Earthquakes donīt kill people (generally), collapsing buildings do - meaning it is cities where the most lives can be saved. Here are their smartest ideas so farWhat would an entirely flood-proof city look like?Between 1994 and 2013, nearly half a million people around the world died due to earthquakes, with another 118.3 million affected. A further 250,000 deaths resulted from subsequent tsunamis - chiefly in 2004 in the Indian Ocean - and more than 700 from ash fall.Earthquakes affect every continent, though certain areas - the Pacific border of South America, the western coast of North America and Mexico, Alaska, south-eastern Europe, New Zealand and much of Asia - are especially prone. Though rarer than floods, they can cause devastating damage and large numbers of casualties very quickly. The Haitian earthquake in January 2010 killed an estimated 230,000 people, injured 300,000 and displaced 1.5 million from their homes. It also caused around $8bn of destruction, and its impacts are still being felt today. Continue reading...
|