More than 86,000 Illinois residents will seek shelter under office desks and kitchen tables on Feb. 7 as part of the "Great Central U.S. Shakeout" earthquake drill.

The Illinois Emergency Management Agency said Wednesday that more people are welcome to register for the third-annual multistate drill.

Agency Director Jonathon Monken (MUHN'-kin) says the drills help people understand the risk of earthquakes in the Midwest and "what people can do to protect themselves when the earth starts to shake."

The most powerful earthquakes ever in the U.S. happened 200 years ago along the New Madrid Seismic Zone, which reaches into southern Illinois.

The agency is encouraging schools, businesses, government offices and families to register online.