Validating QuakeCoRE Research in Taiwan
June 27, 2023
RfP Research Project Stories: Ashkan Hashemi
June 30, 2023
A Matter of Life and Death: Enhancing Our Understanding of Life-safety Risk in Earthquakes
Presenter: Dr Nick Horspool (GNS Science | Te Pū Ao)
Add the Seminar Series appointments to your calendar here.
Abstract:
Minimising deaths and injuries in earthquakes is at the forefront of earthquake risk reduction strategies such as the UNISDR Sendai Framework for Disaster Risk Reduction and New Zealand Resilience Strategy. Risk reduction measures such as building codes, awareness campaigns, and earthquake early warning systems aim to reduce life-safety risk to an acceptable level. However, our knowledge of what causes injuries and deaths in different settings has been limited due to a lack of empirical data. Without a strong evidence base informing our risk reduction measures, we may not achieve our risk reduction goals.
Aotearoa New Zealand is in a unique position to address this challenge, with recent damaging earthquakes and a public-funded health care insurance scheme (ACC) that covers treatment and collects information on the cause and context of all treated injuries and deaths in earthquakes. Recent studies by QuakeCoRE researchers have investigated life-safety risk in earthquakes through a multi-disciplinary lens, by bringing together researchers in engineering, seismology, behavioural science and medical sciences to gain a holistic understanding of what drives life-safety risk in earthquakes.
This Seminar will share recent advances in understanding the cause and context of death and injury in New Zealand earthquakes, and discuss how our life-safety risk reduction activities can be better targeted to reduce the human impact in future earthquakes.
Bio:
Nick Horspool is a senior risk scientist at GNS Science in Lower Hutt. His research investigates the impacts natural hazards have on communities. This information is used to develop risk models to forecast future impacts with the aim of informing risk-based decision-making by stakeholders. Nick is a QuakeCoRE Associate Investigator and has been a past QuakeCoRE Leadership Team member. He has a PhD in Civil Engineering from the University of Auckland and an MSc in Geophysics from Victoria University of Wellington.
How to join the seminar:
via Zoom:
Join from PC, Mac, Linux, iOS or Android: https://canterbury.zoom.us/j/400612265
(Password – 389905)
If you haven’t used Zoom before, a quick and easy installation will be prompted.
Or Telephone:
New Zealand: +64 800 002 260 (Toll Free)
Meeting ID: 400 612 265 (Password 389905)
International numbers available (here)
