Learning From Quakes: Lots Done, More to Do : Starch in parking structures; vigilance in making grants

Parking garages are as integral to Southern California’s automobile culture as freeways themselves. Without them many shopping malls couldn’t survive; driving to work, to a medical appointment, to a college might be all but impossible.

In the Northridge earthquake at least eight parking structures were damaged significantly. If the temblor had come only a few hours later, many lives surely would have been lost in these structures and many, many more cars would have been destroyed. Take these eight cases as one more warning to be acted on quickly, as a primary matter of public safety.

Experts are still studying why some parking structures tipped, tilted or collapsed in the San Fernando Valley, other parts of Los Angeles and Glendale. As The Times reported Friday, two key indications already have emerged. Precast concrete structures, linked together at the site, seem less seismically stable than cast-in-place structures. And cutting costs--one of the appeals of using precast construction--often invites trouble, even when building code standards are met.

Structural engineers will have to first agree on what changes are needed and then recommend changes in the Uniform Building Code. The problem is that the code isn’t scheduled for review until 1997. Ensuring parking structure safety, in terms of either new construction or retrofitting, must not wait until then. The California Building Standards Commission could require local governments to meet higher standards a lot sooner; it should do just that, as soon as practical. Lives are at stake.

Right now, the Federal Emergency Management Agency is helping many quake victims climb back from disaster. But, as Times staff writer Carla Rivera reported, FEMA has sent checks to some who may not be eligible. To that, the agency’s director vows that federal and state inspectors will verify every check, mistakes will be rectified and cheaters prosecuted.

Taxpayers need that reassurance, especially while President Clinton’s $8.6-billion earthquake aid bill works its way through the Congress. Any hint of fraud will cost votes.

The debate in Congress is not limited to how much money Southern California should receive. Many politicians are using the temblor to posture on other issues, from illegal immigration to the federal deficit. Certainly vigilance in all government programs is needed, as fraud in the post-quake emergency food stamp program showed. But vigilance always must be tempered with common sense and compassion. If fraud has occurred--perhaps even substantial criminality--then the violators must be prosecuted to the full extent of the law. But this does not eviscerate the essential value of the effort: to help the quake’s victims.

Indeed, FEMA has improved aid delivery. After the 1992 riots here, checks took too long to arrive and more than half of those who filed applications failed the documentation requirements. In response to last year’s Midwest floods, the Clinton Administration revised the rules to provide more timely relief and this region has benefited from that new policy.