FLORENCE, Miss. (WJTV) – Florence Elementary students participated in the ‘Great ShakeOut’ earthquake drill on Thursday, October 19.

The school joined other schools across the U.S. to practice three essential actions to take during an earthquake.

Although only a small number of earthquakes have been centered in Mississippi, officials with the Mississippi Emergency Management Agency (MEMA) said the state has been affected by numerous shocks from neighboring states, particularly along the ‘New Madrid Seismic Zone.’

“It’s very important because one thing we strive is based on any of our drills is to kind of make it a common place. They know exactly what to do for fire. They know exactly what to do for severe weather, so that when the event actually happens, this is just another day for them. They do exactly like they’ve been told to do and trained to do. And a lot of the kids actually enjoy doing these drills,” said Brian Grantham, administrator for school safety for the Rankin County School District.

Organizers said more than 14 million people registered to participate in the drill in the U.S.