Jim Johnson wrote:
> Okay Buster, I have to jump in here. For those that don't know,
> I'm a meteorologist and tornado researcher with 40 years in the
> field.
> You have a source for this statement? I ask because it flies in
> the face of the facts above...
Do I have a source? You bet! As a reporter/editor/writer, as a cop,
and as a university historian, I long ago learned to demand evidence!
Now, admittedly my research into this subject came in 2003, so only goes
through the year 2000, and is therefore somewhat dated:
150.7 Annualized American deaths due to hurricanes (1900 to 2000)
54.7 Annualized American deaths due to tornadoes (1975-2000)
38.0 Annualized American deaths due to earthquakes (1900
to 2000)
Snow/blizzard related deaths are more difficult to compile.
However, the National Snow and Ice Data Center has maintained,
"Snow kills hundreds of people in the United States each year.
The primary snow-related deaths are from traffic accidents,
overexertion, and exposure, but deaths from avalanches have been
steadily increasing."
Your odds of dying in a tornado are1-in-60,000, while for an
earthquake it is only 1-in-131,890.
My sources were NOAA, USGS, NSIDC, CDC and the National Center for
Health Statistics.
While we were discussing the end of the driving season in the U.S., you
may well be correct in other areas of the world. The U.S., with Japan,
has the most stringent earthquake-proof building codes in the world.
The two story brick building standing next to the 65 storey Los Angeles
sky-scraper will crumble to dust while the skyscraper simply bounces
back and forth on its springs! Other countries have not learned the
lessons of building safely.
Buster
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