Why Building Codes Matter

Do you complain about how the government seems to have their hands in everything? Do you hate building codes and seemingly constant regulations and restrictions handed down from "the man?" Well, sometimes those codes are there for good reason. Here is an interesting comment from a blogger in Japan:

This is the first time I truly understood what does 'Japan has a rigorous earthquake building code' means. Our office was shaken up quite a bit - books, papers and everything from shelves had fallen to the ground and piled on desks. Shelves that were screwed to the floor were also uprooted and toppled over during the tremours. Basically, a mess everywhere. Everyone told me that there will be lots of cleaning to do at home. However, I was hugely surprised when I walked into my apartment (a tall high rise of 36 floors built just last year and touted to have superior earthquake proof technology)...everything looked fine. A few books were scattered on the floor but everything else was pretty much OK. I was needless to say VERY impressed.

While waiting outside near the moat after evacuation, I was getting a bit hysterical at some point when the aftershocks hit...cars were shaking, buildings swaying and a tiny piece of a building apparently going to tear off. The motions were just beneath my feet and all the while thinking there is absolutely nothing anyone can do. That was frightening. And must say was calmed down when I noticed that everyone around there was calm. There were people and cars everywhere but no real chaos. People were rushing to the convenient stores (or combini) to buy up food but everyone was civilized...putting things in shopping baskets and lining up to pay for the goods. The shelves were emptied very very rapidly and that was scary to see...I was a bit late and so did not have bread for tomorrow's breakfast. But did get onigiri (rice balls).

Some companies seem to have also prepared helmets for their employees...

There is still swaying as I type this but much less aggressive...

Ai Lin Chun
Senior Editor
Nature Nanotechnology
Tokyo office

If you watch some of the video footage coming out of Japan you can see for yourself how well the buildings withstood the immense shaking. The earthquake was listed as a magnitude 8.9 from the USGS, making it the 5th largest earthquake in recorded history.

Click here for a great article from the New York Times on how Japan's strict building codes saved an untold number of residents following last night's earthquake.