Get ready to drop, cover and hold Southern California.

Millions of Californians are preparing to participate in the Great ShakeOut to practice what to do during an earthquake. More than 10.4 million Californians have already registered to participate, with an additional 44.9 million participants worldwide.

Here’s what you need to know about the event.

When is the Big ShakeOut?

The Great ShakeOut exercise is scheduled for 10:17 a.m. Thursday. At that time, participants will practice what to do in homes and businesses during earthquake shaking.

Californians are preparing to participate in an annual earthquake drill. Brittany Hope reports for Today in LA on Thursday, October 17, 2024.

How to protect yourself in the event of an earthquake

You’ve probably heard it before: “Drop, cover, and wait!” According to federal, state and local emergency management experts, these three simple steps are the easiest and fastest way to prevent injury or even death from an earthquake.

When using a cane, experts recommend sitting on a chair, bed, or other piece of furniture if you cannot properly cover yourself. Then sit as low as possible, cover your head and neck with your hands and hold on where immediately available.

For those using a wheelchair or walker, lock the wheels and lean forward as low as possible, then cover and hold.

Other accessibility or specific scenario recommendations can be found here.

Although earthquakes are nothing new to Southern California, according to Dr. Lucy Jones has been several series. This video aired during NBC4 News at 4:00 PM on Monday, September 16, 2024.

What not to do during an earthquake

The Earthquake Country Alliance has a list of things not to do during the shaking.

• Do not stand in a doorway. Doorways in most modern homes are no safer than any other part of the home and do not protect residents from falling debris or flying debris.
• Don’t run outside. Trying to run outside is dangerous because the ground moves and debris can fall around you.
• Don’t practice the “Triangle of Life,” says the Earthquake Country Alliance (ECA), a partnership of people and organizations in California working to improve earthquake preparedness. These recent emails describe alternative processes to the standard “Drop, Cover, and Hold” recommended by experts, which is to stand next to a table instead of ducking under it.

The United States Geological Survey (USGS) found that Southern California experiences 10,000 earthquakes each year. Since 2015, Los Angeles has been retrofitting buildings under Ordinance 183893 to reduce structural hazards and damage during severe impacts.

The exercise is scheduled for Thursday at 10:17 am.