Earthquake deaths preventable

Researchers analysing damage from a 2003 earthquake in Turkey conclude in a recent report that the deaths of 168 people, many of them children, could have been prevented if minor design changes had been made to school buildings.

"Many lives could have been saved if a small number of reinforced-concrete structural walls had been in place in several of the buildings that collapsed during this event," said Julio Ramirez, a professor of civil engineering at Purdue University.

The report, recently prepared for the US National Science Foundation, details how the quake caused extensive damage to 180 buildings, including 48 schools and four dormitories in the eastern Turkey city of Bingol. One of those dormitories collapsed, killing 87 people, said Mete Sozen, Purdue's Kettelhut Distinguished Professor of Structural Engineering.

Although Turkey has modern building codes, the report concludes: "There is a striking gap between the requirements of these codes and actual construction practice, both in the rural and the urban areas."