What’s shaking Taiwan? Earthquakes!

“Do not be tense, just be ready, not thinking but not dreaming, not being set but being flexible” -Bruce Lee

The picture above is what you’ll see if you ever visit the top Taipei 101. It was once the largest building the world until it was surpassed by Dubai’s Burj Khalfa. The damper in the center of the building lets it sway like a wet noodle during an earthquake.

When I moved to Taiwan, I wasn’t at all scared of earthquakes. I’m still not. I’m a California girl and I grew up with shaking. I actually slept through an earthquake once while my family panicked. They really don’t phase me.

However, I was really glad to know that Taiwan is one of the most earthquake safe places around.

Taiwan has been through many earthquakes. Because of this fact, they have developed building techonology that creates flexible yet sturdy buildings.

The concept is simple. As Bruce Lee says; what is flexible will move. The damper in the center of Taipei 101 is basically a massive ball that allows the building to move from side to side. While Taiwan’s building don’t all employ this method, the principle is generally the same.

Recently, both Chile and Haiti suffered during massive earthquake damage and death because they were ill prepared. However, Taiwan went through an earthquake just a week or two later and there were no reported deaths. While there was damage to some older buildings, I think it’s safe to say that Taiwan is doing a pretty good on the earthquake safety front.

So, kudos to Taiwan and keep up the good work. I hope that we can encourage all countries to prioritize earthquake safety so that we avoid tragedies like those of the previous months.