Trojans drop, cover and hold on during annual Great ShakeOut earthquake drill
A mass casualty exercise outside the Engemann Student Health Center adds a dose of realism to the drill, not to mention valuable practice.
Trojans dove for cover under their desks Thursday but there was no need to worry: It was only a drill.
The university once again took part in the annual Great ShakeOut earthquake drill, the largest disaster drill in U.S. history. At USC, officer workers, faculty and students dropped for cover at 10:17 a.m., while employees of the Engemann Student Health Center conducted a mass casualty exercise to be better prepared for the real thing.
Nearly 11 million people statewide and nearly 66 million people worldwide took part in Thursday’s drill. The Great ShakeOut exercises are coordinated globally by the USC-based Southern California Earthquake Center; the university has taken part in the drill since it began in 2008.
FACEBOOK LIVE: Earthquake experts John Vidale, former director of the Southern California Earthquake Center, and Steve Goldfarb, USC fire safety and emergency planning specialist, speak on earthquakes, the research behind them and how we might better prepare.
