Magnitude 7.8 Earthquake Devastates Southern Philippines, Triggering Tsunami Alerts

Earthquakes are basically caused by the movement of the tectonic plates inside the surface of the earth. They thus provide no prior notice or indication before striking off any area and thus prevention is better than cure. Each one of us must know the basic preventive measures that might help us save ourselves during such unforeseen calamities.
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1. Drop, Cover and Hold
During an earthquake , the drop, cover and hold strategy suggests the following steps –
A) Drop to your knees and hands.
B) Take shelter under a sturdy table or desk if available.
C) If no shelter is available, protect your head and neck with your arms.
D) Hold on until the shaking stops.

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2. Stay Away from Windows and Falling objects
During an earthquake, it is suggested that you stay away from windows, mirrors, shelves, hanging lights or anything that could fall. Moreover, you should also not run outside during the shaking as falling debris can cause serious injuries.


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3. If outside, move to an Open Area
In case you are outside during an earthquake, make sure to stay clear of buildings, street lights, trees and anything that could fall and remain there until the shaking stops. The best area to be in such situations are open grounds or fields.

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4.Prepare an Emergency Kit
An Emergency kit is the saviour in such situations and thus you should have one prepared at your house at all times. The emergency kit must have items of basic necessity and first kit such as bandages, ointments, antiseptics, pain killers etc.


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5. Follow official instructions
During such situations the local authorities along with disaster management teams provide instructions and guidance to the citizens and you must listen to them as they more know about the situation and have had way more experience of such situations.

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Earthquakes are unforeseen and can cause really great harm because we usually aren't prepared for the circumstance thus, we must be aware of the different preventive measure in order to minimize the risk of harm to human life. The "Drop, Cover and Hold" strategy along with other awareness measures if incorporated allows individuals to stay safe and protect during situations of high or even low magnitude earthquakes. In each and every situation the only thing we must keep in mind is "Prevention is better than cure".