James Sindelar Introduction to Earthquakes L’Aquila Earthquake James Sindelar Introduction to Earthquakes Good morning/afternoon/evening. My name is James Sindelar, and I would like to speak to you all about the L’Aquila Earthquake that had such an impact on the region it occurred in, and its surroundings.

Summary Effects of Earthquakes on Schools Medical Care Overview A little bit of a summary of what I will talk about is as follows: I really wanted to focus on not just one of the questions presented to me, but two. I feel that two of these subjects are very important, and are very interesting. First, I am going to discuss the effects that an earthquake has on schools, and how much it effected L’Aquila. Secondly, I will get into discussion on the effects earthquakes have on medical care, as this is a very important topic.

Effects of Earthquakes on Schools Schools damaged or destroyed Funding for new schools difficult Thousands of Children out of schooling Cost of transferring to new region for schooling Effects that an earthquake has on schools is unbelievable. Here are some of the different issues that a school and its students are faced with: In event of a serious earthquake, such as the one at L’Aquila, many schools that are outdated and built out of stone/brick fall victim to the earthquakes severe shaking. Another serious issue to consider is how the individual schools will find funding to build new schools for its students and teachers to go to class. Thirdly, there will not just be a few children out of schooling because of the damages done. There will be thousands of students out of schooling. Finally, the cost of transferring to a new region for schooling will not be cheap. Not only will it not be cheap, but may become difficult for families to move to another region, when all they know and have is back in L’Aquila.

Schools Damaged or Destroyed Above is a picture of what remains of one of the schools in the area… this is a common seen shortly after the earthquake settled. Not only are middle school and elementary schools effected by the earthquake, but also universities. The house dorm of the University of L'Aquila collapsed and the students inside died as a result.

Funding for Schools One thing that comes difficult is the funding for the schools to re-build and re-locate teachers/students to temporary learning centers. This is not an easy task in a region of Italy that has very old and outdated buildings. This could become costly for the individuals who live here.

Many Children out of Schooling There is of course initial fear of many children being taken out of schooling for a significant period of time. However, this is not 100 percent necessary due to these blue tent schools that were set up in Poggio Pocenza, a city outside of L’Aquila. Some volunteers started lessons in another tent city, but this particular opening in Poggio Picenza marked the official restart of the school year for victims of the 6.3-magnitude quake, which killed 294 people and destroyed thousands of buildings in central Italy's Abruzzo region. Some 30 lower- and middle-school students showed up for class in the three classrooms outfitted inside the tents, said Poggio Picenza Mayor Nicola Menna, himself a tent resident since the quake. Because of these tent schools being set up, the Education Minister in L’Aquila insists that none of the children would lose the school year as a result of the quake and said she had signed a decree allowing quake victims who had relocated to enroll in any school across the country.

Cost of Transferring Expensive Trying Unlikely for all to want to leave The cost of transferring to several different areas surrounding L’Aquila could prove to be too expensive. Not only would a family have to spend money getting somewhere, but they need to find a new job, a new lifestyle, and somewhere to live. It can be difficult for someone to leave where they grew up, with that being the only thing they know. It is however, unlikely that all will leave… it is estimated to have to cost roughly 12 billion Euros to rebuild L’Aquila and its surrounding areas, but many are determined not to leave… even setting up donation centers, and wearing shirts that state “we don’t collapse”… There are a lot of people determined to make L’Aquila the great city it once was.

Medical Care Overview Hospitals Collapse Taking care of those injured in earthquake Support from other hospitals in surrounding regions One particular issue that comes to mind when we think of a disaster such as the Earthquake in L’Aquila is what happens to all the hospitals, the patients inside, and those injured by the earthquake.

Hospitals Collapse One common understanding is that the hospitals would suffer some sort of damage. In the instance of L’Aquila, they were unfortunate to have severe damage to San Salvatore Hospital. The damage done was so bad, that it only had one working operating room left. This is extremely unfortunate, and the hospital should have been retrofitted for such a circumstance. However, this was not the case, and the building structure of it is under close scrutiny, and is being examined for future understanding of what can be done for safety precautions.

Taking Care of Those Injured in Earthquake Because of this collapse/crumble of San Salvatore Hospital, they were building external operating rooms and putting beds in the parking lot to take care of injured persons. This is not an easy task as you could imagine. There are far more people injured in the wake of the earthquake than there are doctors to provide urgent care to those patients. Not only are there doctors tending to those who are injured, but there are those doctors who try to cheer up the children… some even went as far as dressing up as clowns, doing magic tricks, and creating balloon characters. One interview with one of the so called “clown doctors” explains how these particular doctors plan to help: "We are a group of doctors who dress up as clowns. We normally work with terminally ill children in hospitals, but we were asked to come and help these children in the camp because they are also now suffering," Maurizio Fani says. "You can tell they are scared from how quiet they are. From one moment to the next, they have gone from a state of complete serenity to one of utter confusion," he says.

Support From Other Hospitals Because of the collapse, and large number of people injured in the wake of the earthquake in L’Aquila, every other hospital in the central region of Italy is on alert and ready to receive patients from the earthquake damage. As you could imagine, most roadways are in shambles, and have caused many trucks that aid the victims to take many detours on alternate roads. The teaming up of these other hospitals takes a small load off the backs of the local hospitals, but not much. The local hospitals can only do so much with only two working operating rooms, and the set up of temporary operating rooms that are virtually outside. The amount of help that the surrounding areas have offered has played a huge role in saving many lives, and allowing many people to remain with their families.

Conclusion Not only did the earthquake in L’Aquila effect the Schooling of Italian children and College Students, but it effected the medical care as well. In addition to effecting the medical care in the city of L’Aquila, it effected those areas surrounding which offered additional support for those injured, and really showed the amount of collaboration that goes on when something as severe as this happens. This really shows how the best of individuals comes out in hard times… brothers and sisters helping one another. Thank you for your time.

Bibliography http://www.amoretravelguides.com/blog/damage-in-laquila-italy-and-surrounding-area.php http://www.gostructural.com/article.asp?id=3739 http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/europe/7992495.stm