Page 86 - The Truth of the Life of This World

protects man and with such disasters reminds him, now and then, that he
has no control whatsoever over his life.
At this point, it could be beneficial to remember a major earthquake,
which took place in the 20th century.

Technology Defeated: Kobe
Today's advanced level of science and technology inspires man with the
feeling that he has control over nature. Yet, those who are overwhelmed
by such a notion may soon feel disappointment. Technology is a tool pro-
vided by Allah for the service of man and is entirely under His control.
Various events show that even the most advanced technology is impotent
to rule nature.
For instance, despite the "earthquake-resistant technology" developed
by Japanese scientists, Kobe fell victim to widespread subsidence caused
by twenty seconds of intense shock waves during the 1995 quake. The
world's most earthquake-resistant structures built to withstand an intense
jolt simply collapsed during a momentary 6.9 magnitude quake. During
the previous three decades, the Japanese government had invested one
billion dollars in academic research to develop warning systems for
earthquakes. Yet, these efforts yielded no conclusive results at all. As the
millennium draws to a close, scientists are still unable to devise systems
to issue warnings that could reduce the destructive effects of dangerous
seismic events. Kobe was a recent example, among many others, demon-
strating how vulnerable to unexpected patterns of seismic hits a modern
industrialised city is.
The public was reassured that modern technology developed to predict
major earthquakes would save them from complete destruction. Yet, after
the disaster which reduced Kobe to heaps of rubble, it became apparent
that no technology had been available to alert people to the danger. It also
became apparent that the so-called "quake-resistant structures" had no
resistance at all to the earthquake whose epicentre was 15 miles south-
west of downtown Kobe.
The region affected by the earthquake included the populous cities of
Kobe and Osaka. That is why appalling damage occurred, leaving 5,200

84 Natural Hazards and Disasters