How people prepare for earthquakes

Question 1

Preparedness measures

Answer 1

• can reduce extent of damage
• allow populations to survive earthquake
  1. Landuse regulation
  2. Building design and infrastructure
  3. Emergency drills
  4. Use of technology

Question 2

Preparedness measure: Landuse regulation

Answer 2

• a set of rules implemented to restrict development in certain areas
• e.g. California, USA all new building developments not built on fault lines or areas at risk of liquefaction (occurs when vibration of EQ causes saturated soil to flow like a liquid
• -another land-use regulation: prohibit construction of new buildings on low-lying land (vulnerable to tsunamis)
• development only allowed when protective barriers e.g. seawalls facing ocean are built
• e.g. this regulation is placed along coasts of Japan and North America where Pacific Ring of Fire is located

Question 3

Preparedness measure: Landuse Regulation (concern)

Answer 3

• land-use regulations may often need to be built it areas that are already built-up or privately owned
• sometimes gov need to buy land from private owners and compensate them
• strategies may be costly, pl may be reluctant to move a they believe another hazard wouldnt happen

Question 4

Preparedness measure: Building design and infrastructure

Answer 4

• infrastructure needs to be developed with advanced engineering, withstand vibrations from EQ
• Effective building design: reduce collapse of buildings, minimise damage
  1. Steel and reinforced concrete can withstand EQ btr than more birttle materials e.g. non reinforced concrete
  2. Damping device: shock absorbers, counterweights, move in opp direction to motion of EQ e.g. Taipei 101
  3. Constructing buildings with wide and heavy base, less likely to collapse

Question 5

Preparedness measure: other examples of building design and infrastructure

Answer 5

1. road, bridge, dams built to resist shaking of ground, dont collapse easily, can be easily repaired if they do
2. Homes, office buildings, factories, fitted with trip switches, ensures all electrical pts switched off in event of EQ , prevent fires
3. Chile, Japan, California have constructed earthquake resistant buildings, less lives lost, faster rescue and evacuation, less money spent to recovery at affect areas

Question 6

Preparedness measure: Building design and infrastructure (concern)

Answer 6

• advance engineering, infrastructural development add to cost of construction, maintenance of buildings
• expensive to convert existing buildings to include EQ resistant features
• if conversion expensive, buildings have to be demolished and rebuilt

Question 7

Preparedness measure: Emergency drills

Answer 7

• ppl practice steps to take when EQ occurs
• create awareness, reduce level of panic and irrational behaviour among population
• ppl take part in emergency drills by moving to safe locations, listening to instructions given by trained personnel and practicing first aid
• may become members of local response teams, assist ppl during disaster
• e.g. every year since 1960, Japan conducts emergency drills on 1 Sept to commemorate Disaster Prevention Day, ppl all arnd country involved, stimulation of high magnitude EQ, prepare ppl mentally on how to react

Question 8

Preparedness measure: Emergency drills (Concern)

Answer 8

• drills based on most serious EQ ever recorded in that area in the past, may be inadequate to prevent devastation of areas affected
• e.g. 2011 Tohoku EQ occurred on a scale never experienced in Japan, drills and evacuation plans not enough to prevent devastation in certain areas
• emergency procedures only effective if theres enough time to evacuate, EQ difficult to predict, may be insufficient time

Question 9

Preparedness measure: Use of technology (EQ monitoring and warning systems)

Answer 9

• EQ monitored by history of time and place where it occurred
• provides estimation of frequency and magnitude of EQ at particular fault lines, can be btr predicted
• installing EQ sensors in EQ prone zones help monitor frequency of vibrations, detect possible developments of EQ
• e.g. In Japan, Earthquake motion data gathered from hundreds of observation stations installed on bridges and roads, monitor ground motion, can predict EQ

Question 10

Preparedness measure: Use of technology (EQ monitoring and warning systems) concern

Answer 10

• EQ sensors expensive to obtain install and use
• EQ occurs seconds after warning is sounded, not enough time for evacuation
• noise, lightning, device failure may interfere with seismograph, false warnings
• warnings may be inaccurate when multiple EQ occur close to each other (aftershocks)

Question 11

preparedness measure: use of tech (tsunami monitoring and warning system)

Answer 11

• often linked to warning systems, activated to warn ppl abt occurrence of tsunami
• e.g. network of pressure sensors, seismographs, deep ocean tsunami detectors located in Hawaii, USA, monitor and forecast path of tsunamis
• however, prone to giving false alarms when waves are high
• little time to evacuate when approaching tsunami is detected