Surviving the Triangle of Death

Oh dear, is it that time of year again?

Those of us in Emergency Management groan when we see this horrible email about the “Triangle of Life,” which manages to float through the internet year after year. This is a complete hoax. Its author, known as Doug Copp, is hopefully in jail now for all of this really deadly “advise” that he is spreading. (In fact, he is currently under investigation by the U.S. Department of Justice fraud unit...) He is wrong, DEAD wrong.

Let’s think about how this works. He claims that if you are beside something sturdy, rather than under it, a collapsed building will not hurt you? Honestly, if the building pancakes on top of you, you are a goner one way or the other. But this is rarely how buildings actually collapse, nor is it how people are injured or killed during earthquakes. Usually it is stuff flying around or falling over on people that gets them. Which means that getting UNDER something is the SMART thing to do!

For those minor examples Copp claims people survived in the “triangle,” there are thousands more that show the opposite. In fact, there is a photo often shown as one of his examples with the desk in the middle of the picture– if one had been UNDER that desk, one would have survived! NEXT to it (in the triangle) one would have likely not survived, or been severely injured.

Drop, COVER and hold on WILL save your life in an earthquake. Please spread that word instead. DO NOT forward these emails, or refute any sent to you.

For those unwilling to believe me and drop that triangle from their dead, crushed hands, go to Snopes for their take. http://www.snopes.com/inboxer/household/triangle.asp