www.byzcath.org Forums General Discussions Town Hall Earthquake!!!

So apparently around 4:30 this morning this was an earthquake in south eastern Illinois near the Indiana border. I was fast asleep and didn't feel anything BUT I had a dream that a building next to my dorm toppled over and fell into my dorm which also fell down. I thought that was weird. Then this morning about 10:15 I was putting my make up on and my chair started shaking a little and one of my bottles of perfume was shaking too because the liquid on the inside was swishing back and forth.

It happened about 0435 central . . . I was in that weird state that's not awake but not quite asleep and seem to have incorporated it into a dream I was having. In the dream I was alone. My wife woke up, and thought I might be shaking the bed, so she reached over and touched me . . . I'm not sure who was more startled, me because of her touch, or her, because of the way I jumped!

The 1015 aftershock rocked our baker's rack, otherwise I wouldn't have noticed it.

BTW, we live about 25 miles east of St. Louis, in Illinois at Scott AFB.

Dave

I think I am about 200 miles or so away from the earthquake. I was awake and did hear a few popping noises at that time, but living in a cedar house gets you used to strange sounds. The siding expands and contracts continually, and often noisily.

I grew up in Los Angeles County and lived through five major earthquakes (Whittier Narrows, Sierra Madre, Landers, Big Bear, Northridge).

Most EQs are preceded by a loud rumble. When you hear this you will have just a few seconds to react.

Best thing to do is to take cover in a door frame that is part of a major supporting wall, and not one in a partition wall. Remember to hold on to the door handle with one hand so that it doesn't slam on your face. Avoid tables and desks seeing as they are made very flimsy these days. Do not run outside unless the building is collapsing. If you are outside, run to an open space away from trees, power lines, and windows. If you are in a car pull over to the side of the road away from trees, power lines, and windows. Remember to pray to the 3rd century bishop martyr St. �midius, invoked for protection from earthquakes (not sure if he is on the Byzantine Calendar).

Thanks for the advice! My fellow resident advisers and I were talking about not having a clue about what we would do if a severe earthquake struck.

Having been through a major quake myself in Greece in 1981, and a minor one in New York in 1985 (yup-Westchester county where I live), the only problem with hearing the rumble is that if you live on a main road (which I did in both cases), you always think it is a big truck passing by!!!

The strange thing about the smaller one here in New York was that you could actually hear the wooden frame of the house squeeking as it shook back and forth!!

Alice

I lived the big earthquake from 1977 when Bucharest was partially destroyed. I remember how much shocked I was. Then the earthquakes from 1986 and 1990. Broken objects, moving and broken furniture etc.

Sincerely I am afraid of earthquakes, any vibration makes me feel very bad.

Yes, the door frame is a kind of safe place.

But above all it is the mercy of God.

m+

An internet friend recently bought a Bengal kitten.

He said that this kitten started howling an hour before the earthquake hit and then continued howling for three more hours.

Yes, Bengal cats can be worth their investment as earthquake predictors.

Very true! Can't tell you how many times my first year in Philadelphia I went running when an 18 wheeer drove by. However, one thing I always noticed was that all of nature goes silent. So if the birds suddenly stop chirping and then there is a loud rumble, take cover!

Yes, so true--that brief moment of eerie silence....