Saratoga High is not prepared for an earthquake

The city of Saratoga is located right in between two major fault lines — the San Andreas and the Hayward faults. Both faults are overdue for a high-magnitude earthquake.

Caltech seismologist Egill Hauksson told the Los Angeles Times that the San Andreas is also smoother than other faults, making it easier for an earthquake to keep plowing ahead into a longer, more powerful rupture, rather than ending as a smaller event.

In fact, on Oct. 9, a minor 4.1 magnitude earthquake struck near San Jose, and was felt as far away as San Francisco.

Events like these bring about the question of whether a school like ours is prepared for a high-magnitude earthquake.

Considering the lack of earthquake safety procedures at this school, our guess is: probably not.

Not a single teacher in our classes has discussed earthquake procedures or even basic survival instructions, both of which are necessary pieces of information in our earthquake-prone location.

We do know that single-story buildings withstand earthquakes far better than taller ones do, and with the majority of buildings on campus having only one story, we should be safer than some schools where multi-story structures are common.

The only problem is that most buildings on campus were built in the late ’50s, when structural safety standards weren’t as rigorous as they are today.

Forty years ago, an international set of standards for building construction, called the Uniform Building Code, was created to better fortify buildings, but this code did not exist when most of Saratoga High was built.

In contrast, the new music building was built from the ground up and in accordance with the Uniform Building Code, as well as many other regulations, and as a result is quite possibly the safest place on campus in the event of an earthquake.

Principal Paul Robinson put it this way: “Out of all the buildings on this campus, that would be the one [to survive a high-magnitude earthquake]. There’s just a ton of steel and concrete in the new music building. I mean, when the big bomb hits, I’m hiding in there.”

Since not all of us are likely to be in such a well-built building during a major quake, what can realistically be done to ensure everyone’s safety?

Well, we all remember doing earthquake drills in middle and elementary school — those long minutes spent cramped under a desk, breathing the same stuffy air as the three other kids in your table group, inspecting the gum stuck under your seat.

So we know the basics — duck and cover, right? But it's a little alarming that all we have to rely on are basic safety procedures learned when we were still adding double-digit numbers and using sticks to pick tanbark out of our shoes.

The reality of survival tips is that they only apply in specific situations. The best course of action can’t be decided until you’re actually in that situation. It's impossible to know if you should duck under a table or run out of the building until you know exactly how far you are from the exit. Of course, all of these are split-second decisions, but they're decisions that can be practiced and thought about in advance.

There are also easily fixed issues in some classrooms that need to be addressed, like large windows, free-standing cabinets or large equipment that students need to avoid or secure during a potential earthquake.

One good thing is that most classrooms are equipped with emergency safety kits that include blankets, radios and snacks. However, most students aren’t aware of their location or how they’re to be used, rendering the safety kits ineffective in an emergency situation where no teacher is in the room or is otherwise unavailable.

Here at SHS, we have fire drills. We have intruder-on-campus drills. But we don’t have earthquake drills. So what are we supposed to do when the inevitable big one does hit? Find a table and brace yourselves; it’s time to start preparing.