatively moderate earthquakes. They can still do a lot of damage.”
The trailer’s interior is designed like a normal living room — couches, TVs and various objects sit high on shelves. Five to seven people were let in at a time to experience what a 6.9-magnitude earthquake feels like.
After settling into the faux living room, participants received another brief introduction from shaker staff on the potential dangers of earthquakes, specifically for people who are inside when a quake occurs.
During the presentation, the simulated earthquake struck mid-sentence. Objects fell off the shelves, steady shaking occurred, and it was over fairly quickly.
In the case of the big one — the Cascadia earthquake — shaking could last as long as six minutes, said Justine Chorley, Clallam County emergency management program coordinator.
“The big thing is, what’s around you, what’s gonna fall, what’s gonna break,” Chorley said. “That’s what it (the Big Shaker) really demonstrates is being in your living room with all of your stuff. What could possibly become a hazard to you?”
In the case of a large earthquake, what many expect is that major roads could be covered by landslides and bridges could be affected, preventing movement from the Peninsula, Chorley said.
“This is speculation based on some extensive ground trooping by people that predate me, but the idea is that we have certain locations within the county where there is no road that goes around,” Chorley said. “Morse Creek would be an example. If we have a slide that covers the road at Morse Creek, until that can get prepared, we’re basically cut off.”
The electrical grid could be significantly affected on the east side of the county, and power could be down in any number of locations, she added. The power, like the main road into town, only comes in along one path.
Plumbing could be affected too, whether it’s water mains or the pipes for individual homes, Chorley said, adding that the recommendation is to keep enough drinking water on hand for 30 days, at a gallon per person per day.
Some might not have space for that, she said.
“We encourage people to have some sort of filter — you know we have a lot of water around here — so that they can filter water, but we really encourage them to have at least some bottled water on hand to start,” Chorley said.
Residences with electrically pumped wells may lack water if electricity goes out, she said.
Chorley said the current recommendations for food on the Peninsula is to have 30 days of shelf-stable options. With loss of roads, supplies could be limited very quickly, she said.
“We say 30 days because we are relatively remote and the chances of our getting cut off from being re-supplied with food are pretty great,” Chorley said. “The 2021 flood was an example of that. After about three days, people in Forks and Neah Bay started seeing really bare shelves.”
The Clallam County emergency management team places a lot of focus on community outreach for preparedness, Chorley said, as a broader preparation effort will multiply community resilience.
Some people may be isolated for some time, under certain scenarios, she said.
The county has about 728 community emergency response team members (CERTs). Those who are interested in becoming one can call Chorley at 360-417-2525.
The emergency management team is currently working through a program for becoming prepared in 12 steps over a year, which is open to the public. Information can be found at https://www.clallamcountywa.gov/1759/Prepare-in-a-Year.
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Reporter Elijah Sussman can be reached by email at elijah.sussman@sequimgazette.com.
