In the 1988 Armenia earthquake, 89% of those rescued alive from collapsed buildings were extricated during the first 24 hours (33). The probability of being extricated alive from the debris declined sharply over time, with no rescues after day 6. In the 1990 Philippine earthquake, survival among the trapped also fell off rapidly with time, from 88% on Day 1, to 35% on Day 2, to 9% on Day 3, to 0% from Day 4 onward (66). Of all the trapped who were extricated alive, 333 (94%) were rescued during the first 24 hours following the earthquake's impact.

Go to the Part II of this lecture.