World-famous architect Renzo Piano has been asked to head up the country’s disaster prevention and reconstruction following the 6.2-magnitude earthquake that hit central Italy on August 24, killing at least 290 people.
Italian prime minister Matteo Renzi announced a nationwide plan for risk prevention, after meeting with Piano to discuss housing measures for the earthquake victims and ways to rebuild the villages in Lazio affected by the recent disaster.“ Reconstruction should be coordinated in the wisest and quickest way,” Renzi said in a statement. “It is right to do it fast, but better still to do it well and with the involvement of all those affected.”
In an article in the Guardian, Piano commented that it was fundamental for Italy to introduce more stringent legislation on making buildings more resistant to seismic activity. “We have to act quickly, with the utmost urgency. Anti-seismic requirements must be inserted in the laws of the country to make our homes safe, just as it is compulsory for a car to have brakes that work.”
Piano also pointed out that a more overarching strategy was required to protect public buildings, homes and cultural heritage.
“We are speaking about the ridge of the Apennines, the backbone of Italy from north to south, an operation projected over 50 years and two generations.” The 78-year-old architect, also an Italian senator for life, has worked in high-risk seismic zones in Japan and California.
The best way to help the victims of the Central Italy earthquake is to make a donation to the International Red Cross.
