This article first appeared in the St. Louis Beacon, April 26, 2011 - It may sound like a hokey sci-fi film. But it's a stark reality that inanimate objects in and outside your home or office can become killers -- when an earthquake strikes. Fortunately, you can take steps to prevent tragedy.
"Securing household objects eliminates one of the main sources of people getting hurt in their homes," said Phillip Gould, a professor of mechanical engineering at Washington University.
Hunting Down Household Hazards
On Thursday, April 28, school children and others throughout St. Louis and the Midwest will practice the Red Cross' "drop, cover and hold on" earthquake routine during the "Great Shakeout." The "cover" part becomes clear when you consider the deadly force with which everyday items can injure and kill in a significant earthquake.
Affixing heavy furniture and other items to the walls is something most people don't do or even think about, until they're pressed to consider it. The Beacon asked homeowners if they could name three things they could do inside their homes to protect their families in the event of an earthquake.
"That's a tough one; I don't know," said Sasha Josipovic of south St. Louis County. "But I could make sure I have curtains and blinds on the windows so if the glass shatters, it doesn't go all over the place."
"You wouldn't want to have a big, heavy vase on top of a bookshelf where it could fall and land on someone," said Christine Garhart of north St. Louis County.
"The first thing I would want to do is to have a conversation about it and start to come up with a plan," said Barbara Martin, who lives in north St. Louis.
Coming up with an earthquake safety plan is a specialty of Elena Sabin, a preparedness education specialist with the St. Louis Red Cross. Sabin speaks to people at schools, churches and other organizations on how to prepare for disasters.
Your television is one of the most dangerous objects when it comes to earthquake safety, Sabin said. Weighing as much as 250 pounds, a TV that's not anchored properly to the wall -- whether it's on a stand or wall-mounted -- can easily crush a child or pet or even an adult. Even smaller TVs, especially those in high places, should be secured to the wall with a safety strap.
During a home hazards tour of a south St. Louis home, Sabin pointed out unanchored heavy bookshelves, artwork hanging from a single nail and a menacing triangular Plexiglas award with a razor-sharp point sitting on a top shelf, ready to impale someone should it sail across a room.
"With earthquakes we don't know when (the quake) will happen, but we can predict what's going to happen, what's going to fall," Sabin said.
One very common and sometimes fatal mistake occurs in the bedroom: hanging heavy pictures, shelves or artwork above the bed that could crush you in your sleep.
Another frequent oversight can be found in the basement. In case of earthquake, a water heater can be an excellent source of water for drinking and bathing. But if it should crash to the concrete floor during a tremor, the loss of water might be the least of your problems.
"Leaking gas from a gas water heater or gas line can start a fire," Sabin said.
Simple, Inexpensive Solutions
There are dozens of fixes for making a home safer during an earthquake. Accomplishing many of them requires a short shopping list of relatively inexpensive items you can purchase at hardware stores or online:
- Museum putty to secure heavy art objects to your high shelves ($4.25-$8.99, Amazon)
- Safety cables to anchor large furniture items and televisions to the wall ($9.99/furniture strap, $26.88 flat screen TV strap, Lowe's website)
- Safety film for windows and glass doors ($39.99 for 5 feet x 4 feet roll, Apex Window Films website)
- Security fasteners to secure a water heater to the wall ($13, Home Depot website)
- Flexible connections for all gas appliances to prevent leakage ($7.99-$19.19, shopwiki website)
A more elaborate earthquake-proofing plan might include steps to protect your home from damage as well as prevent injuries. Cripple walls, which are short stud walls running up from the top of the foundation to support the joists, can be braced with plywood, another fairly inexpensive job.
FEMA offers a complete list of injury-prevention plans on its website.
Prevention Pays Off
If you're outside your home when the earth begins to shift, falling bricks pose one of the greatest dangers. Even if you have a sided home, chances are your chimney is brick.
"The No. 1 external cause of injury is chimneys falling," Gould said. "A lot of people's chimneys are in terrible shape and they don't pay too much attention to them."
The only way to make certain your masonry is in good shape is having a professional closely inspect the chimney and other bricked areas is. It's imperative to stay on top of tuckpointing to keep the brickwork solid.
Beyond tuckpointing, it's possible to further reinforce your chimney with braces. Bracing can be done during construction or later, Gould said. However, several tuckpointing and roofing companies contacted by the Beacon did not offer that service and weren't sure what kind of company would.
No matter what you do to secure your chimney or any other part of your home, it won't result in discounted earthquake insurance, according to Missouri Department of Insurance spokesperson, Travis Ford. Still, the work and expense can buy peace of mind. And it may even save money down the road, especially considering the high deductibles typical of earthquake coverage.
"The more you can do to protect your home, the less out-of pocket-costs you have if something were to happen," Ford said.
