PlasChem Shelters Played an Instrumental Role During the 7.0 Magnitude Earthquake in Alaska on November 30th.

PlasChem Shelters played an instrumental role during the 7.0 magnitude earthquake in Alaska on November 30th, 2018.

Damage to Vine Road in Wasilla Alaska after the 7.0 Magnitude earthquake on November 30, 2018

The earthquake occurred just 7 short miles north of downtown Anchorage at 8:29AM local time.  The earthquake caused numerous power outages and caused several roads to collapse as the surrounding ground shifted.  While Alaska has tens of thousands of earthquakes each year, most aren't even perceptible or are far enough away from the highly populated areas so that they do not cause any real damage or concern.  You can read more about the earthquake on November 30, 2018 on the following link from the Alaska Earthquake Center.  As of this writing we have had over 1,400 aftershocks since the one on Friday morning.

But Friday's earthquake caused thousands of Alaskans to frantically locate their loved ones and then return home to find that the electricity was out along with considerable damage inside.  Miraculously, there were no severe injuries or deaths attributed to this devastating earthquake.

Like most Alaskans, my cell phone continued to work throughout the day as though nothing ever happened.  The reason why is that most of the providers of the cellular networks across Alaska utilize our PlasChem Shelters to house their equipment.  While most of the PlasChem Shelters utilized by the cellular companies in the highly populated area of the Municipality of Anchorage and the Matanuska-Susitna Borough are on the electrical grid, they are equipped with a battery back-up system to power themselves in the event of a power outage.  On an even higher level of protection, most of Verizon's equipment has a PlasChem Shelter with a generator inside too in order to keep the batteries charged if the electrical system isn't restored within about 24 hours.




In addition to the cellular applications, PlasChem Shelters are also used by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) to house sensitive seismic monitoring equipment for the National Tsunami Warning Center based in Palmer, AK.  These stations monitor seismic activity all across the state so as to provide valuable information in order to protect and warn Alaskans in the event of a tsunami.  Our shelters provide the protection for that equipment to monitor what was happening and to issue the tsunami warning.  If you don't follow the National Tsunami Warning Center, here is a link to their Facebook page.  There has been a lot of informational posts on their page since Friday and is certainly worth a look when you have a few minutes to spare.

Additionally, PlasChem Shelters house the equipment for the State of Alaska Emergency Communications System.  That is a critically important function as it is the system that the police, fire, EMTs, etc. utilize every day...and especially so during an event like we had on November 30, 2018.

We customized three of our PlasChem Shelters for the IRIS Earthscope project. (seen to the right) This is an incredible project for scientists to be able to better understand volcanic and earthquake activity in North America.  You can find out more about their work on the following IRIS Earthscope Link.  PlasChem Shelters are also used by the USGS, UNAVCO, Alaska Volcano Observatory, the Geophysical Institute, and the National Science Foundation.



We wish all Alaskans a safe and speedy recovery from the Alaska earthquake on November 30, 2018 and we are proud to be fellow Alaskans during this time.

For more information about our line of PlasChem Shelters, feel free to call our shop at (907)376-7160 or email us at sales@PlasChemShelters.com and we can discuss how we can build a shelter to accommodate your needs.