DACC to take part in emergency preparedness event

Doña Ana Community College (DACC) will be participating in an emergency preparedness event this month.

The event, The Great New Mexico ShakeOut, will take place on Thursday, October 20^th at 10:20 a.m. at all six of DACC’s locations. This event is an earthquake drill taking place across the country including New Mexico with thousands of entities participating. In addition, the drill will be used by DACC to test emergency communication and notification processes in emergency events.

Each year, more than 25 million people participate in Great ShakeOut Earthquake Drills worldwide, in K-12 schools, colleges, businesses, government agencies, other organizations, and households.

Participants will learn and practice "Drop, Cover, and Hold On”:

• DROP to the ground,
• COVER your head and neck with your arms and seek additional shelter by getting under a sturdy desk or table if nearby; and
• HOLD ON to your shelter and be prepared to move with it until the shaking stops.

If there is no table or desk near you, drop to the ground and then, if possible, get next to an interior wall of the room. Be in a crawling position to protect your vital organs and be ready to move if necessary, and cover your head and neck with your hands and arms. Do not move to another location or run outside. Earthquakes occur without warning and may be so violent that you cannot run or crawl. 

Although New Mexico may not have nearly as many earthquakes as other parts of the world, residents may still be impacted by them. According to shakeout.org, New Mexico has recorded thousands of earthquakes with the majority of activity in Socorro. “Many of our students may have never experienced an earthquake and or an emergency of this sort,” says DACC President Dr. Mónica Torres. “This exercise is an opportunity for us to practice should an emergency occur.”

For preparedness information and resources specific to NMSU/DACC, you can visit https://emergencyplanning.nmsu.edu/.

For more information, please contact news at news@dacc.nmsu.edu.

dacc.nmsu.edu

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