We felt the earthquake that hit the border of Iran/Pakistan this afternoon. It was not very strong in Delhi, but it was unmistakable on the third floor. It was short, just a couple little heaves.
My surprise was that, the second the earthquake happened, everyone in the office got out of their seats and proceeded toward the doors of the stairs. “This happens sometimes,” one of our co-workers told us as we walked. Because the earthquake clearly was not bad, people were talking amiably, not particularly hurrying, as if the entire company had spontaneously decided to go on break. The guards held the door for us. The speed with which all the residents of this business complex emptied was like an elementary schoolteacher’s fire drill practice dream come true.
So, a day before I move into my 12th floor apartment (yep, I got that 2-bedroom in Orange County) is when I find out Delhi is on some kind of fault and is due for a Big One. D’oh. My complex does advertise “earthquake resistant” building methods, though… At any rate, our co-workers said this had happened two other times in the last year. It looks like evacuation is standard procedure across Delhi and everyone is eager to comply. Not a bad thing.
The employees of the various companies hanging out in the sun, waiting for the OK to go back inside
My other earthquake experiences (all minor ones) have been in Japan. At this level of earthquake, the office workers in Tokyo will barely look up from their computers, let alone leave the building. Then again, we postulated that the the buildings in Japan are built a little more sturdily. (And earthquakes happen more frequently there I think.)