Students at Carlmont High School prepared for disastrous earthquakes by participating in the statewide California Shakeout.

The week of October 16 has proved to be earthquake prone over the years.

This year a 7.1 magnitude earthquake occurred on Oct. 15 in the city of Catigiban located outside of Tagbilaran, the capital of the Philippines. Last year, the town of Waterboro, Maine was struck. Year after year quakes shake the country and alert more people each time.

Junior Tanita Singh said, “When my family and I moved here a few months ago, I was worried about being in a big earthquake because we live so close to a fault line. But after the earthquake drill, I am relieved because everyone knows what to do in case of an emergency and now I do too.”

The recent earthquakes have awakened students to the dangers and seriousness of living along an active earthquake fault.

Sophomore and president of the Filipino club, Michyla Rivera said, “I have family who live in the Philippines, and after the earthquake there a couple of days ago, it made me realize that the drills we do should be taken seriously because they can save lives when there is an emergency.”

Many geological research sites including USGS predict that the bay area will experience a large earthquake in upcoming years, causing more people to prepare for the worst case scenario.

Sophomore Laura Bajurin said, “Nowadays, there are regulations to make sure buildings are earthquake safe and won’t collapse. People are also more aware of the effects of earthquakes, and a lot of them actually think that earthquakes are a cool part of science because they know so much more than before.”

For now, the government has established many centers, including the National Earthquake Prediction Evaluation Council (NEPEC), that are dedicating to giving the public warnings before earthquakes, in order to lessen harm.