Source : http://www.dofollownet.com
Do you remember the story of this Italian scientist who predicted the L'Aquila earthquake weeks before it actualluy occured (in April 2009). He was muzzled by the authorities which considered that his prediction had no scientific foundation.
In the case of Haiti, there were strong historical and scientific foundations. Geologists and seismologists studying the tectonic of the Enriquillo-Plantain Garden fault zone have warned since 2004 about the seismic hazards that threaten Jamaica, Haiti and the Dominican Republic and the warning was repeated in 2008 during the 18th Caribbean Geological Conference. Last seismic events in the area occured in 1751 (Dominican Republic) and 1907 (Jamaica).
But knowing that the hazards exist does not help predicting exactly when and where the next strike will occur. The only thing that was pretty clear was that a 7.2 earthquake was due sooner or later, considering the 8 mm/year of slip rate on the fault, and that the two major cities directly threatened by such an event were Port-au-Prince (Haiti) and Kingston (Jamaica) both located within 18 miles from the fault.
But how one of the poorest country in the world could have taken the necessary steps to get prepared and to minimize the effects of such a disaster?
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