Earthquake rocks China again – were lessons learnt from Sichuan?

An earthquake measuring 7.1 on the Richter scale rocked Southern Qinghai in China on Wednesday, 14 April 2010. Over 2,200 people have died in the earthquake. The population of the province is largely Tibetan. Despite the rough terrain, soldiers, civilians and Tibetan monks were seen working together in providing relief to those affected. However, looking at some lessons learnt from the Sichuan’s earthquake in 2008, questions about the preparedness of the authorities in the face of natural disasters still remain. Besides, with the collapse of many buildings, issues regarding shoddy construction are also being raised, with blame directed at the Chinese government for overlooking the issue of unauthorised construction and for the region’s relative poverty, which makes them more vulnerable to the impact of the disaster.