Annual Meeting - SCEC.org

Report | SCEC CEO Director
For 2008, many Roots-related efforts are underway:
• The first-ever Utah version of Putting Down Roots in Earthquake
Country
• Living on Shaky Ground, an update to the well-known
earthquake booklet for California’s north coast, which will include
now the Seven Steps to Earthquake Safety
• The Seven Steps to an Earthquake Resilient Business, an exciting
new 16-page supplement for businesses developed by a
committee organized by SCEC.
• A major update of the Southern California version of Roots to
include UCERF probability estimatesand ShakeOut Scenario
results.
Earthquake Country Alliance. To coordinate activities
for the 10-year anniversary of the Northridge
Earthquake in January 2004 (and beyond), SCEC led the
development of the "Earthquake Country Alliance"
(ECA) beginning in summer 2003. This group was
organized to present common messages, to share or
promote existing resources, and to develop new
activities and products. The ECA includes earthquake
scientists and engineers, preparedness experts, response and recovery officials, news media
representatives, community leaders, and education specialists. The mission of the ECA is to:
• inspire responsibility for community earthquake safety and recovery;
• increase awareness, preparedness, mitigation;
• improve response and recovery planning;
• reduce losses in future earthquakes.
The ECA is now the primary SCEC framework for maintaining partnerships and developing new
products and services for the general public.
In Summer, 2006, members of the ECA began to organize
the Dare to Prepare Campaign, to achieve widespread
awareness and preparedness goals to mark the 150th
anniversary of the January 9, 1857, Ft. Tejon earthquake on
the San Andreas fault. With a strategy of getting southern
Californians to “talk about our faults,” the campaign
acknowledges that "Shift Happens," and if you "Secure Your
Space" you can protect yourself, your family, and your
property. If you live in earthquake country, secure your
space by strapping top-heavy furniture and appliances to walls, adding latches to kitchen cabinets,
and securing TVs and other heavy objects that can topple and cause serious injuries. Homes and
other buildings should be retrofitted if necessary. These and other actions will greatly reduce your
risk of damage or injury, and limit your need for community resources after the next earthquake.
On January 9, 2007 a major press briefing was held to kickoff the Dare to Prepare campaign,
including local, state, and federal government representatives, SCEC scientists, and ECA partners.
A new website (www.daretoprepare.org) was announced, along with other components of the
campaign:
34 | Southern California Earthquake Center