On Oct. 17, the Piedmont government and Piedmont residents will participate in the statewide Great California ShakeOut for the first time.

The Great California ShakeOut will take place at 10:17 a.m., and will pretend a large-scale earthquake just occurred, which generally last about one minute.

Their participation is a result of a push for more disaster readiness, Fire Chief Bret Black said.

“We’re passing out information to the community prior to that event encouraging them to sign up and be prepared for earthquakes,” Black said.
Superintendent Randall Booker said that the Piedmont Unified School District participates in the Great California ShakeOut annually.

Black said he wants the Piedmont community to be self-reliant in the case of a major disaster.

“[The community] is used to a very high level of service on a day to day basis,” Black said. “That ability won’t be there when all ten thousand residents are affected at once.”

Individuals and businesses can register independently on the shakeout.org website.

Being prepared for any type of disaster is one of the many jobs of a fire department, Black said.

“Piedmont and the rest of the state are at a very high fire risk. We’re entering the last few months of fire season, and they’re usually the most intense,” Black said.

Senior Durant Fuller said that his family has a plan in the case of an earthquake.

“We have a bunch of canned food and water,” Fuller said. “Our neighborhood will go to the tennis courts if there’s an earthquake.”

It is important to have a plan in the event of an earthquake, Fuller said.

“It sounds a little apocalyptic, but have that worst-case scenario plan ready,” Black said.