ted, thereby making it difficult for emergency vehicles to get through. The 1989 quake in the San Francisco Bay area showed that freeway overpasses and bridges might collapse during a large shaker. Landslides often occur during earthquakes, thereby increasing the possibility of road closures in the area. Telecommunications are also often shut down in the aftermath of a large scale earthquake. In particular, telephone lines may fall down as a result of the ground's shaking movements. Related to this, electric power may be shut off during a powerful earthquake. Furthermore, water lines could be damaged by an earthquake, thereby shutting off vital water supplies to the residents of the city. All of these factors make it difficult for people to receive emergency help in a timely manner.
Another reason for this difficulty is the fact that emergency personnel in such agencies as the police department, fire department and the Red Cross are often overloaded in the wake of a large scale disaster. As noted by Virginia Kimball in her book Earthquake Ready, "paramedics, ambulances, and fire engines will be in short supply after a disastrous earthquake" (Kimball, 1988, p. 141). The police department might also be overloaded with the task of maintaining law and order in the city. In the words of Stephen L. Harris, "most survivors behave responsibly, even heroically" after a major earthquake; however, "some segments of the population may panic while others loot" (Harris, 1990, pp. 62-63). Because of this problem, the city's police department may be unable to provide immediate aid to the university following a quake. Thus, because of the difficulties in getting through, as well as the problems of being overloaded, the university cannot necessarily depend upon outside help in the hours immediately following a major tremor. The university must have a plan for being self sufficient at such a time, "since the very facilities that are mos...