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Q: Which country is quicker to respond to earthquakes: China or Japan?
Let's hear your thoughts!
I quite admire China's efforts and think they have clearly learned lessons from the Sichuan earthquake. This time the response was quick and highly publicized. Officials now know that if they do something half-ass, they'll never live it down.
I don't really know enough about this earthquake to comment specifically on it. I am happy that the death count is so low compare to the 2008 earthquake (although that one was much more intense I think).
What I can contribute to this question is that I'm currently reading a book called "China Airbourne" by James Fallows on the development of China's aviation industry over the past 30 years (I totally recommend it by the way). I recall that 100 or so pages in he mentions that following the 2008 earthquake, China didn't really have much in the way of a helicopter fleet that could help airlift people out from the aftermath and that many thousands more died from starvation/dehydration (the primary relief effort was ground troops that had difficulty getting to the area due to landslides and damage road infrastructure. I haven't gotten far enough in the book to know for sure, but I suspect that it's emergency helicopter fleet has substantially improved since then, hence the (so far) lower death count.
How it compares to Japan, I have no idea though.
