Comments on: Natural Disasters, National Diligence: The Chilean Earthquake in Perspective

By: Mitigating disaster « Integrity Talking Points

Mitigating disaster « Integrity Talking Points — Thu, 17 Mar 2011 04:12:07 +0000

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By: Kaufmann

Kaufmann — Fri, 15 Oct 2010 19:15:16 +0000

It is mid-October, 2010 now, months after the mammoth earthquake. The dramatic events surrounding the fate and eventual rescue of the 33 miners that had been trapped for 69 days in the San Jose mine in the Atacama desert, following the collapse of the mine in early August, is another potent illustration of the strength of governance, leadership and human resilience in Chile.

By: Frank-Michael Jaeger

Frank-Michael Jaeger — Wed, 05 May 2010 15:09:07 +0000

Earthquake disasters – in-situ stress measurement in concrete – a component for the geolocation
With the new acousto elasticy sensors of IBJ Technology can be measured for the first time the concrete tension on-line permanently directly. No sensors are needed for the measurement of the stretch. The acousto elasticy effect seizes directly the influence of the concrete tension on the wave velocity of ultrasonic. This speed change of the ultrasonic waves directly in the sensor are measured. The sensors consist of a small measuring body, which is embedded in the concrete. The pressure strength of the sensors is so large, which is practically indestructible them. In practical attempts concrete inspection pieces were completely destroyed. The tension sensors get over this crash without prejudice to and remain in function. The concrete case of application of these new sensors of IBJ Technology for stress measurement in concrete are on-line measuring procedures for building security. The sensors are characterised by their special suitability for the remote monitoring of buildings of all kinds.
The instrumentation use of the acousto elasticy effect makes qualitatively and quantitatively new measuring and safeguards methods possible in buildings and in the mountains. As example of possible applications the monitoring of local tensile states in buildings can be enough over Period to be called. Further new and at the same time economical applications result, like on-line monitoring of the answer spectrum of buildings of any kind in seismically active areas. Already during the building phase measurements are possible in foundations and stakes. Also tunnel-build with high overlays and/or large ground pressure features can so on-line be supervised. The measuring bodies can be brought in already in the phase of the building production, i.e. concreting. Also an additional installation into boreholes (method of the hard inclusion) or the spanning in expansion joints of buildings is possible. Innovative applications know a world-wide disaster net (disasters net).
The availability of means of transport and traffic center (roads, bridges, airports, tunnels) can within seconds be determined on-line. The representation of the destruction takes place with the geo location (Disasters Geolocation).
The activity of relief organizations can be arranged so efficient The administration and authorities of the states receive such an aid to the maintenance of public security. Seismic data describe only the geographical place and the strength. Reliable on-line data are missing for the degree of the destruction. Seismic sensors bring only measured values to acceleration. Data for the degree of the destruction must come objectively from the building (object).
The data necessary for it are determined with acousto elastic sensors by IBJ Technology.
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By: Maurice Schiff

Maurice Schiff — Fri, 26 Mar 2010 20:13:17 +0000

-On the riots and the problem of poverty, recall that the same happened with the blackout in NYC some years ago and at least in Chile people broke into supoermarkets in part to get food and water, in NYC it was all TV, stereo etc

-On modernizing the police force, one thing I believe would be helpful is to remove the police – the carabineros – from the armed forces and put them under civilian authority.

By: Kaufmann

Kaufmann — Fri, 26 Mar 2010 03:31:18 +0000

Rodolfo Aldea contributed an erudite historical account of the policy evolution in Chile to mitigate earthquake impact as a comment to the spanish version of this article, here in spanish http://thekaufmannpost.net/desastres-naturales-y-deberes-nacionales-el-terremoto-de-chile-en-una-perspectiva-internacional/comment-page-1/#comment-13298

And for anybody interested in going back almost 200 years, when on the 20th of February 1835 the earth also shook violently in the south of Chile, rattling Charles Darwin himself (and resulting on particular insghts from him), see the introduction to this article here http://www.themillions.com/2010/03/country-of-quakes.html

By: b

Tue, 23 Mar 2010 15:39:10 +0000

so sad

By: Interesting article « Earthquake in Chile: The aftermath

Interesting article « Earthquake in Chile: The aftermath — Mon, 08 Mar 2010 16:03:15 +0000

[...] Interesting article By Vivianne Check this blog: Extremely interesting article about the chilean earthquake from Governance expert, Daniel Kaufman (… [...]

By: Kaufmann

Kaufmann — Sun, 07 Mar 2010 03:57:30 +0000

The earthquake in Sichuan, China, took place on May 12, 2008. One year later, the Science section report of of the New York Times on that earthquake provided substantial information regarding the vast extent of casualties among students due to the schools that collapsed, and indicated that even an official report admitted as much (even though they point out that the authorities were not transparent about the full extent of the casualties). Among others, the article states:

‘…Thousands of the initial quake’s victims were children crushed in shoddily built schools, inciting protests by parents. Local police harassed the protestors and the government criticized them. At least one human rights advocate who championed their cause was arrested. The Chinese government has refused to release the number of students who died or their names. But one official report soon after the earthquake estimated that up to 10,000 students died in the collapse of 7,000 classrooms and dormitory rooms.

Reports emerged in July 2008 that local governments in the province had begun a coordinated campaign to buy the silence of angry parents whose children died during the earthquake. Most parents whose children died took a payment of about $8,800 from the local government and a guarantee of a pension in exchange for silence.

In December 2008, government officials acknowledged in the most definitive report since the earthquake that many school buildings across the country are poorly constructed and that 20 percent of primary schools in one southwestern province may be unsafe….’

The full article is here. And incidentally, a short film about this, called ‘China’s Unnatural Disaster’ has been nominated for an Academy award.

By: godfree Roberts

godfree Roberts — Sun, 07 Mar 2010 01:48:10 +0000

The comment “and China (where many schools full of pupils collapsed)” is based upon the testimony of a Chinese man who crusaded as a government critic. He early claimed that 11,000 children had died in the quake and that the government was hiding the magnitude of the disaster. However, subsequent completion of the death and damage report showed that the government’s figures were quite accurate, and that the percentage of school-age children killed was proportionate to their representation in the population as a whole.