Half a Million Virginians in Earthquake Drill

October 19, 2012

Roughly 600,000 residents of Virginia participated in an earthquake drill yesterday – one that spanned many states.

You wouldn’t think of Virginia as a place where earthquake drills – or even earthquake insurance – was necessary, but this is the same area hit by a 5.8 magnitude quake on August 23, 2011.

That quake, centered near Louisa County, was a literal wake-up call to residents of Virginia, who, according to Governor Bob McDonnell had very little information about earthquake safety before then.

The drill, known as the Great SouthEast ShakeOut, was scheduled for 10:18 EDT yesterday morning, and involved residents in Georgia, Maryland, both of the Carolinas, and Washington, D.C., as well as Virginia.