Schools take part in an earthquake exercise organized by IDF's Home Front Command

All across Israel, from the North to the South, Grade Schools and High Schools, Israel's children and teachers had an exercise to practice what to do in the event of a major earthquake.

According to the exercises commander, Colonel Efi Mashov: "The question is not if there will be an earthquake, but rather when will it happen and how sever will it be?"  Colonel Mashov went on to say: "Israel sits right on top of area that is highly active from a seismological point of view.  We are long overdue for an earthquake and have been experiencing minor tremors for some years now.  It is vital that our children and their teachers know what to do when the quake hits". 

The quake drill was similar to one held last year which also simulated what to do in the event of a missile attack.

 Sources in the Ministry of the Infrastructure said that a major earthquake in Israel could be disastrous, knocking out vital infrastructure and destroying tens of thousands of homes.  One of the worries that Ministry officials have is the fact that, in such an eventuality, Israel's emergency forces will be unable to cope with the scope of the response  they will be required to make.  One official, who declined to be named said : "When it happens, we will need all the help we can get otherwise the loss of life could rival that of a full scale war.  We will need doctors and nurses, electricians, engineers, firefighters and in fact anybody who is willing to help us out"