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During the 8:00 a.m. news this morning on Radio Scotland, the BBC's Richard Galpin reported from the scene of the June 4 earthquake on Sumatra that many people had survived because they managed to get out of their houses during the earthquake (or that was my understanding; I could not find this thought replicated on the BBC website). I understand that literature on how to act during a earthquake normally states "stop, drop, and take cover", or stay in a well-supported area of the building, until the shaking stops and then exit the building and stay away from structures. This material, though, is normally geared towards developed countries and I would guess that it makes the assumption that the structure has been engineered to the best of our ability to withstand the forces induced by earthquakes. I would be curious to know if anyone could confirm Galpin's report that many people survived this earthquake, or others in the past, because they left their houses during the shaking. From those who have experienced a severe earthquake, would such action actually be possible? As well, what would be the best manner of trying to survive an earthquake in a structure which has not been properly engineered to avoid collapse during an earthquake? Thank you very much for your time, Ilan ________________________________________________________________________ Get Your Private, Free E-mail from MSN Hotmail at http://www.hotmail.com %%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%%