Are U.S. States and Cities Prepared for a Disaster?

Japan didn’t get caught off guard.

When the 8.9-magnitude earthquake struck off its coast and triggered a giant tsunami last week, the famously high-tech nation had a plan in place that included a tsunami warning system, strict seismic standards for construction and billions of dollars worth of technologies designed to curtail damage caused by disasters.

Still, the catastrophe has left thousands missing or dead (with the death toll rising daily) and tens of thousands starving. Towns have been washed away. Millions of residents now fear radiation exposure from a leaking nuclear power plant. Indeed, the chain reaction of disasters, which Japanese Prime Minister Naoto Kan called the toughest and most difficult "in the 65 years after the end of World War II," has been beyond devastating. It’s hard to imagine how much worse it would have been if Japan hadn’t been as prepared.

By Russell Nichols

Full Story: http://www.governing.com/blogs/view/Japanese-Quake-Are-US-States-and-Cities-Prepared-for-a-Disaster.html