This is a story of just one state and the battle to have elected officials, agencies, the governor and common citizens step up to do the right thing to protect children and staff. These are the people who enter public buildings expecting that they are safe to be in. However, there are documented schools that can collapse in any significant, or not so significant, earthquake.
I would also add that there are states, that are not California, that have recognized the risks and appropriated hundreds of millions and even billions of dollars to fix the issue. There are elected officials who cite that cost of fixing the problem as a reason to do nothing — too expensive! How will you feel about cost when we are dragging the dead bodies of children out of schools?
Check out this Disaster Zone podcast: “Seismic Neglect for Schools.” I would add that it does show what one person working with others concerned about a safety issue can do. I call them spark plugs!
Here’s the description of the podcast:
“When we send our children and grandchildren off to school we expect that they are going to a safe place. In Washington State that might not be true. In this podcast the guest is Jim Buck, a former Washington State legislator. He has a passion for emergency management and when he discovered the status school seismic safety in his state he set off to change that. Besides listening to this podcast you can go to the website Seismic Safety for Kids to learn more. If you live in Washington State, your next actions are critical. Call and email your city, county and state elected officials, your school principals, school district and then contact the respective Parent Teacher Association (PTA) to tell them to take action. If you don’t live in Washington, then take a moment to find out about the status of your own schools where you live. Earthquake hazards are everywhere and we have a large number of old school buildings. If they are old and brick, they could be at risk.”
