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Summary Visitors to the China Fire Museum in Beijing are put through fire escape drills and simulated quake
A new Chinese museum offering a simulation of an earthquake and other disasters has seen a jump in the number of visitors in the wake of Japans massive earthquake. Visitors to the China Fire Museum in Beijing are put through fire escape drills and a simulated earthquake, in which they learn the basics of safety and survival.The museum said that they saw a record 700 visitors on Sunday, two days after the 9.0-magnitude quake and tsunami killed over 9,000 people in Japan. Going through a dark corridor filled with smoke, visitors get a taste of how it feels to be caught in a real building fire. Another set-up recreates a subway fire.Twenty-one-year-old university student Gao Qiyi said the experience, though artificial, has given her a better understanding of the real thing. The simulation of a 5.0-magnitude earthquake takes place in a recreated bar.Visitors first experience an introductory 3.0-magnitude quake before the strength is turned up to 5.0, sending them crouching to the ground in safety positions.Participant Du Yuxing thought the simulation was a good way to educate the public. Several earthquakes have recently ravaged the Asia-Pacific region, including one in Chinas southwestern Yunnan province on March 10 which killed 25 people. In 2008, a massive earthquake in Sichuan province killed 80,000 people.Lax health and safety standards have also led to a number of accidents that have angered the Chinese public. Unlicensed welding caused a fire in a downtown Shanghai high-rise block that killed 58 people last November. The museum, which currently requires visitors to book in advance, is planning to open officially to the public later this year with an improved version of its simulator.
