On October 17, 2019, The California Earthquake Early Warning System was unveiled as America’s first statewide earthquake warning system.

  The system is able to detect earthquakes by using motion sensors in the ground that are set up across the state, and then alerts go out to people via smart phone. Popular Mechanics article California Announces New Earthquake Early Warning System by Jennifer Leman said, “U.C. Berkeley and its partners announced a new update to the MyShake App, which will give users several seconds of warning before they feel the shaking of an earthquake occurs.” 1 

  If seismic sensors pick up an earthquake a magnitude of 4.5 or above, the MyShake App alerts iOS and Android users of shaking and reminds them to “drop, cover and hold on.”

  “It’s certainly not a flawless system—some alerts may come late and the system may miss some earthquakes, Allen told the Los Angeles Times,” said Popular Mechanics article California Announces New Earthquake Early Warning System by Jennifer Leman. “But, he stressed, ‘we feel like it’s at a point where we can really make a difference. It will improve over time.’” 1 

  The MyShake App was tested successfully in both a 4.5 magnitude earthquake in the Bay Area where notifications reached people in around 2.1 seconds, and a 4.7 in the Central Coast where the notification went out 1.6 seconds before the earthquake.

  The alerts are similar to those of an Amber Alert, and will therefore still go out to people who haven’t downloaded the app.

  Although the earthquake alert system only gives short warning, it still gives at least some time to “drop, cover and hold on.” When considering that over half of the deaths in the Loma Prieta earthquake (a magnitude 6.9 with 63 casualties) were due to falling hazardous objects such as bookshelves and ceiling lights, a few seconds could be all that is needed for people to take cover.