Communities resilience to Disaster Risks

1. Strengthening resilience

a) important for communities living in hazard-prone zones

b) to resist, adapt and recover from impacts of disasters in a timely and efficient manner

2. Strategies in building community resilience

a) reducing exposure including land use planning; reducing vulnerability including hazard-resistant building designs, and monitoring and warning systems

b) increasing preparedness for response and recovery

3. Challenges in building community resilience

a) extent of community’s resources

b) capability of community to organise itself for disasters

Taipei 101, Taiwan's tallest skycraper, withstood a 7.4-magnitude earthquake on April 3, 2024, with minimal damage, thanks to its innovative design, including a tuned mass damper and reinforced concrete construction. 

Associate Professor Li Bing has been working on the best way to make buildings quake-proof. In Nepal, for instance, six school buildings which had their beam and column structures wrapped with low-cost materials like wire mesh and glass fibre withstood April's 7.8-magnitude earthquake.

And when disaster strikes in Asia and Pacific regions, Singapore is often among the first to send rescue missions overseas. Meanwhile, the Changi Regional Humanitarian Assistance and Disaster Relief Coordination Centre helps disaster-affected areas by coordinating multi-national military relief efforts.

 Read this article on how research in Singapore on building design can help to save lives in an earthquake. http://www.straitstimes.com/singapore/he-triggers-earthquakes-every-day