More than 200,000 people in Santa Barbara, San Luis Obispo, and Monterey Counties are expected to take part in Thursday's Great California ShakeOut. The vast majority of those are students.
The annual event is a way for families, schools, businesses, and government organizations to plan for the next "big one." This year, the earthquake simulation is set to take place at 10:16 a.m. PDT. Despite its name, people participate worldwide.
The Central Coast breakdown of total participants by county as of Wednesday night was as follows:
- Monterey: 96,762
- San Luis Obispo: 52,468
- Santa Barbara: 107,735
K-12 schools and districts account for the highest number of participants, followed by colleges and universities.
Extra attention is being paid to this year's event as it marks the 25 year anniversary of the deadly 1989 Loma Prieta earthquake in the Bay Area, that was widely felt throughout the Central Coast.