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| Afghanistan | |
| Many dead in Afghan roof collapse | |
| 2010-10-28 | |
| [Al Jazeera] At least 65 people have been killed after a roof collapsed at a wedding in northern Afghanistan. The incident occurred in Jelga, a remote district located in the northern province of Baghlan, on Wednesday as guests gathered for the wedding in the early afternoon. Hamid Niazi, the head of the Afghan Red Islamic Thingy, said at least 40 people were maimed and that many of the victims were women and kiddies. An investigation into the cause of the collapse is under way.
"Women and children form the bulk of fatalities," he said. Houses in Afghanistan are often flimsy structures of mud and wood, constructed with little or no oversight by civil authorities. Weddings are one of the principle forms of entertainment and social interaction in Afghanistan, although men and women often celebrate in separate areas. In June, at least 50 people were killed when a boomer attacked a wedding party. Those festivities had been attended by members of an anti-Taliban movement in bustling Kandahar, the Taliban's main stronghold in the south. | |
| Posted by:Fred |
| #7 There goes our Barbara again, wielding Occam's scalpel with a master surgeon's accuracy. |
| Posted by: trailing wife 2010-10-28 22:15 |
| #6 "I hate to be cynical. Perhaps it was Allah's will?" I don't, Frank. I'll respect their culture, which seem to claim that everything is Allen's will. So obviously it was. |
| Posted by: Barbara Skolaut 2010-10-28 21:38 |
| #5 nope - some high-seismic areas boost them, but there are IBC codes out..subject to local/national/state acceptance, of course |
| Posted by: Frank G 2010-10-28 21:38 |
| #4 There are international building codes? I thought those would only be local, based on recommendations developed by the academic researchers... |
| Posted by: trailing wife 2010-10-28 21:34 |
| #3 I suspect it may not have been built in compliance with the 2007 IBC (International Building Code), much less the soon-to-be-implemented 2010 IBC, but I hate to be cynical. Perhaps it was Allah's will? |
| Posted by: Frank G 2010-10-28 20:39 |
| #2 ...little or no oversight by civil authorities Um, are there ANY civil authorities IN Aland??? |
| Posted by: Alan Cramer 2010-10-28 11:01 |
| #1 An investigation into the cause of the collapse is under way. You know the answer is going to be a US bomb or missile attack - probably one of our sophisticated AWMs (anti-wedding munitions). |
| Posted by: Glenmore 2010-10-28 10:21 |