Last night, October 8, at 7:21 p.m., people all over Puget Sound experienced a magnitude 4.3 earthquake with an epicenter in Scow Bay between Indian and Marrowstone islands. Although it was a small, short tremor, it serves as a reminder of the fact that we live in earthquake country.

Speaking of living in earthquake country, it’s just about time for the national earthquake response practice, the Great Shakeout. This annual event, sponsored by the National Geographic Survey, FEMA, and the National Science Foundation, is a participatory earthquake simulation. This year it happens on October 19 at 10:19 a.m., PST.

To participate, sign up here. Then, at the given time, you and your household or coworkers should drop, cover, and hold on for 60 seconds. If your neighborhood is part of Map Your Neighborhood, then you and your neighbors can take the next step in the simulation as well, which is to post the OK/Help sign on your front door, check up on one another, practice turning off your propane, and gather in your agreed-upon meeting space. If your business has an emergency plan, you and your coworkers can gather outside in your agreed-upon meeting space.

More than a million participants (including individuals, schools, and organizations) are already registered for the Great Shakeout in Washington State.