SEATTLE — Thousands of students across the state practiced ducking under the desks Thursday in the Great Washington Shakeout earthquake drill.
The kids in Bente Fernandi’s fourth-grade class at West Woodland Elementary School in Seattle knew what to do when the announcement came over the public address system. They quietly crawled under their desks and held on until all the classrooms evacuated to the playground where they were allowed to give out a cheer.
Shakeout organizers said more than 1 million people in Washington registered to participate at 10:16 a.m. on 10-16. It was part of a worldwide campaign to practice “drop, cover and hold.”
Earthquake experts say the “big one” could hit Washington at any time with devastating injuries and damage.
