For the first time, Ottawa residents will be able to experience what a magnitude 8.0 earthquake feels like, without having to face the consequences.
An earthquake simulator will be stationed on Sparks Street on Oct. 17 and 18, entertaining passersbys while educating them about disaster preparedness.
The Quake Cottage, developed in California, is no ordinary attraction. The earthquake simulator enables people to gain a genuine sense of what living through an earthquake is like, both in terms of vibration and noise.
Three people can go inside the small, portable room that recreates the sensation of the ground shaking.
The simulation only lasts about 30 seconds, yet Quake Cottage’s Rob Friesen says it leaves an impression on visitors.
‘‘People are shocked about how it feels, how destabilized they are,” Friesen said.
“They didn’t know that there was a real noise during an earthquake, but there is. It feels like a freight train will go to your house. They are quite alarmed that it could be that severe.”
He said the simulation prompts visitors to start asking questions about their own preparedness and what they should do.
‘‘It is a wake-up call,’’ Friesen said.
“They do become more alert and more concerned about being prepared.’’
The experience helps people learn good habits that help reduce the risk in their homes. Lessons learned include knowing places to hide at home or in the office, determining a person to call in case of emergency, securing furniture that might fall, keeping an emergency kit and extra water on hand and making sure that the gas tank of your car is always at least one-quarter full.
The Quake Cottage was invented in 1994 by Micheal Essrig, who owns Safe-T-Proof, a company that sells devices to secure furniture in case of an earthquake.
The event was organized by the Insurance Bureau of Canada, which has sponsored similar demonstrations in British Columbia for more than a year. But this is the first time that the device will come to Ottawa. The country’s only mobile earthquake simulator will also tour Quebec this fall.
The use of an earthquake simulator can be quite effective in helping to raise awareness about how to be prepared in case of an earthquake, according to Craig Stewart, vice-president of the Ottawa-based IBC.
‘‘Because it is kind of an amusement park ride,’’ he said, ‘‘it tends to attract people who want to experience an earthquake under controlled circumstances. ’’
Ottawa is, in fact, a seismically active place. After the West Coast, the Ottawa-Montreal corridor is the second most at-risk region for earthquakes in Canada.
Ottawa had three earthquakes in the past year and a 5.0 magnitude quake caused minor damage to some buildings in and around the city in 2010.
‘‘The geology in the Ottawa region is capable of producing a quake more than ten times stronger than the one that was felt’’ six years ago, said Stewart.
Some Insurance companies represented by the Insurance Bureau of Canada offer earthquake insurance options. But Stewart said the simulator isn’t about persuading people to buy quake insurance.
‘‘The event is meant to insure public safety, it’s not to promote earthquake insurance,’’ he said. ‘‘However, in high risk zones, insurance is always a good option to have.’’
The simulator is free to try and will be placed on Sparks between Bank and O’Connor streets.