Hi Canie,

While you and I and many who read these boards are quite up on preparedness, the average Californian is not out reading on the web about this issue, so someone needs to remind them often to do something about it.

Just imagine that someone in your household was injured during an earthquake and you couldn't contact 911 because a few other hundred folks were on the phone calling in to say to the emergency dispatcher that they are experiencing an earthquake and they are upset. This has happened time after time. But to some you have to be very direct and tell them "don't call unless you have an emergency."

Or how to do you tell the grocery store owner to stop ushering customers out of the front of a store during an earthquake when that's the one place that has the most flying glass in the place? What's worse, being hit by a can of beans or having flying glass shards flying into your face or body?

The public needs an education and not all of them sit on the computer looking for it, so if you give them a subtle, yet meaningful message, in time subliminally they will think of it and act on it.

It took Candy Lightner 10 years to achieve a social awareness that drunk driving was unacceptable behavior and got the legislation to back it. It took Rachel Carson her life to say DDT wasn't good either. We don't have ten years to tell people to get prepared and I'm to young to die in the process, but I do want to see preparedness take a level beyond talking about it.

Petra

• The Seismic Safety Zone