Valley mobile home residents react to Ridgecrest quake

Local mobile home residents in the Coachella Valley are reacting to the 6.4 earthquake near Ridgecrest and spoke about what their thoughts keeping safe.

“Low roller. Lasted quite a long time,” Blair Millington of Desert Hot Springs said.

“I had people calling us saying did you hear that. Did you hear that? Did you feel that? They thought maybe it was thunder,” Amma Clark of Palm Springs said.

That’s the reaction of some valley mobile home residents a day after the 6.4 earthquake that left many rattled Thursday morning. The images of damaged trailer homes fresh in their minds.

“It was kind of eye-opening, frightening,” Clark said.

She says she feels safe where she lives in Palm Springs, making sure her home is secure.

“Our mobile is up to three or four steps for ours, so we have to make sure bracing underneath is secure,” Clark said.

The American Red Cross says doing checks on your mobile home is a good idea, as they’re more vulnerable to an earthquake than a regular home.

“They just don’t have all the structural capabilities that a regular house has,” Gerald Winkel, disaster program manager in Riverside County for the American Red Cross, said. “You need to make sure at any time, where your exits are and practice that at least twice a year with your family.”

Others say they feel confident their home can withstand the shaking, due to the sandy terrain.

“They’re going to sink. The ground is going to turn to water and it’s all going to settle. They’re not going to break. That’s not going to happen,” Millington said.

Clark says she is well-prepared and not worried about future quakes.

“We’ve been here all of our lives. Had a few jolts here and there, but I feel safe,” she said.

And as always the Red Cross wants to remind everyone no matter where you live to be prepared:

“It’s very important you have supplies to sustain yourself and also have them in reach,” Winkel said.

Clark says she’s well-prepared just in case.

“We have an emergency go-bag in case we have to leave. Just grab that bag and go,” she said.