Flip through the latest issue of Gulf Weekly.
EVEN after the tremors from Iran’s 6.3 magnitude earthquake hit our tiny island, I can still safely say that I have never felt the effects of a natural disaster.
Personally, if I hadn’t of been informed that many buildings around the Seef area had to be evacuated as a result of the aftershock I would have remained completely ignorant of the supposed danger that Bahrain was in.
However, it got me thinking about how prepared we would be in the face of a truly disastrous natural event. Luckily, there were no reported injuries or (thankfully) any casualties associated with the tremors in Bahrain, yet if the shaking was slightly more violent, would this still have been the case?
My father works around the Diplomatic Area and therefore was one of the people affected by the vibrations. He had to evacuate the building that he works in and stand around outside until informed otherwise. Although it was a unanticipated incident, he commented on how comical he found the situation. If the building was truly in danger of collapsing, then surely standing underneath it is the last place you would want to be? In the unlikely event that a more serious event were to trouble the island, I would be completely unaware of how to react, and I know I am not alone in my lack of knowledge. The panic itself would likely be the cause of most accidents. I am truly thankful that a natural disaster is highly unlikely to ever truly occur here, but in the light of recent events I question whether we should all still be prepared, just in case.
