Earthquakes awaken a lack of emergency procedure in Hockaday protocol.
The ground shook 11 times in less than 27 hours on Jan. 7 as a series of earthquakes disrupted the Dallas-Fort Worth area. The earthquake occuring at 3:10 p.m. was the most widely witnessed at Hockaday.
Junior Jasionna Terry was sitting in the hallway when the earthquake occurred. “It did not scare me, but it was unexpected; out of nowhere the floor started shaking,” Terry said.
Within a few minutes, students and teachers began asking questions about the cause of these unusual happenings. Dr. Marshall Bartlett, head of the science department, provided a session to provide answers.
“Right now, it’s unclear as to why [the earthquakes are] moving eastward as well—that doesn’t follow the oil and gas development lines,” Bartlett said.
The arrival of these numerous earthquakes, ranging up to a 3.6 magnitude, revealed a hole in the Hockaday Security System. Director of Safety and Security Karyn McCoy contacted the Emergency Management Department in Dallas and received a draft of earthquake plans. “Texas is not experienced with earthquakes. We need to inform ourselves,” McCoy said.
Since Nov. 1, 2014 over 26 earthquakes have occurred in Irving, according to CBS News. These earthquakes are only creating minimal damage. Hockaday receptionist Elsa Vela experienced frustrating damage from the Jan. 7 earthquake.
“In the kitchen, the ceiling has slightly moved where you can see cracks and the floor in one of the rooms has cracked,” Vera said. “I called [the insurance provider] right away because I noticed damage.”
Vela spoke with a handful of insurance providers, who stated that they currently offered no earthquake coverage in Texas. These insurance providers explained they would need more information on the cause and extensity of these earthquakes to add coverage to policies.
Southern Methodist University has placed 22 seismometers in the Irving area with hopes of getting new data on the cause of Texas earthquakes as they occur. At press time findings showed that at the center of recent earthquakes, there is a two-mile fault stretching from Irving to West Dallas.
The Hockaday Security Department plans to get information to the advisories regarding earthquake procedure. McCoy explained that the most important part of staying safe during an earthquake is remaining calm.
The Texas Department of Public Safety recommends getting under a sturdy table and holding onto the table legs. If in a car, the Texas Department of Public Safety suggests finding a clear spot to stop and wait until the shaking ceases. More earthquake information, alerts and notifications can be found on the American Red Cross Earthquake App.
– Austria Arnold, Asst. Features Editor
