Earthquakes at Work & in Schools

The Workplace Is a Different Environment

Most earthquake safety guidance is written with a home in mind. But the average working adult spends 40 or more hours per week in a workplace environment that presents a very different set of hazards — and a very different set of decisions to make.

An office building has different structural characteristics from a residential home. A school requires child reunification protocols that go far beyond personal safety. A high-rise building will sway in ways that feel terrifying but are often safe by design. An elevator during an earthquake is a specific and often misunderstood situation.

Knowing how to behave correctly in each of these environments — and having that knowledge embedded before you ever need it — is what allows calm, effective action in those critical seconds.

The Office Environment: DROP, COVER, HOLD ON

The core instruction for indoor earthquake response is DROP, COVER, HOLD ON. In a workplace, executing this correctly requires knowing your environment.

DROP

Drop to your hands and knees before the shaking throws you down. This position protects you from falling while still allowing movement if necessary.

Do not run for a doorway. The myth that doorways provide protection in earthquakes comes from observations in adobe structures, where the door frame was often the strongest element. In modern framed construction, doorways are no stronger than any other part of the building and provide no special protection. You are safer under a sturdy desk.

COVER

Move under a sturdy desk or table if one is within reach — you should be able to get there in one or two steps without standing. Hold on to the desk leg to move with it if it moves.

If no table is nearby, move to an interior wall away from windows and exterior walls. Cover your head and neck with your arms.

Specific hazards in office environments:

• Windows and glass partitions: Stay away from all windows and glass walls. Flying glass fragments cause severe laceration injuries. Offices with floor-to-ceiling glass walls present serious hazard — the safest position is near the building core.
• Filing cabinets and shelving: Unsecured metal shelving in file rooms and storage areas can topple. Do not shelter near tall unsecured shelving.
• Printers, monitors, and equipment: Items on desks and shelving become projectiles during shaking.
• Open-plan offices: In a wide open-plan space without accessible desks, move to the building core away from windows and drop and cover.

HOLD ON

Hold on to your shelter until shaking stops. The instinct to get up and run during shaking is dangerous — most injuries happen when people try to move during shaking rather than sheltering in place.

⚠️ Do not run outside during shaking. Falling glass, building facades, and masonry from building exteriors cause serious injuries. Wait until shaking completely stops before moving.

Elevator Safety During an Earthquake

Elevators have seismic safety systems that detect shaking and respond automatically. Understanding this prevents panic in the elevator during an earthquake:

What Automatically Happens

Modern elevators in seismically active areas are equipped with:

• Seismic sensors that detect earthquake motion
• Automatic levelling — the elevator moves to the nearest floor and opens its doors
• Automatic hold — the elevator will not operate again until inspected after a seismic event

If you are in an elevator when an earthquake begins:

1. Press the button for every floor
2. Exit at the first floor that opens
3. Take the stairs from that point

If the Elevator Stops Between Floors

If the automatic levelling system fails and the elevator stops between floors:

• Crouch in the corner of the car, away from the doors — structural debris is less likely to strike here
• Use the emergency phone or intercom button to contact building management or emergency services
• Do not attempt to force open the doors or pry them apart

Do Not Use Elevators After an Earthquake

After an earthquake, do not use elevators even if they appear to be working normally:

• Seismic damage may have compromised the elevator shaft, counterweights, or supporting structure
• Power disruptions can cause elevators to stop between floors
• Stairs are the correct evacuation route after any significant seismic event

High-Rise Earthquake Behaviour

Why High-Rises Sway

Modern high-rise buildings are engineered to flex rather than resist earthquake forces rigidly. A building that moves with seismic energy dissipates that energy; a building that resists rigidly can fracture.

In a tall building during a major earthquake, you may experience:

• Swaying of several feet in each direction
• Objects flying off desks and shelves
• A groaning or creaking sound from the building structure
• Nausea from the motion

All of this can be occurring while the building is performing exactly as designed. The movement is not evidence that the building is failing.

Do Not Evacuate During Shaking

This is counterintuitive but critical: do not attempt to evacuate a high-rise building during shaking. On stairways, the swaying motion of the building combined with falling people and debris creates serious injury risk. You cannot run down 30 flights of stairs faster than an earthquake shakes.

The correct action is DROP, COVER, HOLD ON at your location until shaking stops completely. Then assess and evacuate in an orderly manner.

Post-Shaking Evacuation of Tall Buildings

Once shaking stops:

1. Assess yourself and anyone near you for injuries — treat immediately life-threatening injuries first
2. Check for fire, gas smell, or structural hazard in your immediate area
3. Evacuate using stairs — do not use elevators
4. Follow floor warden or building emergency procedures
5. Check doors before opening — a warm door indicates fire on the other side
6. If the stairway is blocked or damaged, return to a safe floor and wait for rescue
7. Assemble at the designated muster point well away from the building

School Drills and Reunification Procedures

School Earthquake Drills

Schools in seismically active regions conduct regular earthquake drills. The procedure is the same DROP, COVER, HOLD ON, but adapted for classroom environments:

1. Under a desk or table if available and within reach
2. Away from windows — glass is the primary classroom hazard
3. Facing away from windows if sheltering against an interior wall
4. Students practice the drill from their seated positions — no rushing to exits during shaking

Teachers maintain accountability: they know who is in the classroom and report to the assembly point with the class roll.

Student Reunification

One of the most stressful post-earthquake situations for parents is not knowing how to retrieve children from schools. Schools have reunification plans for this reason:

Key parent responsibilities:

• Know your child's school reunification plan before any emergency occurs — find this in school enrolment documents or ask the school office
• Do not drive to the school immediately after a major earthquake — roads may be blocked and your presence adds to congestion and chaos
• Go to the designated reunification site (often a nearby park or parking area some distance from the building)
• Bring identification — schools will only release children to authorised persons and will verify ID
• Do not call the school constantly — phone lines are needed for emergency coordination

What schools will do:

1. Account for all students
2. Move to assembly area if building is unsafe
3. Activate reunification plan when parents begin arriving
4. Release students only to authorised individuals

Outdoors Near Buildings

Being outdoors during an earthquake is generally safer than being indoors — but only if you are away from buildings and other structures.

Primary outdoor hazards:

• Falling glass from building facades
• Masonry, bricks, and decorative building elements falling from facades
• Overhead power lines
• Light poles and traffic signals

If caught outdoors near buildings during an earthquake:

1. Move away from buildings, into open space — a car park without light poles, a park, or a road median
2. Drop to the ground to avoid being thrown
3. Stay away from overhead power lines
4. Do not run back inside a building

Safe distance: A minimum of one building height from any multi-storey building, ideally more. This accounts for debris that may fall outward.

Multi-Storey Car Park Safety

Multi-storey car parks (parking structures) are often among the more vulnerable structures in earthquakes. Precast concrete parking structures in particular have a history of partial collapse in earthquakes.

If in a car park during an earthquake:

1. If inside a vehicle, remain in the vehicle — do not get out into the structure where concrete may fall
2. If walking through a car park, drop between vehicles or in a doorway — not in the open where overhead concrete slabs present maximum hazard
3. After shaking stops, exit on foot via the stairs (not the elevator) and leave the structure entirely

Accountability Procedures at Work

Many organisations have post-earthquake accountability requirements. Even where not formally mandated, accounting for all staff after an earthquake is essential:

Typical Workplace Post-Earthquake Protocol

1. Incident commander or Floor Warden activates the emergency plan
2. Designated first aid officers begin injury assessment
3. Roll call or electronic check-in verifies location of all staff
4. Building assessment team checks for structural damage, fire, gas smell
5. Evacuation decision made by incident commander based on building status
6. Muster point accounting — all staff and visitors confirmed present or missing
7. Emergency services contact if injuries or structural damage identified

Your Responsibility as an Employee

Before an earthquake:

• Know your floor warden and their contact
• Know the muster point for your floor and building
• Know two exit routes from your floor

After an earthquake at work:

• Report to your floor warden or check in via the emergency system
• Do not leave the muster area until released by the incident commander
• Report any injuries, hazards, or missing colleagues

Location	During Shaking	After Shaking
Office desk	Drop to floor, shelter under desk, hold on	Assess, check for hazards, evacuate via stairs
Elevator	Press all floors, exit at first open door, crouch in corner if stuck	Do not use — take stairs
High-rise floor	Drop, cover, hold on at location — do not run to stairs	Orderly stair evacuation, go to muster point
School classroom	Under desk away from windows, hold on	Remain with teacher until ordered to assembly
Car park (on foot)	Drop between vehicles or in doorway	Exit via stairs, leave structure entirely
Outdoors near buildings	Move to open space away from buildings, drop	Stay back from buildings, watch for aftershocks

Quick Reference

Situation	Action
Earthquake starts at your desk	Drop, get under desk, hold on to desk leg
No desk nearby in open office	Move to interior wall, cover head and neck, drop
Earthquake starts in elevator	Press all floors, exit at first open door
Elevator stops between floors	Crouch in corner, use intercom, wait for rescue
High-rise building swaying severely	Drop, cover, hold on at your position — do not run
Shaking stops in high-rise	Assess, evacuate via stairs, do not use elevators
Child at school during earthquake	Wait for reunification plan; go to designated reunification site with ID
Outdoors when shaking starts	Move away from buildings to open space; drop
In multi-storey car park	Stay in vehicle if in car; crouch between cars if on foot
After earthquake at work	Report to floor warden, go to muster point, wait for accountability