How to Survive in Earthquake-Potential Area
When an earthquake occurs, there are plenty of people are killed in vain. Earthquake, especially its vibration, however, is not lethal. The victims of earthquake mostly killed because of being befallen by the collapse of buildings, roofs, trees, etc. Actually, what really kills those victims is the ignorance of earthquake science that makes their minds goes blank when earthquake happens. Furthermore, the dearth of preventive actions worsens this situation. For those who live in an earthquake-potential area, such mistakes are expected to vanish from their minds. That’s why, we have to do some comprehensive actions so that we can live safely in an earthquake-potential area.
The first action is preventive actions. There are at least three things that we have to concern as preventive actions. The first is that program research of earthquake science. It is aimed at observing the locations where the earthquake will potentially happen, analyzing and creating the map of the level of danger, selecting the appropriate technologies of earthquake’s mitigation, and choosing the best techniques of building retrofitting. Second, build a good early warning system, structurally and culturally, using the technology of global positioning system (GPS) to monitor the process of earthquake. Last, build evacuation and emergency system that will facilitate people who want to survive when earthquake happens so that there will be no longer hurriedness and anxieties that always successfully kill them all in vain.
The educative actions as the second action hold the most essential aspects of surviving life in earthquake. They include socialization and training as the theoretical and real actions that must be supported by the government in all levels. Take for instance, socialization. It is indispensable for the government to teach the basic science of earthquake to people. It can be transferred to people through mass media such as television or newspaper, or taught directly from one area to another area by the local government, city government, or province government. The materials, for example, are all about earthquake; what earthquake is, how earthquake happen, and what to do when earthquake attacks. The real action is rehearsal held by social organization or government. It implements the previous theoretical lessons into the real actions. The materials are about pre-earthquake actions, when-earthquake-happens actions, and post-earthquake actions. Surely, it needs the good teamwork of government, mass media, social organization, and society.
The last actions we can do are long-range plans of development. These three things will do for us to plan the saver place to live. The first is that run development plans of safe area including developing and building the new area which is safe enough from the risks of destruction caused by earthquake. Second, rebuild and retrofit old houses so that they can defend themselves from the vibration of earthquake that easily destructs their build before killing people. This very action must concern to the strict building code learned in architecture science. The last thing that we can do is that form Local Committee of Disaster Prevention that will actively and effectively monitor, report, and handle the entire situation related to the disaster, in this case is earthquake.
Actually, there is a hope for us to live harmoniously with earthquake as long as we pay more attention to such a disaster. So, preventive and educative actions, and also long range-plans of development are comprehensive actions to live safely in an earthquake-potential area.
