Which World Cities Are Most Vulnerable to Earthquakes?

Which World Cities Are Most

Vulnerable to Earthquakes?

 

 

 

A young injured earthquake survivor holds a piece of bread in a makeshift shelter in Port-au-Prince, Haiti on Thursday. /AP-Yonhap

 

 

A 7.0-magnitude earthquake has wreaked havoc on Haiti and its capital Port-au-Prince, with estimates of thousands of people killed. Citing a study by nonprofit research group GeoHazards International (GI), U.S. business magazine Forbes on Wednesday published a list of the 20 cities around the world that are most vulnerable to earthquakes.

Kathmandu, Nepal, topped the list. GI researchers predicted in the 2001 study around 69,000 of the city's one million inhabitants would die if a 6.0-magnitude quake struck the city. Also on the list were Istanbul, Turkey; Delhi, India; Quito, Ecuador; Manila, Philippines; and Islambad/Rawalpindi, Pakistan, all of which could expect tens of thousands of deaths in a large earthquake.

Japan has three cities on the list. According to the study, around 9,000 people would die in Tokyo if it were hit by a large earthquake, while Nagoya could expect 900 fatalities and Kobe 300. The fatality estimates for Japan's cities are much lower than those of less developed countries because their buildings are constructed to withstand earthquakes.

GI ranked the cities based on variables including "building frailty, potential for landslides and fires, and the firefighting and lifesaving medical abilities of local authorities."

Meanwhile, Time magazine in October last year named the five most quake-prone regions of the world: Los Angeles, Tokyo, Tehran, Indonesia and the Pacific Northwest coastal areas.

 

 

englishnews@chosun.com / Jan. 15, 2010 09:41 KST

 

 

Related Articles

• Asian Building Codes Aim to Reduce Quake Damage
• Haiti Earthquake
• At Least 36 UN Personnel Confirmed Dead in Haiti; Number Likely to Rise
• Untold Numbers Still Trapped in Rubble of Worst Quake in Haitian History
• Massive Earthquake Devastates Haiti
• Major Earthquake Hits Near Haitian Capital
• Strong Earthquake Rocks Haiti
• Asia Remembers Deadly 2004 Tsunami
• What If It Happened in Seoul?

 

 

http://english.chosun.com/