The following is quoted from a news item in today's Building Design
(UK); I have not seen it elsewhere. Please don't shoot this messenger:
"Saturday's earthquake struck before Pakistani authorities had a
chance to reinforce key public buildings following a warning that the
area was at greater risk. The quake came shortly after the seismic
risk assessment for the region had been upgraded, said Zygmunt
Lubkowski, chair of the Society of Earthquake and Civil Engineering
Dynamics. The threat rating has recently been increased to take into
account analysis of the region's geology, rather than just its
earthquake history. According to Lubkowsky, Istanbul and California
also have high threat assessments at present and local authorities in
those areas have targeted key public buildings such as hospitals and
schools for strengthening works. "It's impossible to say what the
Pakistani authorities might have done given more time," he said.
Structural engineer Robin Spence, of the Cambridge University Centre
for Risk in the Built Environment, said it was no surprise that vast
numbers of buildings near to the earthquake's epicentre have
collapsed. Local building methods proved lethal when earthquakes
struck, he said."
James
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