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Washington planning second large-scale earthquake drill

A member of the Washington Army National Guard 792nd Chemical Company from Grandview, Wash., demonstrates a decontamination station, Wednesday, June 8, 2016, in Port Angeles, Wash. The exercise was part of a massive earthquake and tsunami drill called Cascadia Rising, that is built around the premise of a 9.0 magnitude earthquake 95 miles off of the coast of Oregon that results in a tsunami. (Ted S. Warren / Associated Press)
Associated Press

SPOKANE, Wash. – Geologists say it’s only a matter of time before a large-scale earthquake hits Washington’s Cascadia Subduction Zone.

KING-TV reports the Washington Emergency Management Division has started initial planning for its second “Cascadia Rising,” the region’s largest disaster-scenario exercise, testing how local, state and federal agencies would respond if a 9.0 magnitude earthquake hit along the Washington and Oregon coast.

The first Cascadia Rising exercise was held two years ago. Officials say the second will happen in four years.

Lit Dudley, the exercise and training section manager at the state Emergency Management Division, says the 2022 exercise will test the response of Washington, Alaska, Oregon and Idaho, as well as British Columbia, FEMA, Public Safety Canada and U.S. Northern Command.