[jesselyn]

:eek omg! there was an earthquake!

i was reading the posts and then suddenly they were moving :eek
after that there was an aftershock - jeez! :exit

[Jodie]

We're waiting to experience our first earthquake - we're in Welly so it can't be too much longer before we do! :eek

Have a look at this site - http://www.geonet.org.nz/ - it shows youall the recent earthquakes in NZ. There were a couple in Lower Hutt in the last few days, but we didn't feel anything.

Must be getting closer to our turn tho......

Jodie

[clg]

I can say I have felt quite a few earthquakes in my time in California. I have never got used to them but at least I can tell now when it is serious or not.

Just remember to be prepared, keep extra food and water around and really pay attention to warnings about attaching bookcases to the wall, etc. We always have supplies at home as well as some basics in our cars as well, you never know. After the Northridge earthquake we started keeping a flashlight (torch for you brits) by the bed. It is REALLY dark when you have no power and all of your furniture is in a new location. Everything that could fall over or spill, did. It was a mess and we were about 20 miles from the epicenter and that was not a really big quake.

Chris

[jesselyn]

the quake happened late friday nite.

saturday came, i went to tagaytay, a place where you can view a volcano called taal. me and my officemates had a great time (we only went there for lunch :laugh . we were all stuffed :oops: )

when i arrived home i asked my mom why she's not watching teevee (which she usually does on sat afternoon). so she said to turn it on - i did and i started to channel surf umm reflex ;) saw some news about the quake so i stopped and watched... :?

:eek the epicenter of the earthquake is west of tagaytay :eek

http://www.abs-cbnnews.com/NewsStory.aspx?section=National&OID=61205

hayy, good thing when i found out im already back at the house :yes :roll:

jes :angel

[Annierobrigado]

i was in bed, fell asleep, while ric was at the computer. he thought our kids were chasing each other in the corridor outside our bedrooms, and since they were big kids, they could rock the bed... but when he checked, everyone was quiet on their beds! i was disoriented for a while, but, hey, nobody or nothing rocks me awake while im in the middle of a REM cycle!
so i fell asleep as soon as the rocking stopped.

come to think of it, that was kinda stupid, especially in light of quakes that could topple concrete buildings!

:no :roll:
annie

[Pakeha Boy]

Here is a very interesting article. Its imperative reading.
No more getting under the beds or doorways for me.....


> Earthquake Safety - "Triangle of Life"
>
>
> My name is Doug Copp. I am the Rescue Chief and Disaster Manager of
> the American Rescue Team International (ARTI), the world's most
> experienced rescue team. The information in this article will save
> lives in an earthquake.
>
> I have crawled inside 875 collapsed buildings, worked with rescue
> teams from 60 countries, founded rescue teams in several countries,
> and I am a member of many rescue teams from many countries. I was the
> United Nations expert in Disaster Mitigation (UNX051 -UNIENET) for
> two years. I have worked at every major disaster in the world since
> 1985, except for simultaneous disasters.
>
> In 1996 we made a film which proved my survival methodology to be
> correct.
>
> The Turkish Federal Government, City of Istanbul, University of
> Istanbul, Case Productions and ARTI cooperated to film this >
> practical, scientific test. We collapsed a school and a home with 20
> mannequins inside. Ten mannequins did "duck and cover," and ten
> mannequins I used in my "triangle of life" survival method. After the
> simulated earthquake collapse we crawled through the rubble and
> entered the building to film and document the results. The film, in
> which I practised my survival techniques under directly observable,
> scientific conditions, relevant to building collapse, showed there
> would have been zero percent survival for those doing duck and
> cover. There would likely have been 100 % survivability for people
> using my method of the "triangle of life." This film has been seen by
> millions of viewers on television in Turkey and the rest of Europe,
> and it was seen in the USA, Canada and Latin American the TV program
> Real TV.
>
> The first building I ever crawled inside of was a school in Mexico
> City during the 1985 earthquake. Every child was under their desk.
> Every child was crushed to the thickness of their bones. They could
> have survived by lying down next to their desks in the aisles. It was
> obscene, unnecessary and I wondered why the children were not in the
> aisles. I didn't at the time know that the children were told to hide
> under something.
>
> Simply stated, when buildings collapse, the weight of the ceilings
> falling upon the objects or furniture inside crushes these objects,
> leaving a space or void next to them. This space is what I call
> the "triangle of life". The larger the object, the stronger, the less
> it will compact. The less the object compacts, the larger the void,
> the greater the probability that the person who is using this void
> for safety will not be injured.
>
> The next time you watch collapsed buildings, on television, count
> the "triangles" you see formed. They are everywhere. It is the most
> common shape, you will see, in a collapsed building. They are
> everywhere. I trained the Fire Department of Trujillo (population
> 750,000) in how to survive, take care of their families, and to
> rescue others in earthquakes.
>
> The chief of rescue in the Trujillo Fire Department is a professor at
> Trujillo University. He accompanied me everywhere. He gave personal
> testimony: "My name is Roberto Rosales. I am Chief of Rescue in
> Trujillo. When I was 11 years old, I was trapped inside of a
> collapsed building. My entrapment occurred during the earthquake of
> 1972 that killed 70,000 people. I survived in the "triangle of life"
> that existed next to my brother's motorcycle. My friends who got
> under the bed and under desks were crushed to death [he gives more
> details, names, addresses etc.]...I am the living example of
> the "triangle of life". My dead friends are the example of "duck and
> cover".
>
> TIPS DOUG COPP PROVIDES:
>
> 1) Everyone who simply "ducks and covers" WHEN BUILDINGS COLLAPSE is
> crushed to death -- Every time, without exception. People who get
> under objects, like desks or cars, are always crushed.
>
> 2) Cats, dogs and babies all naturally often curl up in the foetal
> position. You should too in an earthquake. It is a natural
> safety/survival instinct. You can survive in a smaller void. Get next
> to an object, next to a sofa, next to a large bulky object that will
> compress slightly but leave a void next to it.
>
> 3) Wooden buildings are the safest type of construction to be in
> during an earthquake. The reason is simple: the wood is flexible and
> moves with the force of the earthquake. If the wooden building does
> collapse, large survival voids are created. Also, the wooden building
> has less concentrated, crushing weight. Brick buildings will break
> into individual bricks. Bricks will cause many injuries but less
> squashed bodies than concrete slabs.
>
> 4) If you are in bed during the night and an earthquake occurs, >
> simply roll off the bed. A safe void will exist around the bed.
> Hotels can achieve a much greater survival rate in earthquakes,
> simply by posting a sign on the back of the door of every room,
> telling occupants to lie down on the floor, next to the bottom of the
> bed during an earthquake.
>
> 5) If an earthquake happens while you are watching television and you
> cannot easily escape by getting out the door or window, then lie down
> and curl up in the foetal position next to a sofa, or large chair.
>
> 6) Everybody who gets under a doorway when buildings collapse is
> killed. How? If you stand under a doorway and the door jam falls
> forward or backward you will be crushed by the ceiling above. If the
> door jam falls sideways You will be cut in half by the doorway. In
> either case, you will be killed!
>
> 7) Never go to the stairs. The stairs have a different "moment of
> frequency" (they swing separately from the main part of the
> building). The stairs and remainder of the building continuously bump
> into each other until structural failure of the stairs takes place.
> The people who get on stairs before they fail are chopped up by the
> stair treads. They are horribly mutilated. Even if the building
> doesn't collapse, stay away from the stairs. The stairs are a likely
> part of the building to be damaged. Even if the stairs are not
> collapsed by the earthquake, they may collapse later when overloaded
> by screaming, fleeing people. They should always be checked for
> safety, even when the rest of the building is not damaged.
>
> 8) Get Near the Outer Walls Of Buildings Or Outside Of Them If
> Possible - It is much better to be near the outside of the building
> rather than the interior. The farther inside you are from the outside
> perimeter of the building the greater the probability that your
> escape route will be blocked.
>
> 9) People inside of their vehicles are crushed when the road above
> falls in an earthquake and crushes their vehicles; which is exactly
> what happened with the slabs between the decks of the Nimitz Freeway.
> The victims of the San Francisco earthquake all stayed inside of
> their vehicles. They were all killed. They could have easily survived
> by getting out and sitting or lying next to their vehicles, says the
> author. Everyone killed would have survived if they had been able to
> get out of their cars and sit or lie next to them. All the crushed
> cars had voids 3 feet high next to them, except for the cars that had
> columns fall directly across them.
>
> 10) I discovered, while crawling inside of collapsed newspaper
> offices and other offices with a lot of paper, that paper does not
> compact. Large voids are found surrounding stacks of paper.
>
> I hope this useful information is never needed.
>
> Doug Copp
>

[tigerlily]

Buildings are very different in the third world (concrete, concrete, concrete) from wood structure houses, common in the US, and I think NZ also. I looked into it some more and found some US sites that talk about this triangle email. I think I would keep it in mind when visiting a large concrete building that was likely to collapse (one built in a country without building codes).

Here are the other sites that I found:

http://www2.bpaonline.org/Emergencyprep/arc-on-doug-copp.html

http://www.snopes.com/crime/warnings/triangle.asp

and one more from the Structural Engineers Association of California...
October 6, 2004

"Triangle of Life" Earthquake Survival Strategy Flawed


Sacramento, CA—The Structural Engineers Association of California (SEAOC) has recently learned of the “Triangle of Life” theory and Ten Tips on Surviving a Building Collapse put forth by Doug Copp which has been circulating via the internet. The theory assumes complete building collapse and rather than the currently accepted survival strategy of “duck and cover” under a substantial object like a desk or bed, it calls for curling up next to the object which, when it compresses under the weight of the collapse, will form a triangular survival void around it. However, this theory does not appropriately address the typical earthquake hazard that exists in the United States. The duck and cover protection approach was developed to protect occupants from falling hazards. The greatest danger to the U.S. population in the event of an earthquake is injury from falling hazards such as bookshelves, filing cabinets, chimneys, portions of ceilings, exterior facades, and window glass; not overall building collapse. Following Mr. Copp’s tips puts one in greater danger from these falling hazards. And, in the rare occasions that buildings do collapse during an earthquake in the United States, survivable voids do not necessarily fit the descriptions presented by Mr. Copp.


Members of SEAOC have been writing earthquake building codes, designing structures that resist earthquake forces, and investigating earthquake damage worldwide since the 1930’s. We believe that the “Triangle of Life” theory of surviving a building collapse instills a false sense of security and may subject the public to unnecessary harm and injury.


In SEAOC’s considered opinion, the duck and cover strategy still representsthe best way to protect one’s self in an earthquake. We highly recommend visiting the Federal Emergency Management Agency’s web site at http://www.fema.gov/hazards/earthquakes/equakes.shtm and the State of California Office of Emergency Service’s web site (http://tinyurl.com/2ypgsw) at for detailed information on avoiding injury in an earthquake.


The Structural Engineers Association of California is a nonprofit organization of nearly 4000 members dedicated to advancing the structural engineering profession, protecting public safety in the built environment, and serving the business and professional needs of the membership.

[DB]

Just a note of caution - Despite the fact it sounds official, "American Rescue Team International" is just a private company, not affiliated to any US government agency.

Sticking Doug Copp into google is an interesting experiment...

The American Red Cross have this to say about Copp's advice to US citizens:

The Red Cross is not saying that identifying potential voids is wrong or inappropriate. What we are saying is that "Drop, Cover, and Hold On!" is NOT wrong -- in the United States. The American Red Cross, being a U.S.-based organization, does not extend its recommendations to apply in other countries. What works here may not work elsewhere, so there is no dispute that the "void identification method" or the "Triangle of Life" may indeed be the best thing to teach in other countries where the risk of building collapse, even in moderate earthquakes, is great.

The view is that getting into voids may be good advice when a concrete building is about to collapse around you, which is the situation in many parts of the world. But in lands where the building is not likely to collapse, you are more likely to be killed or injured by flying stuff, particularly glass.

[MikeandCez]

I would agree with DB. I have been to the major eathquakes in India and Algeria and the actions to be taken by individuals depends on a number of quite complex issues. When I've crawled through building looking for casualties survival can be so arbitrary and my recommendation would be adhere to the advice given by experts in your particular country who after all know the type of building construction etc and will have hopefully completed a number of risk assessments to cater for all eventualities.

[toots]

Thanks for the advice, it was well intentioned I know.

However, there is a lot of mis-information out there and there are parts of this report that do not make sense. eg. if you crawl under the bed/table it will crush you but if you lie beside it it will protect you.

Mikeandcez is right. Take the local expert advice.

Clg excellent advice too. I shall keep a torch near the bed from now on, a pair of slippers/shoes too incase of broken glass.