The Great Central U.S. ShakeOut offers individuals, schools, businesses, governments, and communities an opportunity to prepare themselves before a damaging earthquake strikes.

To aid in the development of self-led earthquake drills, we have created several earthquake scenarios for your use. These scenarios are briefly described in the ShakeOut Drill Manuals located on the ShakeOut Resources page. They are intended to give you a brief look at what a damaging earthquake might look like in this part of the country.

We have three scenarios available for your use:

• M6.5 earthquake occurring in the New Madrid Seismic Zone
• M6.5 earthquake occurring in the Wabash Valley Seismic Zone
• M6.5 earthquake scenario that is generic to any state

Please Note: These scenarios are provided for planning purposes only and are not intended to be representative of what may or may not happen in a real earthquake, which is impossible to predict with certainty. Earthquake damage and shaking intensity is dependant on a variety of factors. In as much, these scenarios are supplied to help you think through a planning process of how you might react in an earthquake.

Earthquake Hazard Information - USGS Publications