Many buildings have no seismic resistance
Many buildings have no seismic resistance
JAKARTA (JP): Many of Jakarta's buildings built before 1960 should be reinforced in anticipation of an earthquake, a construction expert warned.
All buildings constructed before that year are not earthquake resistant, Gideon Hadi Kusuma told The Jakarta Post after a one- day seminar on seismic design on Tuesday.
Gideon, a consultant for numerous construction companies, said that 10 percent of all buildings over three stories tall must be renovated to make them resistant to a powerful earthquake.
According the expert, Jakarta is located in a "Zone Four" earthquake belt, where a natural disaster will occur below 6 on the Richter scale.
He argued that although Jakarta has never been shaken by a powerful earthquake, this doesn't mean the city is safe from catastrophe. No area on earth is safe, he stressed.
Gideon said the 6.7 on the Richter scale earthquake that hit Kobe, Japan, last January, devastated all buildings except those built after the country imposed seismic design on all construction in 1982.
He said Jakarta should structurally strengthen all buildings constructed after 1960.
The government issued the Indonesian Regulation on Concrete in 1955. Before that time the government deemed it unnecessary to have a regulation.
The rule was revised in 1971 and again in 1991. It requires all buildings to be strong enough to resist powerful earthquakes, Gideon said.
He added the city administration should warn owners of buildings constructed before 1960 to reinforce them.
Gideon understands that many owners don't care about their buildings being vulnerable to earthquake because the city has never been hit by a natural disaster.
He said all new buildings in Jakarta follow the new construction regulation.
"The regulation on concrete should be widely implemented in order to avoid serious damage caused by earthquakes like those in eastern Indonesia," he said.
Gideon underlined that safety should be the top priority.
"Indonesian builders always place economics at the top of their priority list. This is a dangerous trend," he warned. (03)