Under most circumstances, shouting “Earthquake! We’re having an earthquake!” is a completely rational way for one to respond when experiencing an earthquake. Geological events are scary, and a certain degree of shock is entirely acceptable. That’s assuming, of course, that you’re not on live television when the ground begins to shake. In that scenario, you’d do well to remain calm–and not, for instance, let a look akin to a real-life Edvard Munch painting come across your face before ducking under a newsdesk.
KTLA-TV Channel 5 news anchor Chris Schauble learned this the hard way when his reaction to this morning’s earthquake–in all its deer in the headlights glory–went viral as quickly as news of the quake itself. Schauble–who was on the air with his partner, Megan Henderson–was about to go to commercial break at 6:25 PST when the studio began to tremble, leading to the hilariously human moment that launched a thousand memes. Watch the video of the moment above, and take heart in knowing that Schauble himself got a laugh out of the whole thing. “LOL! Best… Face… Ever!,” he tweeted earlier this afternoon.
Elsewhere in Slate: The First Person to Report on the L.A. Earthquake Wasn’t Actually A Person
