You must have heard about the strong earthquake in Taiwan, Hualien. Magnitude 7.4, the strongest quake in 25 years. In distant Taipei it still has a magnitude of >5. Despite the magnitude, comparatively few people were injured, 9 dead and 1000 injured.
Taiwan is located on the Pacific "Ring of Fire"(https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ring_of_Fire?wprov=sfti1), where most earthquakes occur. Since 1980, 2000 earthquakes of magnitude 4 and 100 of magnitude >5.5 have been recorded in Taiwan and the waters around the island. The strongest quake occurred in September 1999 with a magnitude of 7.7. 2400 people died, 100,000 were injured and thousands of buildings were destroyed.
The government recognized this as a wake-up call and introduced extensive reforms to make the state resilient to future earthquakes. Taiwan's earthquake preparedness is now the most advanced in the world. Over the past 25 years, bridges and buildings have been renovated for earthquake resilience and building codes have been tightened. The measures also include educating the population, which is probably the reason why the Taiwanese have remained very calm.
When we were in Taipei, we saw that all new buildings are built with the same steel frame, similar to a cage, and we didn't understand this uniformity. Now, after seeing the toppled building, we understand. The building has not collapsed, but has been preserved as a whole, increasing the chances of survival for the residents.
Source of the image on the right: „Asia Times“
A famous example of safe construction against earthquakes is the tallest building in Taiwan, Taipei 101, which emerged unscathed from the strong quake.
In Asia, it is common practice to use reinforced concrete for the construction of taller buildings. On the one hand, the material allows the flexibility to swing, but on the other hand has the stability to withstand strong winds and typhoons. At Taipei 101 in addition, the innovative construction of a 660-ton golden steel sphere was installed between the 87th and 92nd floors as a damper. The swinging of the sphere absorbs the seismological oscillations and reduces them by 40%.
All the best for Taiwan!
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