Thursday, which marked the 18th anniversary of the devastating 921 Earthquake that killed 2,456 people, brought with it the news that two Taiwanese had been killed in Tuesday’s massive earthquake in Mexico.
Earthquakes are a fact of life in Taiwan, Mexico and other nations, and after each big temblor questions are raised about the preparedness of nations, cities, disaster and emergency response personnel, and government officials.
This is happening now in Mexico, just like after the Jiji quake on Sept. 21, 1999, which was centered in Nantou County, and the magnitude 6.4 quake that caused so much damage in Tainan on Feb. 6 last year.
In 2000, the government designated Sept. 21 as National Disaster Prevention Day to commemorate the Jiji quake, and each year since then drills have been held to test government and public responsiveness.
On Thursday, the Central Weather Bureau tested the public warning system that was established earlier this year by sending test messages to cellphone users nationwide, one about a quake at 9:21am and one about a tsunami at 10am.
The test quake message was received by most cellphone owners, except for some subscribers of Chunghwa Telecom’s 4G service. While those who did not receive the message were upset, the test showed that the system by and large worked and where improvements need to be made. That is why tests are held.
Thursday marked the first time all major television stations aired earthquake drill procedures, while the Ministry of the Interior conducted a hazard response exercise with fire departments in seven counties.
The weather bureau’s Seismology Center also announced that it is working to establish six more underwater seismic monitoring stations within three years, to bring the total to nine since the first one was set up off Yilan County in 2011.
However, the bureau warned that the nation has experienced few quakes of magnitude 4 or higher this year, raising the risk of a major tremor.
The bureau has good reason to be worried about the build-up of energy beneath the Earth’s crust.
A government study on soil liquefaction published in March last year found that parts of eight cities and counties, including about half of Taipei, were highly vulnerable to structural collapse during earthquakes, more than previously believed, prompting the Cabinet to announce a six-year improvement plan.
In the wake of the 921 Earthquake, building seismic safety codes were made stricter, but experts have said that while major construction firms — those that are publicly traded or backed by the government — usually adhere to these codes, smaller or unscrupulous firms might not.
The Tainan earthquake was a reminder that many residential or mixed-use buildings that have commercial spaces on the ground floor are at risk, because structural support walls and beams are often removed to allow for more space or larger windows.
Research conducted in Tainan last year by US firm Degenkolb Engineers found “severe irregularities” in many buildings in the city, including weak floors and exterior walls that had “torsional problems,” meaning the structures could twist during quakes.
Preparedness, warning and evacuation drills are necessary, and they attract news coverage.
Ensuring that all buildings, old or new, public or private, meet requirements is not sexy; it does not draw widespread coverage — yet it could do more to save lives than a text warning or an evacuation drill.
While the government is checking public buildings, leaving it up to the owners of privately owned structures to conduct their own seismic safety evaluations should no longer be an option. Especially in the case of apartment buildings, it can be difficult to get all the owners to agree because of cost considerations.
Lawmakers, city and county councils and the central government should work to remedy this.
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