SHAKE, RATTLE AND ROLL

MANY KIWIS HAVE MEMORIES of primary school earthquake drills – of diving under the desk and bracing their heads while the teacher counted backwards from 10.

Living in a geologically turbulent country, many too will have memories of the real thing.

But how many Kiwis know what to do when a big one strikes in the backcountry?

The alpine fault line, which runs through the Southern Alps, is due a decent shake and it’s not a matter of if, but when it starts to rumble.

QuakeCoRE’s Dr Caroline Orchiston works in the AF8 [Alpine Fault Magnitude 8) team, developing nationwide response plans for a magnitude 8 or higher quake.

“My interest in the alpine fault goes back 20