California Gov. Gavin Newsom today (Thursday, Oct. 17) announced the debut of the nation’s first statewide earthquake early warning system that will deliver alerts to people’s cellphones through an app developed at the University of California, Berkeley.
The mobile phone app, MyShake, can provide seconds of warning before the ground starts to shake from a nearby quake — enough time to drop, cover and hold on to prevent injury.
The app is available on both Apple and Android platforms.
So why am I posting about this here? Because I was one of the “citizen scientists” that helped beta test the app. I have had it on my phone now for a couple of years and can assure you that it is safe. The app gets input from phones’ motion sensors and now also delivers alerts from the ShakeAlert Earthquake Early Warning System operated by the U.S. Geological Survey that utilizes data from seismic networks in California, Oregon and Washington.
Jims BBS 