Drill

Make a short investment in your safety on Thursday, Oct. 19, at 10:19 a.m. The Lab is participating in the annual earthquake drill with millions of people around the world practicing earthquake safety on the same day.

Lab locations and many of our homes are near earthquake faults. There may be only seconds to prepare, so practice with your colleagues and millions of others. Anyone who checks in at the Emergency Assembly Area will be entered in a random drawing for one of three go bags to help you prepare for an emergency. Everyone who is working at an offsite building will be eligible for the drawing as well.

What: 

• The Lab is participating in an international earthquake drill called the Great ShakeOut.
• At the start of the drill, a LabAlert message will be sent instructing everyone to Drop, Cover, and Hold On.  
• After a minute or two, a second LabAlert message will instruct those at a Lab site to evacuate to their Emergency Assembly Area (EAA).   There will be a QR code on the EAA sign to use to check in. Please use your phone, or borrow someone’s phone, to complete the check-in.
• Some buildings, including buildings 2, 46, 50, 50A, 50B, 59, 62, 66, 67, 70, 70A, 71, 77, 88, 90 and 91, should evacuate at the sound of fire alarms. 
• You should always take essential personal items with them when you evacuate (phone, wallet, keys, badge, etc.).
• You should respond to both of the LabAlert notifications and check-in at the EAA (volunteers will provide the check-in survey).
• To find your EAA ahead of time, look for the emergency evacuation poster near building exits or select the “Emergency Assembly Area” layer at map.lbl.gov. 

Who: 

• All those working onsite are expected to participate, unless exempted (please email emergencymanagement@lbl.gov with questions). Those at offsite locations will take part in the drop, cover, and hold, but will not evacuate their building. ALS (Buildings 6, 15, and 80) will conduct their drill on 10/17.
• Those working from home are encouraged to participate and use this time to review their home emergency preparedness plan. 
• Volunteers will help direct people to their EAA location and provide the check-in survey
• The drill is managed by the Lab’s Emergency Management group.

When and Where: 

• Thursday, Oct. 19 from 10:19 a.m. until approximately 10:35 a.m.
• All occupied buildings at all Lab locations (hill and offsite), except on the UC Berkeley campus. 

Why: 

• Familiarize everyone with emergency procedures
• Meet regulatory requirements for annual evacuations and fire alarm drill
• Meet DOE requirements to perform a quarterly personnel accountability drill 

Communications: 

• Drill point-of-contact: emergencymanagement@lbl.gov 
• Lab employees will be notified of the drill through an email and articles in Elements prior to October 19.
• Drill details have been communicated to Building Emergency Teams (BET), Building Managers, Division Safety Coordinators, and the Readiness & Resiliency Working Group (R2WG). 
• Drill announcements with protective actions/measures will be made through LabAlert, the Lab Public Address System, and BET radios.

Feel free to take photos of you participating in the Drop, Cover, and Hold On or evacuation portions of the drill and post to social media using the tag #LBNLShakeOut2023.