Heretic Posted March 9, 2015 Share Posted March 9, 2015 Yet another example of the poor choices this BC government makes - both present and the past... It is 24 years since I first wrote in this space about the danger to schoolchildren from older Metro Vancouver structures likely to collapse in the event of a great earthquake. Since then, eight consecutive premiers have failed to deal with a problem that puts the lives of tens of thousands of children at risk. Our premiers all cry poverty yet find billions for pet projects, which range from Cadillac-quality muffin carts to ferries that don’t work. The latest is Premier Christy Clark. She rode to office in 2013 promising seismic upgrades for high-risk schools in Metro. Oops, must balance the budget. Cut taxes. Sorry, can’t make all 339 schools that need seismic upgrading safer before 2030. In fairness, it’s not just Clark who’s been shown up by this abysmal record. The list of culprits reaches back through Gordon Campbell to Bill Vander Zalm. Mind you, we’ve got a new roof on the football stadium, a new convention centre, new bridges, new ferries, new highways and glitzy architectural memorabilia from the Olympics, tax cuts and a fat budget surplus. But we still tolerate scores of death traps for schoolchildren that are just too expensive to fix right away. Back in 1998, a legal opinion obtained by the Vancouver school board pointed out that the province, not the school board, is liable for any earthquake consequences because it’s responsible for adequate funding to retrofit schools — which hasn’t been forthcoming. So let’s not mince words. This is not about money, it’s about priorities. Your provincial politicians are gambling with the lives of your children. They hope the inevitable destructive earthquake will happen on somebody else’s watch. I framed my commentary in 1991 in terms of what happened at Courtenay Elementary School on Vancouver Island on June 23, 1946, when a 7.3 magnitude earthquake struck in the Forbidden Plateau area above Comox Valley. In a straight line, that’s about 160 kilometres from Granville and Georgia. The earthquake was powerful enough to knock down mountain spires, tear a small Gulf Island in half and liquefy unstable ground. That morning at Courtenay Elementary, masonry crashed through the roof, bricks ricocheted around the classrooms. Roof timbers fell in and windows imploded shredding rows of desks with razor-sharp glass shards. Luckily, it was a Sunday. The kids weren’t in class, the region was still sparsely populated and most of the buildings were small, wood frame structures that withstood the shaking. If such an event were to occur today near densely populated Metro, much of it built on glacial till and alluvial deposits, the consequences could be severe for old masonry buildings. We media types like the relatively simple Richter Scale for rating earthquakes. The Mercali Scale measures them instead by proportionally rating damage inflicted. For Richter events between 7.0 and 8.0, here’s what Mercali predicts: “Most masonry and frame structures and their foundations destroyed. Ground badly cracked. Landslides. Wholesale destruction.” For events of Richter 8.0 or greater: “Total damage. Few if any structures standing. Bridges collapse. Waves seen on the ground.” There have been three great earthquakes in B.C. since 1946, all of them scoring higher on the Richter Scale and one of them, off Haida Gwaii on August 22, 1949, exceeded 8.0. An earlier event on January 26, 1700, is believed to have exceeded 9.0, which would make it among the most powerful earthquakes known. Accounts collected from First Nations oral traditions by anthropologists say the ground’s motion was so severe that villages disappeared and people became physically ill as though they were seasick. Other recent major events include a 6.7 on remote Vancouver Island in 2004; a 6.8 at Nisqually, Washington in 2001; a 6.7 in Puget Sound in 1965; and a 7.1 in Puget Sound in 1949. Great earthquakes are common here. Thus far, we’ve dodged the bullet. The worst have occurred in sparsely populated regions. But using that Mercali Scale, imagine what might happen in Metro to all those school structures that need to be seismically upgraded but must now wait for another generation of children to pass through them. It’s inexcusable. Why do we put up with it? Source and some more here: http://www.vancouversun.com/news/Stephen+Hume+Seismic+upgrades+schools+priority+politicians/10872476/story.html Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Warhippy Posted March 9, 2015 Share Posted March 9, 2015 b-b-b-b-b-but.....it's the municipalities' issue. No no wait, it's the school boards' issue. three different places have had blame laid to them except the BC Libs. |Remember, architectural, upgrades and retrofitting all HAVE to be done by government approved businesses under the watch of the province and the ministry. It's like starting a fire promising to pay for the damages and clean it up and then blaming it on the moving company for not getting rid of the debris fast enough Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LordCanuck Posted March 9, 2015 Share Posted March 9, 2015 If a 8.0 or above happens here, it wont just be schools gone. itll be everything. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Webster6 Posted March 9, 2015 Share Posted March 9, 2015 Why does reading political news always make me sad Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
vavoom Posted March 9, 2015 Share Posted March 9, 2015 Wow, I remember this being talked about since I was in highschool. I had assumed that everything has been upgraded since. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
D-Money Posted March 9, 2015 Share Posted March 9, 2015 If only they kept the fast ferries, docked them, and held classes in them. Problem solved! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TOMapleLaughs Posted March 9, 2015 Share Posted March 9, 2015 Remember the triangle of life, kiddies. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Violator Posted March 9, 2015 Share Posted March 9, 2015 They should just pull down the old schools and sell the land to developers.Then build schools in areas that will have a higher usage. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sinphase Posted March 9, 2015 Share Posted March 9, 2015 Why does reading political news always make me sad Because it makes you realize that safety is an illusion. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
inane Posted March 9, 2015 Share Posted March 9, 2015 They should just pull down the old schools and sell the land to developers.Then build schools in areas that will have a higher usage. On what land? This is just another in a long list of short sighted decisions by this government. If it doesn't reap immediate economic benefit, or further the magic LNG fairy, it's not worth it. The problem of course is that the repercussions of these short sighted decisions aren't felt right away so it's easy to get away with it. It's the antithesis of what leadership should be. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
King Heffy Posted March 9, 2015 Share Posted March 9, 2015 This goes beyond even putting our kids at risk. Schools can provide an important location for families rendered homeless to obtain shelter and first aid in the event of an emergency. I know our premier has no regard for the residents of her own province, but this is unacceptable. The people responsible for voting her back into power should be ashamed of herself. Christy Clark is unfit to be entrusted with the combination to the safe at Burger King. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RUPERTKBD Posted March 9, 2015 Share Posted March 9, 2015 In fairness, it’s not just Clark who’s been shown up by this abysmal record. The list of culprits reaches back through Gordon Campbell to Bill Vander Zalm. Had to chuckle at this one a bit. "In fairness" it says, then goes on to name other right-wing premiers, while ignoring the entire decade of the 90's, when the NDP was in power. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
inane Posted March 9, 2015 Share Posted March 9, 2015 Had to chuckle at this one a bit. "In fairness" it says, then goes on to name other right-wing premiers, while ignoring the entire decade of the 90's, when the NDP was in power. Uhhh, when you say the list goes from a to z, that means all the letters in between. So...I think you misread that. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RUPERTKBD Posted March 9, 2015 Share Posted March 9, 2015 Uhhh, when you say the list goes from a to z, that means all the letters in between. So...I think you misread that. It says nothing about A to Z. Besides, the premiers they so "fairly" mentioned would encompass C to V.... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
inane Posted March 9, 2015 Share Posted March 9, 2015 It says nothing about A to Z. Besides, the premiers they so "fairly" mentioned would encompass C to V.... Try again. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lancaster Posted March 10, 2015 Share Posted March 10, 2015 It's funny how this becomes an ideological issue when the article specifically states the last 8 premiers has been at fault. This is a government inefficiency / ineffective bureaucratic problem. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Violator Posted March 10, 2015 Share Posted March 10, 2015 On what land? This is just another in a long list of short sighted decisions by this government. If it doesn't reap immediate economic benefit, or further the magic LNG fairy, it's not worth it. The problem of course is that the repercussions of these short sighted decisions aren't felt right away so it's easy to get away with it. It's the antithesis of what leadership should be. Land swap deals. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lockout Casualty Posted March 10, 2015 Share Posted March 10, 2015 Remember the triangle of life, kiddies. Uh, not so fast. What is the "Triangle of Life" and is it legitimate? The "Triangle of Life" is a misguided idea about the best location a person should try to occupy during an earthquake. It is listed in the Urban Legends category on the Snopes Urban Legends Reference Web site. Drop, cover, and hold under a table or desk is still the best recommendation, according to the American Red Cross. http://www.usgs.gov/faq/categories/9830/3373 If there's an earthquake, you can thank me after you've survived. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
inane Posted March 10, 2015 Share Posted March 10, 2015 Land swap deals. Not that simple... sounds great, not really practical. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Violator Posted March 10, 2015 Share Posted March 10, 2015 Not that simple... sounds great, not really practical. A man can dream Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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