Four years ago today, an earthquake that will be remembered as one of the worst in our generation shook the caribbean country of Haiti. The world watched in horror as the death toll rose to hundreds of thousands.
Construction in Haiti was known to have been generally poor. Even two years before the earthquake, a school collapsed killing nearly 100 children. When the earthquake struck many other buildings, and human lives, had the same fate.
Experts had warned of the major seismic hazard that the island was exposed to just two years before the event, so it was known that the region could be subject to seismic shaking, as is the case for many places. However, it so often remains a a low priority in favour of more pressing matters - the economy, trade, hurricanes, poverty - viewed as risk for the distant future. Ignored in Haiti, post-disaster the major concerns for the country remain as before: the economy, trade, hurricanes, poverty, with construction standards still not enforced properly.
I can't help but worry that this devastation could have occurred in so many places in the Caribbean and throughout the world; Haiti was simply the 'unlucky' one that day. But what can be done to avoid a similar disaster elsewhere?
Below is a diagram highlighting the three possible ways forward.
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| The way forward... |
Option 1 is asking for trouble.
Option 2 is the bare minimum.
Option 3 will be hard work and costly; if successful will avoid a disaster on the Haitian scale.
I worry that more needs to be done. That authorities need to be pressured to not take each day for granted. In some places, large earthquake will happen, the only question is whether it's tomorrow or in a 100 years. Lessons can be learnt from others mistakes. Learn this Haitian hotel owners lesson now.
”This is something that we had forgotten for a long time — that Haiti was subject to earthquakes. Now we know. Now we know that we need to build better.”
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