The University of Oregon was awarded $237,000 this week as part of a grant from the U.S. Geological Survey. Those funds are part of a greater $3.7 million fund that is dispersed among six universities on the West Coast, according to a press release.
The funding is allotted in order to improve the “ShakeAlert” early warning system, which is designed to give users a chance to get to safety before heavy earthquake activity begins.
Oregon Senators Jeff Merkley and Ron Wyden are throwing their support behind the project.
““The Cascadia earthquake has the possibility of being the worst natural disaster in North American history and this funding will help make sure that our West Coast communities have the most up-to-date early warning system,” said Merkley. “We have to do everything we can to prepare for this potential disaster and it’s great knowing that the important work going on at the University of Oregon will help advance this system.”
The UO has stepped up in recent years, taking the lead on a number of aspects of the ShakeAlert project.
“Earthquakes are deadly serious business for the West Coast, which is why it’s crucial that the University of Oregon gets the funding it needs to continue its life-saving research,” Wyden said.“This funding will move the U of O closer to creating a fully developed early warning system that could save untold numbers of lives and give our communities up and down the coast and throughout the state more time to prepare for the worst.”