Did anyone else happen to notice an earthquake that killed 20,000 people!

Hi Walking Man-

Don't worry, the "civilized" countries like France and Germany will find ways to blame the United States for not providing enough assistance quickly enough for Pakistan, India, and Afghanistan.

~ Blue Jays ~
 
Blue Jays said:
Hi Walking Man-

Don't worry, the "civilized" countries like France and Germany will find ways to blame the United States for not providing enough assistance quickly enough for Pakistan, India, and Afghanistan.

~ Blue Jays ~
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This is the Community Forum. Keep politics out of here. :mad:
 
I think they have raised the count to 30,000 now. It's hard to grasp death figures that high. tragic
 
It is tragic that a few seconds of shaking can kill that many people.
I just heard from my neighbour who just came back from the mosque here in Stoke-on-Trent, UK. One of the guys there lost his son in the quake.
 
One of the most serious problems in those areas is that the buildings have no sort of reinforced construction, so they collapse. That kills a lot of people, but almost as bad, it means everyone else has no place to go and pitifully little equipment or supplies afterwards.

Many of the smaller towns are so isolated, even scarcely known to their government, that they are really on their own.
 
Each time a major quake hits an area like this, there are also lots of complaints about substandard buildings which get built anyway due to the widespread corruption.
 
Hi All-
K.V. Collucci said:
"...This is the Community Forum. Keep politics out of here..."
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Oops, my bad. Just another post to echo that their biggest problem is acceptance of construction techniques that wouldn't pass inspection in other locales. One has to think that some of the areas away from the epicenter weren't rocked as violently, but they still unfortunately managed to have large buildings reduced to rubble, dust, and twisted steel.

~ Blue Jays ~
 
and twisted steel.
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That's the problem, not nearly enough of that. To make a concerete prefabricated-panel multistory house earthquake resistant takes a lot of steel.

TLM
 
I have heard accounts of nefarious building contractors in some of those areas cutting alot of corners and using inferior materials. Truth is, a much smaller earthquake would have had the same results, just not as widespread. :(
They also are lacking alot of SAR capability and heavy machinery to aid in rescue and cleanup. This is a tragedy on an epic scale. :(
 
The traditional solution to earthquake-proof buildings was to build houses out of paper and bamboo, so it doesn't kill you when it collapses on your head and it's easy to build a new one afterward. Maybe they should have stayed with tradition.
 
The traditional solution to earthquake-proof buildings was to build houses out of paper and bamboo, so it doesn't kill you when it collapses on your head and it's easy to build a new one afterward. Maybe they should have stayed with tradition.
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I think that is more traditional to Japan and Korea. Yes it also works and often the house is so resilient that it only sways.

In the hot arid regions the one-story house was often mud, those walls when thick enough seem to have taken earthquakes fairly well. It's often the new construction techniques that incorrectly applied produce these collapsing houses.

TLM
 
Unlike hurricanes, tsunamis, volcanoes and other disasters, earthquakes can happen in some areas with no notice. True here in Cali. One of the reasons to plan and organize one's disaster preparedness. And many times, though, it still won't be enough but all you can do is try.
 
Cougar Allen said:
The traditional solution to earthquake-proof buildings was to build houses out of paper and bamboo, so it doesn't kill you when it collapses on your head and it's easy to build a new one afterward. Maybe they should have stayed with tradition.
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I agree, I was actually going to post something of that nature but I suppose you beat me to it. So it's true great minds DO think alike. :p
 
Cougar Allen said:
The traditional solution to earthquake-proof buildings was to build houses out of paper and bamboo, so it doesn't kill you when it collapses on your head and it's easy to build a new one afterward. Maybe they should have stayed with tradition.
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I would imagine that light weight construction materials and methods would be somewhat climate dependent. Such as snow build up on the roof, etc. However, for more moderate climates, that sounds like a good idea.

The use of recycled materials would be practical. I'm sure 2 layers of cardboard with insulating foam would be pretty energy efficient.

I'd enjoy reading up on these techniques.
 
Earthquake latest
and here

I think The SAR organisation of the most developed countries could do very little in the aftermath of an earthquake which has killed tens of thousands, injured hundreds of thousands and affected millions. Large areas of the affected region have few proper roads at the best of times. The mountainous nature of the region makes the use of aircraft in many areas well-nigh impossible. Think NO, then remember that there was no warning at all and how many more people were injured or killed. I don't know about Pakistan, but in India the army are trained and organised to respond to these events and the Indian government asked foreign teams to stay away after their last major earthquake as they would only get in the way.

Around 20,000 children are estimated killed.
About 90,000 people in Birmingham have relatives in the area.
Birmingham has sent a fire team to take part in the search and rescue campaign.

Andy
 
Yes, we know of it of course and have seen the pictures, news, are saddened about it for them. I believe we are on the winding down side emotionally from Hurricane Katrina, the wildfires in California, our Military in Iraq...so I think we may have been shell shocked pretty well in America but God bless the earthquake victims and families. :(
 
I read and heard with tears in my eyes of one village that lost all of its children between the ages of 5 and 15 as they were all in schools when the quake hit and the scools collapsed upon them. I gather that it is similar in almost all of the towns in the area hit by the quake. So sad, so very sad. They have lost an entire generation.

I did hear a few bright notes, such as the guy who dug for over two days and rescued his pregnant wife from their collapsed home in time for the baby to be born. Both survived and the baby was named the local term for "Earthquake". Then there was the young woman who survived three days in the rubble with only a copy of the Quran on her chest to keep her company and to keep her spirits up. They heard her praying and found her.

Oh, and the US has sent Chinook CH-47 heavy lift helicopters in from Afghanistan to aid in the relief efforts. We are also sending a carrier task force with its airlift capabilities. Airlift seems to be the MOST needed asset at the moment and that is something with which we can certainly help.
 
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