%0 Journal Article %T An Evaluation of Disaster Preparedness in Four Major Earthquakes in Iran %J Journal of Seismology and Earthquake Engineering %I International Institute of Earthquake Engineering and Seismology %Z 1735-1669 %A Izadkhah, Y.O. %A Amini Hosseini, K. %D 2010 %\ 04/01/2010 %V 12 %N Issue 1 and 2 %P 61-75 %! An Evaluation of Disaster Preparedness in Four Major Earthquakes in Iran %K Earthquake Preparedness %K Manjil-Roudbar %K Changureh-Avaj %K Bam %K Darb-e-Astaneh Earthquakes %K Iran %R %X Iran is located in the Alpine-Himalayan seismic belt, as one of the most active tectonic regions of the world. Throughout history, the country has frequently suffered large and destructive earthquakes and experienced several major earthquakes in the past few decades. More than 70 percent of the big cities in Iran are located in the vicinity of seismic faults and in some cases, the active faults pass through the city. Therefore, earthquake preparedness can be regarded as one of the factors which can contribute to safety of various groups of citizens. In Iran, measures have been undertaken to improve the public knowledge about disasters. A review on the activities of recent two decades, reveal the gradual improvement on the trends of earthquake preparedness in the country. The aim of this paper is to evaluate the progress of disaster preparedness in four major earthquakes that has occurred in Iran including Manjil - Roudbar, 1990, Changureh-Avaj 2002, Bam 2003, and Darb-e-Astaneh-Silakhore 2006 earthquakes. At the end, recommended strategies towards promoting public awareness and education as well as professional training are presented. %U http://www.jsee.ir/article_240607_040223b1d52541f46aaae03ca42dce8a.pdf