Armenian
News Network / Groong
Conversation on Groong: Earthquake
Readiness in Armenia
Hello and welcome to the
Armenian News Network, Groong,
In this Conversations
on Groong episode, we’ll be talking about the
earthquake readiness in Armenia after the recent shake near Yerevan.
This episode was recorded on Friday, February 19, 2021.
On Saturday February 13 a magnitude 4.7
earthquake hit Armenia 8 kilometers southeast of Yerevan. No deaths or serious
injuries were reported. We’re all thankful for that of course, but the 1988
earthquake will always have us asking questions about safety and preparedness.
We have with us:
|
Dr. Armen Der Kiureghian,
who is a structural and civil engineering professor at UC Berkeley with
research focus on earthquake engineering. He is a co-founder and was
president of the American University of Armenia from 2014 until 2019. |
|
According to the Ministry of Emergency Situations Seismic Protection Service
chief, Sos Margaryan, this
earthquake was on the Yerevan fault line. What do we know about this fault line
or the region in general?
Have building & construction codes and
standards improved since the big one in 1988? What’s the best way to meet
modern, Western standards?
How well contractors comply with regulatory
requirements, and what consequences apply for non-compliance?
Is Armenia ready for “the big one?”
Is there a government department, for example
the ministry of emergency situations, or whoever, that leads the country in
disaster preparedness, and performs routine drills?
Does the Armenian government have something
similar to California’s “The Great Shakeout” annual statewide drill? Do they
practice “duck, cover & hold” and other readiness efforts? Do they maintain
first response necessities and practices up to date with annual drills?
Are there questions that we should be asking,
and are there conversations that are not happening that really should be
happening?
References:
●
4.7 magnitude earthquake hits Armenia
●
More than 110 aftershocks recorded in
Armenia after February 13 earthquake
●
Seismologist rules out “biological
weapon” hypotheses behind Yerevan earthquake
●
Magnitude 2,0 earthquake recorded near
Yerevan
That concludes this Conversations on Groong
episode. We hope it was helpful in
your understanding of some of the issues involved. We look forward to your
feedback, including your suggestions for Conversation
topics in the future. Contact us
on our website, at groong.org,
or on our Facebook Page “ANN - Groong”, or in our Facebook Group “Groong - Armenian News Network”.
Special thanks to Laura
Osborn for providing the music for our podcast. On behalf of everyone in this
episode, we wish you a good week. Don’t forget to subscribe to our channels, Like our pages and follow us on social media. Thank you for
listening and we’ll talk to you soon.
Armen Der Kiureghian, AUA, Armenia, Yerevan, Earthquake, Yerevan Fault, Fault line, Series 11, Earthquake Preparedness, The Great Shakeout, California, Soviet buildings, Retrofitting
