Скачать или смотреть Korea and its citizens need more solid preparation for earthquakes

갑작스런 지진으로 당황한 한국, 앞으로 여진 혹은 지진 가능성 배제 할 수 없는 가운데 대비 잘 할 수 있을까
The seismic tremors that have recently hit Korea have led to concern about the preparedness of the nation for natural disasters... and the possibility of bigger quakes to come.
Our Lee Un-shin tells us what steps people can take to both ease their worries... and stay safe.
It was the most powerful earthquake to hit Korea since records began in 1978.
Earthquakes with magnitudes stronger than 5.0 that hit the southern city of Gyeongju last week, were followed by hundreds of aftershocks.
Because that kind of seismic activity is extremely unusual in Korea, the shock and fear that struck area residents was all the more intense.

"I'm still so shocked. These earthquakes might give me some kind of neurosis "

"It's hard to sleep at night. You never know when the next one is going to strike."

With the area under high alert, the burning question among residents is whether there are more, even stronger quakes to come.
Experts explain that the limitations of technology, and the fact the country's seismic records go back only so far, make it hard to determinine the exact cause of the recent tremors or to predict future events. For now, they say the chance of a large scale earthqake is relatively low.

"There are bound to be aftershocks because an earthquake is more like a pendulum movement.
But there's also a bright side. Earthquakes happen when there's a lot of stress built up. The fact that we had earthquake in Gyeongju, means all that stress is relieved."

And though it may not be something residents want to contemplate..., it's crucial to understand the "the uncertainty" in terms of when seismic events occur.

"Current evidence suggests we'll only see the aftershocks for a bit. But we can't completely eliminate the possibility of bigger strikes hitting Korea in the distant future. "

But as a country that's long been considered safe from quakes... Korea seems underprepared for future strikes.

"I don't know what I'll do if another quake hits. I have no idea how to protect myself."

"I didn't feel the recent quakes but I'm definitely a bit worried that I just wouldn't know what to do if a tremor hits somewhere near where I live. "

"I'm worried about future earthquakes or even aftershocks, especially because our country hasn't prepared a solid system to deal with those."

"At this point most experts agree the nation can expect more aftershocks in the coming weeks. But as we saw earlier many residents don't really know what to do when seismic activities occur. What are some of the things we can do to better prepare ourselves?"

To answer that, we went to an expert, who said some basic preparations can take a load off one's mind when disaster strikes.

"A simple backpack with a survival kit -- things like canned food and a flashlight. If you feel anxious, have this handy at home so you can grab it and run out the door when a quake hits.
Stay away from tall buildings and go somewhere that's wide open like school playground."

The more you know, the calmer you'll be.
Products made specifically for earthquakes such as furniture supports... or automatic electrical shut-off systems... can now be bought online.
And while public schools do teach safety procedures for natural disasters,... the expert said they need to specifically stress training for earthquakes.

"Considering the history of quakes in Korea, or lack thereof, it's understandable that the nation wasn't prepared. We learned our lesson, so for on-going and future seismic activity, the nation needs to implement more structural changes and take steps to minimize both damage and fear."

The government so far has offered programs such as counseling for those who experienced extreme shock, and implemented text message alerts for all area residents within few minutes of a quake.
While it's up to the government to handle the national response to a seismic crisis, there's a lot that we as individuals can do to protect ourselves.
Lee Un-shin, Arirang News.


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