[sanmon3186]

I come from himalayan seismic zone and disaster preparedness is rarely in anyone's priority. There are multiple factors. Massive old construction, awareness around seismic construction, life priorities vis-a-vis poverty and probability of disasters at this scale in one's lifetime (I have witness one major earthquake in 1986 that caused major structural damage but no casualties) are some of the factors that make things worse.

There is no doubt that right estimation can help in preparedness post disaster. There are theoretical models but IMO those come with lots of uncertainties. 9/11 example you quoted seems to be off by factor of ~17.