When you mention Southern Nevada, or Las Vegas, many people will naturally associate words like casino gambling, nightclubs and partying with the gaming mecca. Not earthquakes.
The truth is that Southern Nevada is at risk for a major earthquake and that risk is far bigger than people may have realized.
The Nevada Bureau of Mines and Geology (NBMAG) says, “Nevada is Earthquake Country”.
Geologist Jon Price, while acknowledging that the risk is low within the next 45 years still predicts that that there will be a major earthquake that will claim the lives of 2,300 people.
The National Earthquake Safety Council (NESC) and the NBMAG rank Nevada as third in the nation for being at risk for large magnitude seismic activity, behind Alaska and California.
Researchers at UNLV say that Las Vegas is at high risk for casualties and structural damage from a large magnitude earthquake, due to increased population density because buildings are built to withstand the pull of gravity downward but earthquakes move structures in all directions.
Earthquake safety and earthquake preparation go hand-in-hand.
Being prepared before disaster strikes by maintaining an earthquake preparation kit will help keep you safe.
A basic earthquake preparation kit should include:
Opinions differ on whether you should hold on to your pet or not. You know your pet best. Most will run and try and find a safe place to hide during an earthquake.
A major earthquake may not rock Las Vegas for many years.
Still, the old adage, “Better safe than sorry” applies so that you can better protect yourself and your loved ones when and if disaster strikes.