What Does a M7.3 Earthquake Feel Like?

A personal account from Nepal after the Magnitude 7.3 earthquake (aftershock) that rocked us today. And also what we can do to “be safe”.

What Does a M7.3 Earthquake Feel Like?

Family and friends throw a flurry of questions at you after a major earthquake. They want to make sure that you are alright. Some common questions are: “Are you ok?” “Did you feel the earthquake?” “How was it?” “What did you do?”

I want to answer the most interesting one here

“What does a major earthquake feel like?”
It felt like a train.

Let me explain.

You are Leonardo DiCaprio. You’re driving around in New York City, and then BAM. Out of nowhere, a train hits your car.

Yes, a train. It symbolizes quite a bit about this earthquake.

It came out of nowhere. It literally just started out one instant. No warning. No gentle build up. Just BAM!

I was sitting at the dining table with my Macbook and just tapping away at the keys, when the utensils, tables, chairs started shaking.

But I don’t remember seeing anything move. I really don’t. I didn’t have a “the light fixture was swaying” or “the books were shaking” or “I saw the cracks appear in the wall” moment.

It wasn’t a lucid experience.

But the world was moving, and something very clearly wasn’t right. It was a bumpy ride. I distinctly recall the feeling of bouncing on my chair, like sitting on the back seat of a bus driving through a street with potholes. That’s also what trains in India feel like.

And the experience even sounded like a train. The spoons and forks were clattering. The dining table where my laptop was resting was shaking violently, and all the items on it were rattling, with more clink, clank and clunk than a beat-boxer.

I didn’t have time to think at all. It was an earthquake.

I tried to say “EARTHQUAKE!” but my limbic brain had taken cover completely. The neocortex had no time to piece together the letters. It was fight or flight. You can’t fight against an earthquake, so the only option was flight.

I bolted towards the door… unlatched it, unlocked it, turned the knob, and we went outside.

We had the benefit of immediately knowing that it was an earthquake, without having to think or guess. The people who experienced the main M7.8 earthquake on April 25 didn’t have that luxury. Their world was shaking violently and they had to piece it together themselves.

Once outside, it didn’t get much better. The ground was still shaking and plenty of objects around us were still rattling, but now they were mixed with discernible shouts and screams from the neighborhood.

The safest place is the main road, which is 25 meters away from our front gate. Unfortunately those 25 meters aren’t safe. There are building and electric poles all along it, and we’d be in serious trouble if any of them collapsed.

I made the quick decision to stop running and stay near our gate. Mom and I were together. We held on to each other, and my eyes looked up at the 4 buildings immediately around us and the electricity pole behind us.

I kept reminding myself to breathe deeply and stay present in what was actually happening around me.

The buildings around us shook, dozens of birds (mostly crows) flying nearby, and people trying to coordinate with each other with screams.

2 words: Situational awareness!

I peered at each of the buildings around us, and none of them looked to put us in imminent danger by collapsing or raining debris down on us. Even in that craziness, I liked what I was seeing.

I knew this was BIG earthquake. The biggest one I’ve ever felt by a long shot. I’ve experienced a couple low M6.x ones over the last 2 weeks, and not even noticed the vast majority of the M5.x aftershocks.

The ground slowing stopped shaking. Now it was time to get to the main road. We don’t have phones, passports or anything else. But that doesn’t matter right now. Move away from the buildings, get to an open area and breathe.

Fear.

FEAR HAS RETURNED TO KATHMANDU

You can see it in people’s eyes. You could probably see it in mine.

Earthquakes are strange.

An earthquake not like a tornado or volcano or flood or hurricane or any other major natural disaster. You can SEE an earthquake. You definitely can’t see it coming. You get no warning. There are no “alarms” to give you a 10 minute heads up, like a tornado or tsunami.

An earthquake just happens.

It comes out of nowhere, and affects everything. The earth is shaking under your feet, but danger is everywhere. The building you’re in, the walls outside, the floor beneath you, … and obviously the state of panic only increase our susceptibility to injuries as we run down the stairs, out the door, slip on a wet floor, and so much more.

“Be safe” —

I know that it’s well intentioned platitude that means “I care about you. I want you to be well and safe”. And I’m really grateful to have dear friends around me and through social networks who care about me and want me to stay above the ground. But… but there’s nothing I can do about the M7.3 earthquake or the upcoming ones . The “be” in “be safe” implies that I have any control over the scenario when an earthquake hits. There’s no warning. There were no barking dogs. There weren’t any crazy birds telling everyone that the earth is about to shake. It just started. It happened. I was sitting at my dining table, and it started with a rattle… then it sounded like a train within an instant.

I know what you mean by “be safe”, but there isn’t anything for anyone to do. The only action that one can take is also a fear-based response. Paranoia leads to “safe” options — buy a tent, pitch it in an open field, stay in the open field for the next several weeks or months, do not enter buildings, stay away from walls. But is that what “be safe” means? No, not really. The only logically (sensible?) thing one can do to “be safe” is to get out of the country.

Until today, at every crack, thud, creek or sense of dizziness, I used to wonder, “Is that an earthquake, or something else?” I even wrote a blog post about it. It’s pretty funny (if I do say so myself).

But today I learned the hard way that when a significant earthquake hits, you won’t have to analyze whether it’s an earthquake or not. You won’t even have to think about it. Your limbic brain (the crocodile brain) that’s responsible for keeping you alive will take over in an instant. It will override all your normal functions.

The earth shakes. Then it stops. It could start shaking at any moment again. It could shake vigorously like it did earlier today, or it could be a little 3.2 earthquake. It could go on for 10 seconds or 3 minutes. It could happen again overnight as I go to sleep in a few minutes, or it could happen in the morning, or it could happen next week or next month or a few months from now.

There’s no “being safe” here. It’s just dealing with it.

PTSD

I have already seen mild versions of trauma around me. People complaining about frequent headaches, the sensation that the ground is always moving, and not being able to sleep. It’s especially troublesome for children under the age of 14. I know family friends who have said their children between 8 and 14 have stopped acting like themselves, and even don’t use the restroom as frequently as they did prior to the earthquakes. The problem is most acute for children younger than 6 years old.

The terror is in the anticipation, not in the shake.

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