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Is it Possible to Prepare for an Earthquake?: Crash Course Geology #15

YouTube: https://youtube.com/watch?v=xYKSKBcifaE
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Duration:12:19
Uploaded:2026-08-13
Last sync:2026-08-13 16:15

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MLA Full: "Is it Possible to Prepare for an Earthquake?: Crash Course Geology #15." YouTube, uploaded by CrashCourse, 13 August 2026, www.youtube.com/watch?v=xYKSKBcifaE.
MLA Inline: (CrashCourse, 2026)
APA Full: CrashCourse. (2026, August 13). Is it Possible to Prepare for an Earthquake?: Crash Course Geology #15 [Video]. YouTube. https://youtube.com/watch?v=xYKSKBcifaE
APA Inline: (CrashCourse, 2026)
Chicago Full: CrashCourse, "Is it Possible to Prepare for an Earthquake?: Crash Course Geology #15.", August 13, 2026, YouTube, 12:19,
https://youtube.com/watch?v=xYKSKBcifaE.
Earthquakes are an unfortunate part of life on a planet with tectonic plates. And while they can be dangerous, we can also be prepared for them. In this episode of Crash Course Geology, we dive deep into earthquake preparedness to help you know what to do when the Big One hits.







Introduction: The Big One 00:00



Faults 1:50



Earthquake Proofing 5:00



How to Prepare 9:31



Review & Credits 11:29







Sources: https://docs.google.com/document/d/1RpwM8ZQPFk_DkzMJjMdtRrNGrJSNJ7FbgmQybSZ2Cqo/edit?tab=t.0







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 (00:00) to (02:00)


Sage: 1960 was the year of the Big One.

For 10 minutes, massive tremors rolled through Valdivia, Chile. Buildings toppled. Electrical wires snapped. 

By the time the shaking stopped, the coastline had drifted 30 ft to the west, and increased the country's total size by about 1500 football fields. 

But that wasn't all. 

The quake triggered tsunamis that struck Hawaii and Japan. All told, the event left thousands dead or houseless. 

To this day, it's the biggest earthquake ever picked up by seismographs. 

What I want to know is:

Are we ready for the next Big One?

Hi, I'm Sage, and this is Crash Course Geology. 

[Theme music]

In the 21st century, we're no stranger to geological disasters. Our feeds and our screens can sometimes feel like a continuation loop of devastation. Which can make us feel more than a little helpless. 

But here at Crash Course, we believe that the more we know, the better prepared we are for the future. 

So grab your emotional support rock, and lets get into it. [Holds up Dwayne with a little hardhat on]

Last time, we learned that earthquakes are measured by magnitude, or the amount of energy they release. 

Unlike hurricanes, which are measured on a scale from 1 to 5 based on wind speed, the magnitude scale has no upper limit. 

But magnitude can also be captured in negative numbers, for really small earthquakes. Which happen a lot. 

The National Earthquake Information Centre registers about 20,000 earthquakes globally each year, but very few of those can be felt at all.

Only about 15 or so are magnitude 7.0— a major earthquake that causes serious damage. And just one per year clocks in at 8.0 or greater— the kind of earthquake that can totally destroy communities. 

The good news is, there are natural limits to how big earthquakes can get. That's because magnitude is related to the area of the fault — or fracture in the Earth's crust — that breaks when the earthquake occurs.

 (02:00) to (04:00)


The bigger the fault's area, the bigger the quake. 

Take the infamous San Andreas Fault that runs through most of California. It's almost vertical, and while it's nearly 1300 kilometres long, it's only about 16-19 km deep. 

So its area isn't actually that big— even if it seems pretty big from my apartment 15 mi off its centre. Earthquakes larger than a magnitude of 8.3 are extremely unlikely at the San Andreas Fault.

Compare that to the earthquake that struck Valdivia: it occurred on a fault that dips at a shallow angle. And it broke a section that's at least 1,000 km long and as much as 200 km wide— a much bigger total area — resulting in a magnitude of 9.5. 

The most active, earthquake-prone faults sit at the edges of tectonic plates — those massive slabs of crust and bits of the upper mantle tjat surface atop the lower mantle. 

We go into a lot more detail in an earlier episode. But the most important thing to know now is that different tectonic plate movements result in different types of faults. 

The San Andreas is an example of a transform fault, which forms when two tectonic plates grind past each other. 

Because the plates move side to side but not up or down, earthquakes at transform faults are shallow. That's why they produce intense shaking on Earth's surface, like the devastating 7.9-magnitude quake that struck San Francisco in 1906. 

But the biggest earthquakes happen at megathrust faults, which are massive. Here, one plate moves up and over another, at a low angle. 

Megathrust faults can form when two continental plates collide, like in the Himalayas, where the Indian and Eurasian plates are colliding. 

At about 2,500 km long, the Main Himalayan Thrust is the biggest of its kind, and its caused some serious damage in the past. 

In 2015, a 7.8-magnitude quake occurred on this fault in Kathmandu, Nepal, killing nine thousand people and injuring many more. 

So. Megathrust faults. 

They also crop up in subduction zones— where one tectonic plate dives beneath another. 

 (04:00) to (06:00)


That's what's happening at the Cascadia Subduction Zone, a 1,300 km long tectonic plate boundary that runs along the United States' Northwest Pacific Coast.

Here, the Juan de Fuca and Gorda oceanic plates are subducting beneath the North American continental plate, creating a megathrust fault in between. 

In the last 3,500 years, the Cascadia Subduction Zone has generated at least 7 major earthquakes, occurring 246 years apart on average. 

The oral histories of the Huu-ay-aht and Cowichan First Nations describe an earthquake triggering landslides and 50 ft waves, wiping out whole villages, and leaving ghost forests in its wake. 

There's even evidence that the tsunami it generated destroyed houses in Japan — on the other side of the ocean. 

It's not a question of if there’ll be another Cascadia earthquake but when. The most recent, roughly a magnitude 9, happened in 1700 CE, which was... how many years ago? 

...Oh no. 

As nice as it would be to simply stop earthquakes in their tracks, or pinpoint exactly when they'll hit... we can't. As long as our planet's tectonic plates keep moving around, there'll be stress placed on rock, and earthquakes releasing that stress. 

That's just Earth, baby. 

But we can find ways to coexist with Earth's dynamic systems, and be better prepared for the hazards that come with them. 

Governments in earthquake-prone regions can prepare now to protect people better in the future. And that starts with infrastructure. 

Seismologists have a saying: "Earthquakes don't kill people — buildings do." 

Earthquakes release energy in the form of seismic waves that shake the ground both vertically and horizontally. 

Normal buildings can handle those up-and-down forces no problem. But then side-to-side shaking can quickly tear a structure apart. 

Thankfully, scientists have developed earthquake-resistant architecture that can deflect, absorb, or transfer energy from those vibrations.

 (06:00) to (08:00)


One of the most important considerations when designing an earthquake-resistant building is the type of material used in its construction. 

Buildings made out of strong but inflexible material like stone or concrete are more prone to damage when tje ground shakes. 

But buildings made from strong and flexible steel can stretch and bend more easily, absorbing the energy before returning to their original shape. 

This kind of pre-emptive engineering is part of seismic design, a way of designing and evaluating a building's resistance to seismic forces. 

It's a lot like how buildings are required to have a certain number of fire exits. 

In tje same way, cities in some earthquake zones require their buildings to withstand a certain amount of seismic force. 

Let's dig a little deeper. 

Welcome to Tokyo, Japan, one of the most populous cities in the world. You might think all those high-rises are a recipe for disaster if the Big One hits. 

No, Dwayne, not Mothra. An earthquake. 

Japan is rocked by seismic activity on an almost weekly basis. 

That's because the whole country sits atop tje Pacific Ring of Fire, the location of roughly 90% of the world's earthquakes. 

With stats like that, it's not wonder the city is home to some of the most earthquake-resistant buildings in the world. 

How do they do it?

Well, one of tje keys to keeping the city's skyscrapers intact is a technique called seismic isolation. Buildings are "decoupled" from their foundations so that the movement of the ground has little effect on them. 

The buildings are built on these massive rubber bearings that slide back and forth during quakes, absorbing the energy and keeping the building — and the people inside — safe. 

And they even apply earthquake preparedness to their public transit. 

The high-speed rail system that connects Tokyo to other Japanese cities is connected to the country's earthquake early warning system. 

A network of seismographs monitors seismic waves below the surface and can send out an alert of high activity within seconds. 

The system then cuts the power to all trains within the at-risk zone and brings them to an emergency stop. 

So, even on your daily commute, you can remain safe from earthquakes. 

As you can probably tell from those fancy buildings and trains, institutional preparedness has a lot to do with economic resources. 

 (08:00) to (10:00)


For example, when the Great Sumatran Fault generated a 9.3-magnitude earthquake in 2004, it triggered a massive tsunami that killed at least 226,000 people in Indonesia, Thailand, Sri Lanka, and India. 

But it was deadliest for people of lower income, who were caught in fragile housing that couldn't withstand the powerful forces. And sometimes, institutions that have the resources for earthquake preparedness simply don't take advantage of them.

In 2015, journalist Kathryn Schultz investigated the risks of a massive earthquake in the Cascadia Subduction Zone. 

Her report was staggering: 

For one thing, the region didn't have an early warning system at the time. 

For another, many buildings were woefully unprepared for an earthquake, having been built in at-risk areas before seismic codes were put in place.

And many of those buildings — whether businesses, residences, or schools— hadn’t been stabilised for earthquake resilience. 

If an earthquake of high magnitude hit the Cascadia region in 2015, things would've been dire. 

But there's some more good news:

In the decade since Schultz published her investigation, the Pacific Northwest's early warning system, ShakeAlert, went live. 

Several counties in Oregon and Washington have implemented grant-funded projects to make more of their infrastructure seismically safe. 

And the city of Seattle is supporting the creation of a network of "resilience hubs"— locations where people can access resources for emergency preparedness and recovery. 

Unfortunately, earthquakes are an inevitable part of living on a planet with tectonic plates. And sometimes, our institutions can leave us ill-prepared for them, whether because of lack of resources, mismanagement, or sheer ignorance. 

So, is there anything you and I can do to prepare for an earthquake — even a Big One? 

Absolutely. 

First, we can get familiar with the seismic risk where we live and what plans are already in place in the event of an earthquake. 

 (10:00) to (12:00)


Then, it's important to use that information to develop your own plans for evacuation and communication with your loved ones. 

Sites like ready.gov have lists of supplies you can use to create your own emergency preparedness kits. 

If an earthquake is happening, like, right now, the thing to remember is: 

Drop (or Lock),
Cover,
Hold on. 

Drop to your hands and knees, or lock your mobility device; crawl under a nearby table if you're able, and cover your neck with one arm and crawl under a nearby table; and hold onto whatever's nearby. 

And community action can be massively helpful before and after an earthquake. 

Like, since the 1960 earthquake in Valdivia, Chile, the country developed a "seismic culture," where preparedness and volunteerism are highly valued. 

After an 8.8-magnitude earthquake hit the country in 2010, fewer people than expected took advantage of government-run shelters. That's because they were prepared with their own shelter-in-place plans in their communities. 

Today, community members can stay in touch through apps and online groups, and easily share information about local conditions with government representatives. 

In a high-impact event, a neighbour is more likely to offer aid before rescue teams can. So it's super important to develop strong communities that are prepared to deal with issues like food and healthcare access. 

And lastly, we can encourage our governments to invest in better infrastructure and preparedness. We may not always have decision-making power, but we can make our voices heard by the folks who do. 

Earth is home to incredible wonders— and some scary stuff, too. 

In some parts of the world, big earthquakes are a serious risk worthy of serious attention. While we can't control these events, we can achieve more realistic goals: understanding the risks, coming together before they happen, and preparing as best we can. 

A good rule of thumb? "Stay alert, not anxious."

Let's try that together, huh buddy? 

In our next episode, we're going to the Grand Canyon. I'll see you then. 

 (12:00) to (12:19)


Thanks for watching this episode of Crash Course Geology which was filmed at our studio in Indianapolis, Indiana, and was made with the help of all these groovy people. If you want to help keep Crash Course free for everyone, forever, you can join our community on Patreon.
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