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Parkside Elementary students Cristian Gutierrez and Daisy Flores look out from under their desks during an earthquake drill in Pittsburg, Calif. on Thursday, Oct. 15, 2009 . At 10:15 a.m. millions of Californian practiced Drop, Cover, and Hld On while participating in the exercise. Many people and organizations are also expected to practice other aspects of their emergency plans. All Pittsburg school, including Parkside Elementary participated in the The Great California ShakeOut exercsie.(Sherry LaVars/Staff)
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PITTSBURG — Students were reading aloud a story about seasons in Allison Larios' first-grade class at Parkside Elementary School on Thursday when the lesson abruptly stopped.

"Duck, cover and hold on," said a voice over the school's public address system.

The students in Larios' class sprang to action — popping out of their chairs and throwing themselves beneath their desks.

There were some giggles during the drill, but as student Daisy Flores said, a real earthquake would be "scary."

"You don't know when they could happen," student Tyrese Estes added.

Parkside joined many schools throughout the state — along with other government agencies and businesses — in participating in The Great California ShakeOut drill. Organizers expected about 7 million participants statewide.

The fake quake was meant to help everyone practice what do to when a real earthquake hits.

"It's helpful. A lot haven't experienced earthquakes," Parkside Principal Jeff Varner said. "We want them to be prepared whether they are at school or at home."

Preparing for emergencies has taken on added significance for Parkside's staff this year because the school community has coped with the death of Selene Gonzalez, a 6-year-old student killed in June during a house fire.

Not all schools participated in the drill.

"Districts and school sites signed up individually," said Peggy Marshburn, a spokeswoman for

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the Contra Costa County Office of Education, "so a lot of different people were doing a lot of different things." The office of education did not participate, she said.

Local decision

Neither the Contra Costa nor Alameda County Office of Emergency Services participated. Contra Costa did not deem the anticipated benefit important enough to supersede other department priorities but encouraged local municipalities to take part, Sheriff's Office spokesman Jimmy Lee said. Some Contra Costa cities participated and others didn't.

Alameda County Sheriff's Office Sgt. J.D. Nelson said his agency is preparing for next week's Urban Shield exercise, which practices for domestic and terrorist emergencies.

The school day disruption in Pittsburg at 10:15 a.m. was echoed elsewhere. For example, it interrupted the playground fun and games at Hayward's Stonebrae Elementary School.

"If you are outside, get away from the play structures and lie on the ground," the PA announcement said.

The 400 kids at recess complied, falling stomach-first, hands clasped behind their necks. Play structures were vacated, but some kids stayed in danger zones — on the floor of a covered hallway, or near cinderblock walls.

"Get out from under there!" a teacher yelled. "You want to be far away from anything that could fall on you!"

Each order sent another group of children scurrying toward safer ground.

Broad participation

All schools in the Pittsburg, West Contra Costa and Orinda school districts signed up for the event, along with several in Berkeley, Castro Valley, Fremont, Oakland, San Leandro and San Ramon Valley.

Students at Kimball High School, in Tracy, simulated injuries and a fatality while working with a local Community Emergency Response Team. The Livermore-Pleasanton Fire Department also participated in the drill at its 10 stations.

Union City's New Haven school district did not participate but has drills planned for later this year. District spokesman Rick La Plante said it won't announce the dates because the point is to simulate real emergencies when students would not be expecting them.

San Mateo County authorities said their "duck, cover and hold" drill was good for the practice and because they learned something. Office of Emergency Services Supervisor Bill O'Callahan said the county tested its satellite communications link with the state, HAM radio network and land lines as part of the drill.

But when they went to make some calls on their microwave telephones — which beam signals through satellite dishes to other county agencies — they realized that a couple phone numbers didn't work. Now they will figure out what happened and fix them.

"Drills are always good," he said. "You realize where you can improve."

The key in an earthquake, according to the Earthquake Country Alliance, is to seek cover beneath a table or desk or, if that's not possible, cover your face and head with your arms and crouch in an inside corner of the building. The main point is to seek immediate protection.

The exercise, in its second year, occurred two days before Saturday's 20th anniversary of the Loma Prieta earthquake. That 7.1-magnitude quake struck at 5:04 p.m. and killed 63 people, collapsed a major freeway, and caused nearly $6 billion in damage around the Bay Area.

Staff writers Eric Kurhi, Theresa Harrington, Robert Salonga, Robert Jordan, Linh Tat, Jonathan Morales and correspondent Anne Marie Fuller contributed to this story.