Los Gatos Prepares Residents on Loma Prieta Earthquake Anniversary

The Loma Prieta earthquake, also known as the Quake of '89, struck the San Francisco Bay Area on Oct. 17, 1989, at 5:04 p.m., with a force of 6.9 on the Richter scale.

Caused by a slip along the San Andreas Fault, the quake lasted between 10–15 seconds, but in just that small amount of time it killed 63 people in Northern California, injured 3,757 and left thousands homeless.

To remind the public about the potential devastation that could be caused by another similar earthquake or natural disaster, the Town of Los Gatos will be educating the community about its Los Gatos Prepared program at various events.

The program's goal is to teach the public the skills and resources necessary to be self-sufficient in the event of an emergency.

Los Gatos Prepared is run by the and the outreach coincides with October being Emergency Preparednesss Month and the Loma Prieta Earthquake's 22nd anniversary, according to a press release issued Monday by Police Chief Scott R. Seaman.

The program will have information displays at the following sites:

• on Oct. 9 in downtown.
• Los Gatos Prepared/Red Cross blood drive, Oct. 5, at the
• Congregation Shir Hadash Yom Kippur Oct. 8 celebration at Sacred Heart Church in Saratoga.
• Senior Helath Fair at the Oct. 8.
• , Oct. 30.

Five retail locations in Los Gatos will also have program displays 10 a.m.-2 p.m., on Oct. 16. All the sites will be staffed by volunteers trained in emergency preparedness in the neighborhoods in which they live. They are:

• , 15300 Los Gatos Blvd. (at Gateway)
• Lunardi's Supermarket, 720 Blossom Hill Rd., (at Los Gatos Boulevard)
• Safeway, 1500 Pollard Rd., (at More Avenue)
• Safeway, 15549 Union Ave. (at Los Gatos/Almaden Road)
• , 470 No. Santa Cruz Ave. (at Andrews)

On display will be items and supplies that residents should have on hand to be ready when disaster strikes or when an outbreak of pendemic influenza may occur. Simple checklists and easy-to-follow emergency preparedness instruction sheets will be available at each location.