Secure your furniture before an earthquake: lessons from Tokyo

In earthquake-prone Japan, one of the most repeated preparedness messages is not about supplies at all. It is about furniture. In the Tokyo Fire Department's surveys of recent earthquakes, 30 to 50 percent of people who were injured were hurt by furniture tipping over, falling or sliding indoors. Japan's Prime Minister's Office tells people to assume that, in a major earthquake, furniture will fall. Ready.gov makes the same point for U.S. homes: secure heavy items like bookcases, refrigerators, water heaters, televisions and objects that hang on walls.

The three dangers

The Tokyo Fire Department describes three ways moving furniture hurts people:

• Injury: being hit or pinned by furniture, or by what flies out of it.
• Fire: furniture that falls can press the switch of an electric heater and set nearby things alight.
• Blocked escape: furniture that falls or slides can block the way out, and drawers that fly open can trip you.

Height makes it worse. In a Tokyo Fire Department survey after the 2011 earthquake, the higher the floor, the larger the share of homes where furniture tipped, fell or moved. In that survey, "moved" means furniture slid about 60 cm (2 feet) without tipping.

How Tokyo says to secure furniture

1. L-brackets and screws into the wall are the surest method.
2. If you can't screw into the wall, combine a tension rod (pressing between the top of the furniture and the ceiling) with a stopper wedge or anti-slip pads under the front. The combination works much better than either alone.
3. Furniture on casters: lock the casters when you're not moving it, and tether it to the wall or floor with a detachable strap if it has a usual spot.
4. Tables and chairs: anti-slip mats keep them from sliding.

Japan's government adds two details: keep the gap between tall furniture and the ceiling to 2 cm or less, and put shatter-resistant film on the glass of cabinets.

A room-by-room plan

When the shaking starts

Ready.gov's three steps are Drop, Cover and Hold On:

1. Drop where you are onto hands and knees.
2. Cover your head and neck with one arm and hand. If a sturdy table or desk is nearby, crawl underneath it. If not, crawl next to an interior wall, away from windows.
3. Hold on until the shaking stops.

If you're inside, stay inside and don't run outside; avoid doorways. If you're in bed, turn face down and cover your head and neck with a pillow. If you're driving, pull over, stop and set the parking brake.

After the shaking

• Expect aftershocks, and be ready to Drop, Cover and Hold On again.
• If you're in a damaged building, go outside and move away from it; don't go back into damaged buildings.
• If you're trapped, send a text or bang on a pipe or wall rather than shouting, and use a whistle.
• In a tsunami area, go inland or to higher ground as soon as the shaking stops.

Ready.gov also notes that a standard homeowner's insurance policy does not cover earthquake damage, something worth checking before the next quake.

Renters and small apartments

If you can't drill into walls, ask your landlord first, then use the non-drilling combination (tension rod plus stopper or anti-slip pads) and rearrange so that nothing tall stands over beds or exits. In a small apartment, the cheapest fix is often moving the bed.