Luckily, we here in California had some pretty stringent building codes go into place after the 1933 Long Beach Earthquake. Many schools came down in that quake - it hit at 5pm so we didn't lose hundreds of students.

The building codes don't apply to private schools or to Universities. So there is room for improvement. From the news stories I read, it wasn't the building codes that were the problem in Turkey where those students died. It was the builders and the building inspectors that didn't adhere to the code. Maybe there needs to be tougher repercusions to such shoddy business.

I don't know about building codes in the rest of the United States. I know they are getting tougher in the midwest area where the New Madrid may strike, but I don't know specifics.

It seems to me that there should be a call out for better storm cellers/shelters and/or storm warnings for the midwest rather than improved building codes for earthquakes at this time.

Canie