Eastern Idahoans participate in ‘Shakeout’ drill

At 10:17 Thursday morning, the bustling clockwork of Pocatello City Hall was interrupted by the sound of the emergency alarm going off.

At the same time in Bonneville County, Bridgewater Elementary School evacuated as well.

Bannock and Bonneville counties make up just a fraction of the 70,000 Idahoans who participated in today’s largest statewide “Great American Shakeout” earthquake drill.

Pocatello Police Department’s Lieutenant Paul Manning said we are not expecting any impending earthquakes in the near future, but everyone still needs to have a plan in place.

“We believe that when things go bad quickly, you revert back to your most repetitious form of training or practice,” Manning said. “So, if that earthquake comes, which it may never, but if it does we’ve practiced this. So when the alarms go off and things start happening quickly, it’s ingrained in them what they are supposed to do.”

Manning stresses the fact that people should always have a 72-hour emergency kit, a rally point where people can meet-up with other family members in town, and to make sure you’re not below any heavy objects on bookshelves or anything that can fall. He also said having alternate routes of escape is crucial as well.

The most recent earthquake occurred near Lava Hot Springs in May, measuring a 4.2 magnitude impact.