IRVINE : City to Hold Quake Awareness Event

For the fifth consecutive year, Irvine will launch Earthquake Awareness Month with a daylong presentation of displays, demonstrations and seminars on how to prepare for The Big One.

From 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. on Saturday, the plaza and parking lots at the Irvine Civic Center will be lined with information booths. There will be shows for children, demonstrations for parents and several seminars by earthquake experts on topics ranging from schools and earthquakes to how small businesses can prepare for a quake.

Displays will include emergency response vehicles from the Orange County Fire Department, Irvine Police Department, American Red Cross and Salvation Army. One exhibit will feature a shaking table to demonstrate the force expected during a large temblor.

The schedule of free seminars and activities to be offered inside the Civic Center is as follows:

* A 9 a.m. talk by Irvine Unified School District’s disaster coordinator on how schools plan to protect children during and after an earthquake.

* A 10 a.m. presentation by a professor from UC Irvine, who will discuss engineering advances to make buildings and other materials safer during an earthquake.

* At 11 a.m., a discussion of the 1989 Bay Area earthquake and what disaster experts learned from it, conducted by Anaheim’s emergency services coordinator.

* At noon, prizes for an earthquake essay contest conducted in Irvine.

* At 12:30 p.m., demonstrations by the U.S. Marine Corps search-and-rescue helicopter team and the Orange County Fire Department, using a hydraulic prying device that would be used to rescue people from wreckage.

* At 2 p.m., a discussion of earthquake effects on buildings and utilities and their effects on unprepared small businesses and everyday life.

* At 3 p.m., an earthquake consultant will focus on how to protect family members during a major earthquake.

The activities, sponsored by the city of Irvine and UC Irvine Extension, is open to the public. An estimated 2,000 people attended last year’s event. Earthquake-supply vendors will also be there to sell supplies and products. Food booths will also be available.