Director of the Seismic Research Centre, Dr Richard Robertson is urging Government to install strong motion instruments over the country. The appeal comes on the heels of Haiti's earthquake which claimed over 200,000 lives and yesterday's 8.8 earthquake in Chile leaving 78 dead, with that number expected to rise. Haiti's earthquake which struck on January 12, pulverised approximately 200 schools and caused thousands to flee. Called accelerometers, the instrument, Robertson said, will not pinpoint when an earthquake is likely to occur, but will help scientists to better understand how buildings are impacted in specific areas during powerful ground vibrations.
T&T has five instruments across the country, with 10 strategically positioned throughout the Caribbean. "In a country like Trinidad you really need more than that. You need at least 40 to 50 instruments to capture data as much as possible from the next earthquake, so when engineers and contractors design and rebuild we will be better prepared."
Take heed of tragedy
In the aftermath of Haiti's and Chile's devastation, Robertson said he hopes the Government has taken heed of the eye-opening horror. "It would be a tragedy if they didn't. You need to put your house in order which means spending money to do things you did not intend to." Robertson stressed that for T&T to be earthquake ready several instruments need to be installed, mainly at the IFC building, the Hyatt, the National Academy for the Performing Arts and at the Twin Towers. "You probably would not have one instrument, but several in every tall building, mainly in areas of Port-of-Spain, Scarborough and Point Lisas."
A draft proposal for T&T's accelerometers is estimated to cost taxpayers US $200,000, Robertson said. Seventy-five such instruments needed for the Eastern Caribbean will cost US $1.3 million. A cheap accelerometer can be had for US $10,000 with the most expensive going at US $40,000.
