By Mark W. Medley
The last two years has seen an increase in more deadly earthquakes, which have struck Chile, China, Haiti, Indonesia, and Pakistan, often with deadly effects. Living in a new era of deadlier quakes, and increased seismic activity, how can we reduce the deadlier aftereffects of an Earthquake?
Some Countries are in the quake zone, notably Chile, Haiti and Indonesia. A Zone which lays far beneath our oceans and land masses, which spread across all our continents. In Indonesia, quakes are a regular occurrence, often on a daily basis, whilst in other regions rarer.
Recent Earthquakes in Chile and Haiti, have created some startling but very real discussion on how we can reduce the deadlier aftereffects of a quake. As the death toll, and damage in both countries are remarkably different. Haiti, has a history of Earthquakes, and the recent quake which devastated Port au Prince, the nations capital, created huge damage, and death tolls. This to many experts was a natural disaster, which turned into a man-made disaster.
There is a link between poverty, lack of urban planning, and the extent the disaster can hurt a country. In Japan, a nation known for Earthquakes and Tsunamis, damage and deaths from a quake, are minimal zed by planning around the possibility of a future earthquake.
The disaster in Haiti, was caused by the fact the country was too poor, to implement the same planning as Japan. Neither could lives be saved, because local emergency services were overwhelmed by the extent of the earthquake. It turned into a man-made disaster.
Chile has coped better, because of epicenter of the quake was away from the center of a city, and the country had a much more developed infrastructure, with more modern emergency services. The quake was more spread out, but the death toll less. Nations which are part of the quake zone, however poor or wealthy, need to accept that one day a quake will occur. This is natural, and part of the way our planet has evolved.
One way we could help these nations which live in the reality that there is always a chance a deadly quake could strike, is to assist in helping these nations create a system, which minimizes the man-made effects after an earthquake has struck.
Buildings could be either strengthened or relocated in areas where a risk of an earthquake is lessened- in poorer countries, cheaper, but effective building designs could be created, which could at least withstand the worse effects of an earthquake.
We do have the technology, and the expertise to create more effective, and low cost solutions to protecting areas, which are susceptible to earthquakes. But this takes cooperation, and a sharing of ideas, rather then sending short-term aid and assistance.
Through International cooperation, nations in the deadly quake zone, could build a basic emergency procedure network. Which today, has helped to create the Tsunami warning system, after the deadly 2004 Tsunami in Asia, and trained local response teams to deal with the after effects of a tsunami.
Chile, China, Indonesia, and Japan could spearhead this International cooperation, as they themselves are countries which have recently experienced earthquakes. Using the technology, and localized experience of dealing with the human cost of a quake, may create groundbreaking solutions to reducing the disastrous after effects of any future quake.
The last two years has seen an increase in more deadly earthquakes, which have struck Chile, China, Haiti, Indonesia, and Pakistan, often with deadly effects. Living in a new era of deadlier quakes, and increased seismic activity, how can we reduce the deadlier aftereffects of an Earthquake?
Some Countries are in the quake zone, notably Chile, Haiti and Indonesia. A Zone which lays far beneath our oceans and land masses, which spread across all our continents. In Indonesia, quakes are a regular occurrence, often on a daily basis, whilst in other regions rarer.
Recent Earthquakes in Chile and Haiti, have created some startling but very real discussion on how we can reduce the deadlier aftereffects of a quake. As the death toll, and damage in both countries are remarkably different. Haiti, has a history of Earthquakes, and the recent quake which devastated Port au Prince, the nations capital, created huge damage, and death tolls. This to many experts was a natural disaster, which turned into a man-made disaster.
There is a link between poverty, lack of urban planning, and the extent the disaster can hurt a country. In Japan, a nation known for Earthquakes and Tsunamis, damage and deaths from a quake, are minimal zed by planning around the possibility of a future earthquake.
The disaster in Haiti, was caused by the fact the country was too poor, to implement the same planning as Japan. Neither could lives be saved, because local emergency services were overwhelmed by the extent of the earthquake. It turned into a man-made disaster.
Chile has coped better, because of epicenter of the quake was away from the center of a city, and the country had a much more developed infrastructure, with more modern emergency services. The quake was more spread out, but the death toll less. Nations which are part of the quake zone, however poor or wealthy, need to accept that one day a quake will occur. This is natural, and part of the way our planet has evolved.
One way we could help these nations which live in the reality that there is always a chance a deadly quake could strike, is to assist in helping these nations create a system, which minimizes the man-made effects after an earthquake has struck.
Buildings could be either strengthened or relocated in areas where a risk of an earthquake is lessened- in poorer countries, cheaper, but effective building designs could be created, which could at least withstand the worse effects of an earthquake.
We do have the technology, and the expertise to create more effective, and low cost solutions to protecting areas, which are susceptible to earthquakes. But this takes cooperation, and a sharing of ideas, rather then sending short-term aid and assistance.
Through International cooperation, nations in the deadly quake zone, could build a basic emergency procedure network. Which today, has helped to create the Tsunami warning system, after the deadly 2004 Tsunami in Asia, and trained local response teams to deal with the after effects of a tsunami.
Chile, China, Indonesia, and Japan could spearhead this International cooperation, as they themselves are countries which have recently experienced earthquakes. Using the technology, and localized experience of dealing with the human cost of a quake, may create groundbreaking solutions to reducing the disastrous after effects of any future quake.
