The Pastors Network

FROM DOUG COPP'S ARTICLE ON THE: 'TRIANGLE OF LIFE'
My name is Doug Copp. I am the Rescue Chief and Disaster Manager of the
American Rescue Team International (ARTI), the world's most experienced
rescue team. The information in this article will save lives in an
earthquake.

I have crawled inside 875 collapsed buildings, worked with rescue teams
from 60 countries, founded rescue teams in several countries, and I am a
member of many rescue teams from many countries.

I was the United Nations expert in Disaster Mitigation for two years. I
have worked at every major disaster in the world since 1985, except for
simultaneous disasters.

The first building I ever crawled inside of was a school in Mexico City
during the 1985 earthquake. Every child was under its desk. Every child
was crushed to the thickness of their bones. They could have survived by
lying down next to their desks in the aisles. It was obscene,
unnecessary and I wondered why the children were not in the aisles. I
didn't at the time know that the children were told to hide under
something.

Simply stated, when buildings collapse, the weight of the ceilings
falling upon the objects or furniture inside crushes these objects,
leaving a space or void next to them. This space is what I call the
'triangle of life'. The larger the object, the stronger, the less it
will compact. The less the object compacts, the larger the void, the
greater the probability that the person who is using this void for
safety will not be injured. The next time you watch collapsed buildings,
on television, count the 'triangles' you see formed. They are
everywhere. It is the most common shape, you will see, in a collapsed
building.

TIPS FOR EARTHQUAKE SAFETY

1) Most everyone who simply 'ducks and covers' WHEN BUILDINGS COLLAPSE
are crushed to death. People who get under objects, like desks or cars,
are crushed.

2) Cats, dogs and babies often naturally curl up in the fetal position.
You should too in an earthquake. It is a natural safety/survival
instinct. You can survive in a smaller void. Get next to an object, next
to a sofa, next to a large bulky object that will compress slightly but
leave a void next to it.

3) Wooden buildings are the safest type of construction to be in during
an earthquake. Wood is flexible and moves with the force of the
earthquake. If the wooden building does collapse, large survival voids
are created. Also, the wooden building has less concentrated, crushing
weight. Brick buildings will break into individual bricks. Bricks will
cause many injuries but less squashed bodies than concrete slabs.

4) If you are in bed during the night and an earthquake occurs, simply
roll off the bed. A safe void will exist around the bed. Hotels can
achieve a much greater survival rate in earthquakes, simply by posting a
sign on The back of the door of every room telling occupants to lie down
on the floor, next to the bottom of the bed during an earthquake.

5) If an earthquake happens and you cannot easily escape by getting out
the door or window, then lie down and curl up in the fetal position next
to a sofa, or large chair.

6) Most everyone who gets under a doorway when buildings collapse is
killed. How? If you stand under a doorway and the doorjamb falls forward
or backward you will be crushed by the ceiling above. If the door jam
falls sideways you will be cut in half by the doorway. In either case,
you will be killed!

7) Never go to the stairs. The stairs have a different 'moment of
frequency' (they swing separately from the main part of the building).
The stairs and remainder of the building continuously bump into each
other until structural failure of the stairs takes place. The people who
get on stairs before they fail are chopped up by the stair treads -
horribly mutilated. Even if the building doesn't collapse, stay away
from the stairs. The stairs are a likely part of the building to be
damaged. Even if the stairs are not collapsed by the earthquake, they
may collapse later when overloaded by fleeing people. They should always
be checked for safety, even when the rest of the building is not damaged.

8) Get Near the Outer Walls Of Buildings Or Outside Of Them If Possible
- It is much better to be near the outside of the building rather than
the interior. The farther inside you are from the outside perimeter of
the building the greater the probability that your escape route will be
blocked.

9) People inside of their vehicles are crushed when the road above falls
in an earthquake and crushes their vehicles; which is exactly what
happened with the slabs between the decks of the Nimitz Freeway. The victims of
the San Francisco earthquake all stayed inside of their vehicles. They
were all killed. They could have easily survived by getting out and
sitting or lying next to their vehicles. Everyone killed would have
survived if they had been able to get out of their cars and sit or lie
next to them.. All the crushed cars had voids 3 feet high next to them,
except for the cars that had columns fall directly across them.

10) I discovered, while crawling inside of collapsed newspaper offices
and other offices with a lot of paper, that paper does not compact.
Large voids are found surrounding stacks of paper.