Reducing Workplace Earthquake Hazards
Last updated
August 25, 2009 12:57:42 PM PDT
Reduce injuries and damage during earthquakes by securing nonstructural hazards, such as equipment, furniture, shelved items, and other building contents.
Securing nonstructural hazards improves safety by:
- Reducing injuries and damage caused by falling and moving items
- Maintaining clear exit paths from the building and access into the building for responders
- Reducing the potential for hazardous material spills, fires, and utility leaks
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- Identify unsecured objects that might fall, overturn, slide, spill, or rupture during shaking. Examples include:
- Tall furniture and equipment
- Equipment and furniture on wheels
- Objects, equipment, containers, and materials in cabinets and on open shelves
- Wall- or ceiling-mounted displays, art, pictures, and mirrors
- Fixtures and utility conduits
- Compressed gas cylinders
- Other building contents
- Secure items using methods described on this page. Devise other effective methods as needed.
Department heads and PIs are responsible for ensuring that when equipment or furniture is moved or new equipment is delivered, it is secured to minimize movement during earthquakes.
Free-standing items or equipment over 42 inches in height and having a height which is 3 or more times greater than the smallest dimension of the base must be adequately secured in all UCSD facilities.
- Bolt securely to the wall studs or move tall cabinets, bookcases, shelving, stacked items, or equipment so they will not overturn on people or block corridors or doorways if they fall or move.
- Select a restraint material and method suitable for your purpose. Many commercially available tethers, cables, and angle brackets are available to secure heavy equipment and furniture to walls.
- Consider:
- Strength and flexibility of the restraint
- How to anchor the restraint to a secure surface
- Quick-release mechanisms if equipment must be moved for use
- View images of different types of equipment restraints:
- See illustrated methods for securing furniture and equipment:
- Choose wide-based storage (deeper shelves) when possible. It's more stable. The taller and narrower furniture or equipment is, the more likely it is to tumble over.
Shelving in UCSD facilities containing chemicals, glassware, or hazardous equipment or materials must be provided with seismic restraints to resist shelf content movement, breakage, and reaction of chemicals.
- Store heavy and breakable items on lower shelves. Less damage will be done if they fall.
- Picture the item falling off during a tremor when placing something on an upper shelf. That image may help you decide where to store heavy items.
- Use shelf lips to prevent light-weight containers and objects from vibrating off shelves. Shelf lip height requirements:
- For shelving containing chemicals, glassware, or hazardous materials: Shelf lips must be at least 2 inches high from the shelf surface.
- For low hazard areas such as offices, especially over employee work stations, shelf lips must be at least 1.5 inches high from the shelf surface.
- Use eyehooks and loop material (fishing line, cord, thin wire, etc.) to restrain larger, heavier objects on shelves.
- Note: Bungie cords are not as effective as other materials. Small items may slip under them.
- Use adhesive products to secure light-weight objects on open shelves. Various commercial "putty-like" products are available. Adhesive-backed velcro is another option.
- See illustrations of open shelf restraint methods:
- Use positive latching devices on cabinet doors.
- Examples include slide bolts, safety hasps, and "child-proof" baby latches. Many types are readily available at hardware suppliers.
- See illustrated types of cabinet latches.
- Store heavy items on lower shelves. This prevents the cabinet from being top-heavy, and less damage will be done if they do fall.
- Use closed hooks to hang mirrors, pictures, and other suspended objects so they can't jump off of during shaking.
- Install strong brackets on the top, bottom, and sides of heavy mirrors and pictures — the preferred solution for heavy items.
- Make sure the clips are anchored into the wall studs.
- See illustrated methods for hanging pictures and mirrors.
- Place only soft art or displays, such as unframed posters, rugs, and tapestries adjacent to areas where people sit or stand.
Computer equipment crashing onto the floor has been a major business expense in earthquakes.
- Secure desktop computers, monitors, and printers.
- Choose from many commercially available products including velcro fasteners and non-slip pads.
- Attach raised shelf edges to prevent low-profile equipment from vibrating off the edge.
- See illustrated methods for securing desktop computer equipment.
- Prepare server rooms.
- Anchor stacking racks to protect personnel from falling equipment.
- Consider restraint systems that allow some server movement to protect the unit from absorbing all the shock.
- Examples of restraints for servers include the use of caster pads, caster wheel locks, sliding pads, elastomer bumpers, and tethers.
- Consult the service provider for your equipment to determine the best method for securing your server environment.
- Read Standards for Computer Server Rooms at UCSD for more information about institutional recommendations.
Following the 1994 Northridge quake (magnitude 6.9), UC Los Angeles responders reported that several doorways were blocked by fallen cylinders, especially by cylinders stored behind doors. At the CSU-Northridge campus (closer to the epicenter of the quake), 3 out of their 4 science buildings suffered major fires during which over 50 cylinders exploded.
- Secure cylinders in an upright position to a substantial, fixed surface with upper and lower restraints made of non-combustible material, preferably chain and Unistrut®.
- View an image of properly secured cylinders.
- Note: Single restraints are not as successful as upper and lower restraints. C-clamps are not reliable.
- Plan for seismic restraints when designing your laboratory layout. Some equipment arrives ready for bracing.
- View images of equipment restraints used in UCSD research facilities.
- Segregate incompatible chemicals and hazardous materials and reactives.
- Protect temperature-sensitive materials with a backup generator in case power is interrupted.
- Read about securing compressed gas cylinders above.
- Strap water heaters to a secure wall. Follow instructions for wall or corner locations:
Fire is possibile following an earthquake that has ruptured gas and water lines, broken electrical lines, or caused volatile hazardous materials to spill and react.
Fire walls and doors are specially constructed to withstand fire for a specified period of time, giving building occupants a chance to escape, and limiting damage.
- Keep fire doors closed in your building to protect your exit corridors and stairs from smoke and fire.
- Do not cut openings into fire-rated walls.
- During the 1994 Northridge quake (magnitude 6.9), CSU Northridge responders reported that rooms next door to areas that were completely consumed by flames did not burn where fire doors were shut and fire walls had not been compromised.
- An example of a “compromised fire wall” was seen where a display case had been installed in a wall extending through to the hall on the other side. Flames easily consumed the display case and escaped out into the hall through the hole in the fire wall where the display case had been.
- Contact EH&S Fire & Life Safety, (858) 822-5706 or 534-3660, if you have questions about fire doors and walls.
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