Professional Letter - Missouri State Emergency Management Agency

Jeremiah W. (Jay) Nixon
Governor
John M. Britt
Director of Public Safety
STATE OF MISSOURI
EMERGENCY MANAGEMENT AGENCY
DEPARTMENT OF PUBLIC SAFETY
PO Box 116, Jefferson City, Missouri 65102
Phone: 573/526-9100 Fax: 573/634-7966
E-mail: mosema@sema.dps.mo.gov
Paul D. Parmenter
Director
Contact: Steve Besemer, (573) 526-9232
Steve.besemer@sema.dps.mo.gov
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Oct. 14, 2010
Missouri Seismic Safety Commission announces
“Show-Me ShakeOut” earthquake poster contest
Missouri third, fourth and fifth grade students are eligible; teachers and
administrators are also encouraged to take part in ShakeOut on April 28
JEFFERSON CITY, Mo. – Because many Missourians live within the New Madrid Seismic
Zone—one of the most active seismic zones in the country— each February Missouri
observes Earthquake Awareness Month. In 2011, the bicentennial of the beginning of the
Great New Madrid Earthquakes of 1811-12, Missourians will also have the opportunity to
take part in the first ever “Great Central U.S. ShakeOut.”
The ShakeOut, which takes place on Thursday, April 28, 2011 at 10:15 a.m., will give all
Missourians the chance to practice the protective actions to take in the event of a real
earthquake—“Drop, Cover and Hold On”—on the same day at the same time. Seven other
central U.S. states will also participate in the Shakeout.
To promote Earthquake Awareness Month and the Great ShakeOut, the Missouri Seismic
Safety Commission is sponsoring the “Show-Me ShakeOut” poster contest. Elementary
students across Missouri are invited to create a classroom poster promoting earthquake
awareness. A statewide winner from each grade level will be selected and each winner will
receive an Apple iPod Shuffle from the Missouri Seismic Safety Commission and the State
Emergency Management Agency. Winning posters will be displayed on SEMA’s Web site
and featured at various earthquake awareness events throughout 2011.
Additional information about the ShakeOut is available at http://www.shakeout.org/centralus/.
Additional information about the New Madrid Seismic Zone and earthquake safety is
available at
http://www.cusec.org/.
Contest Guidelines:
A Nationally
Accredited
Agency

• Page 2 October 14, 2010
• Each school will select a winning poster for each of the three grade levels.
• Posters may be scanned or digitally photographed and submitted electronically in
JPEG, GIF, PDF or PNG format. Schools should retain the original poster if a
submission is made electronically.
• All submissions must include the name of the school, name and age of the student,
name of school principal and name of classroom teacher.
• All posters MUST be submitted to SEMA by Feb. 1, 2011 to be eligible.
• The school principal or lead teacher must submit or mail poster entries to:
Steve Besemer
State Emergency Management Agency
P. O. Box 116, 2302 Militia Drive
Jefferson City, MO 65102
E-Mail: steve.besemer@sema.dps.mo.gov
• Winners from each statewide grade level will be notified by March 1, 2011.
• Winning results will be posted on the SEMA Web site (sema.dps.mo.gov) and
announced in statewide and regional press releases.
The Great Central U.S. ShakeOut
April 28, 2011 at 10:15 AM
http://www.shakeout.org/centralus/