Students should ensure their televisions and bookcases are secured and they have basic emergency supplies in case of an earthquake, Chief Campus Health Officer Dr. Sarah Van Orman said Tuesday in a briefing with campus media. 

On Monday morning, a 5.2 magnitude earthquake hit San Diego and was felt throughout Los Angeles, as reported by ABC News. 

“Sometimes people who come from an area where there aren’t earthquakes aren’t aware of the precautions you need to take,” Van Orman said. “Making sure that you have basic emergency supplies in your home like water, the ability to charge your phone … basic earthquake supplies in your car if you were to be stuck, like a little extra water in your car or comfortable shoes.”

Van Orman said USC has a detailed emergency response plan in the case of a serious earthquake. Student Health’s role is to activate the mass casualty plan, which involves assembling tents and tarps on campus to provide immediate medical care to anyone injured. 

“[The University earthquake plan] includes training. There are people trained all over campus to engage in activities such as search and rescue,” Van Orman said. “There’s plans with [USC] Environmental Health and Safety for immediate building surveillance, making sure that our structures are sound, and every year we practice that plan during the Great ShakeOut in October.”

Tuesday morning, the air quality at University Park Campus was “moderate,” according to USC’s Environmental Health and Safety website. AirNow reported that South Central has had a moderate amount of fine particle pollution in the air since April 4. Van Orman said that because L.A. rests in a basin, pollution and smog often remain in the city rather than dissipating.

“We have these events where the air just doesn’t move, and that’s often where we see the spike in air quality,” Van Orman said. “When we get into the moderate range, some people will start to experience low-level symptoms … people who might have asthma, benign lung disease, might actually start to experience some shortness of breath.”

Van Orman said people without sensitivity to air quality may also experience a scratchy or irritated throat during periods of poor air quality. Van Orman said poor air quality was often associated with heat waves and encouraged students to check the weather before participating in outdoor activities.

“Keep that app on your phone with the temperature, particularly if you’re going to be going out and engaging in strenuous physical activity,” Van Ormand said. “Pay attention to the air quality, and you may consider moving indoors or maybe waiting a day or two, or even a few hours if the air quality is going to be poor, rather than going out.”

Student Health’s Good Night, Trojan event will be held April 24. The event will teach students “sleep skills” and provide students with a space to relax with refreshments. The event will also reveal USC’s “Most Relaxing Professor.” Students can listen to nominees read calming stories through a link on the USC Student Health Instagram account and vote for their preferred nominee; the winner will record a sleep story with Calm. 

Van Orman said the event would also feature sleep masks, free subscriptions to Calm and guest speakers. 

“We’re trying to help people learn to sleep better. We know poor sleep is one of the biggest health issues,” Van Orman said. “We hope it’s fun and people can … just get a little sleep hygiene before the [end] of the semester.”