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Most homes in rural areas are not constructed in a fashion which allows them to remain standing if exposed to even moderate earthquakes and in light of that the China Seismological Bureau has promised to help in rebuilding and retrofitting homes in the coming years.

 

"We will launch more pilot projects throughout the countryside in the next five years which will enable structures to resist earthquakes measuring up to 6 on the Richter scale," Du Wei, vice-director of the bureau's Seismic Hazard Prevention and Mitigation Department, told China Daily in Beijing yesterday.

 

The bureau has yet to conduct a nationwide survey of the "quake proof status" of rural homes but sampling in western China indicates at least 80 percent of buildings don't have the least defense against tremors, Du said.

 

Speaking on the eve of the 30th anniversary of the Tangshan Earthquake in Hebei Province, which leveled tens of thousands of buildings and killed approximately 240,000 people, Du said that in many areas it was simply impossible for farmers to build safer houses because of the costs involved. Homes built completely from brick were the best way forward.

 

In addition to economics the situation was partly attributable to lack of guidance from the government, the official observed.

 

Even when affluent rural dwellers could afford to build safer homes many went for aesthetics rather than designs capable of withstanding earthquakes, Du said. As a result it was common for an earthquake measuring 6 on the Richter scale to destroy a huge number of buildings, he added.

 

At times even relatively minor quakes like the one which measured 4.2 on the Richter scale and shook Sanshui region of south China's Guangdong Province in 1997 could cause tremendous damage, Du explained. Over 1,600 houses were destroyed on the occasion.   

 

But homes properly designed and reinforced could make a difference, Du explained. He highlighted the experience of the Datong-Yanggao region in north China's Shanxi Province where houses were rebuilt to resist earthquakes after it was rocked by a tremor measuring 6.1 on the Richter scale in 1989. Buildings in the region survived a subsequent 5.8 earthquake two years later, said Du.

 

In addition to educating farmers the seismology agencies would work with local governments to launch more pilot quake-proof housing projects and provide technical services, added Du.

 

Vice-Minister of Construction Huang Wei said his ministry supported the idea of improving houses to withstand not only earthquakes but also other natural disasters like landslides, floods and typhoons.

 

(China Daily July 27, 2006)