Thanks Roger

Does anyone know if the Pakistan govt or military had an effective disaster 
management/preparedness plan before the quake? It would appear not. Some 
people here in the region have privately told me that the army/govt should 
have simply sealed off access to the disaster zone to all vehicles except 
military and selected aid agencies, to avoid the chaos and traffic 
congestion which blighted the early response (as it has in many other recent 
disasters - eg Bam, Aceh). But is that kind of control or accreditation of 
agencies considered acceptable within a disaster management plan?

Jonathan
_____________________________________________________
Jonathan Walter
Editor, World Disasters Report
c/o International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies
South Asia Regional Delegation
C-1/35 Safdarjang Development Area
New Delhi-110 016, INDIA
Tel: +91 11 2685 8671
Mob: +91 98104 49283
Email: [log in to unmask]


----- Original Message ----- 
From: "Musson, Roger MW" <[log in to unmask]>
To: <[log in to unmask]>
Sent: Wednesday, October 19, 2005 4:27 PM
Subject: Re: Kashmir quake/EQ safe buildings


I'm not sure that GDP per person is the best index to use here. Consider 
instead a country's budget for military spending, which I think for Pakistan 
is around $7 billion. The rationale for a military is defence of a country's 
population; it would be no bad thing to consider disaster mitigation a 
defence issue. How many people in Pakistan have been killed in warfare, 
compared to the number killed in earthquakes or other disasters? Where are 
the priorities?

That said, Pakistan is an example of a country that has actually trimmed its 
military budget in the past to make more funds available for social projects 
(about six year ago if I remember). But there is scope for more improvement 
by considering "defence of population" a general issue of defence against 
disasters as much as hostile neighbours.

As to the cost of retrofitting, it is arguable that in a country like 
Pakistan a wholesale retrofitting programme is impractical. A selective 
programme of disaster mitigation is needed that can be fitted into a 
practical budget and scope. The two critical elements are, firstly, 
protection of key buildings (hospitals, schools, fire stations etc), and 
secondly, effective planning. With a limited budget one cannot prevent an 
earthquake calamity, but one can do a lot to mitigate its effects through 
being ready. An effective disaster management plan is a godsend. It means 
that when an earthquake strikes, there exists already something that says 
who is in charge, what he has to do, and where the resources are coming from 
to do it. Then there will be no delays in reacting to the earthquake caused 
by officials trying to make policy on the hoof.

This won't eliminate earthquake casualties, but it will reduce them, and 
this is the best practical result that one can aim for.

Roger Musson

British Geological Survey
West Mains Road
Edinburgh EH9 2NA
Scotland

tel:+44-(0)131-650-0205
fax:+44-(0)131-667-1877
email: [log in to unmask]

> -----Original Message-----
> From: Natural hazards and disasters
> [mailto:[log in to unmask]]On Behalf Of Jonathan
> Walter
> Sent: 19 October 2005 11:08
> To: [log in to unmask]
> Subject: Re: Kashmir quake/EQ safe buildings
>
>
> Dear All
>
> On October 12th, the Boston Globe announced: 'Much is known
> today about ways
> to protect buildings from earthquake damage, but doing so would be an
> unachievable luxury in a nation where the gross domestic
> product was only
> $2,200 per person in 2004'.
>
> Is this true? Or are there low-cost ways of making buildings
> earthquake-safe
> (either from scratch or retrofitting) in mountainous areas
> such as Kashmir
> and right across the Himalayan belt? This will presumably be
> a vital issue
> when it comes to reconstruction - as well as for other
> countries at risk in
> the region.
>
> Best regards
>
> Jonathan Walter
> _____________________________________________________
> Jonathan Walter
> Editor, World Disasters Report
> c/o International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies
> South Asia Regional Delegation
> C-1/35 Safdarjang Development Area
> New Delhi-110 016, INDIA
> Tel: +91 11 2685 8671
> Mob: +91 98104 49283
> Email: [log in to unmask]
>


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