2006 was a bad winter, with record snowfalls that killed many people. In Japan, over 60 people died in January. Many elderly people were killed trying to clear snow from their roofs, while others were crushed to death as their houses collapsed. "It's frightening," said one elderly woman in Asahi. "There were creaking sounds and I couldn't open the doors because of the weight of the snow."
Collapsing houses are not the first things that come to mind when we think about the effects of snow. In the U.K., we have civil engineers and architects who sort that stuff out. However, even modern buildings can be caught unaware by the climate, and snow, being made of water, is heavy.
Collapsing houses are not the first things that come to mind when we think about the effects of snow. In the U.K., we have civil engineers and architects who sort that stuff out. However, even modern buildings can be caught unaware by the climate, and snow, being made of water, is heavy.
The collapsed convention hall at Katowice, Poland, January 2006
