earthquakes

As-salamu `alaykum respected Sheikh. With the death toll rising in quake-stricken areas, what should Muslims do regarding washing and shrouding the dead, as well as praying the funeral prayer over the victims? What should Muslims do if they find it difficult to distinguish between the bodies of men and women? Is it possible that men and women be gathered in a mass grave and buried together?

May Allah protect you and make you in the service of Islam! I wonder about the case of a person who has bought two flats in the same building on installments. He paid the whole price of one of the flats, but before he started to pay the installments on the second one, the whole building collapsed due to an earthquake. Does the buyer have to pay the price of the second flat after the building has collapsed? What if there is an unknown structure defect in the construction that led to its demolition? It is the only building that collapsed, while nothing happened to other surrounding buildings. This can be a sign of defect in the structure of the building; there may have been cheating in concrete and construction materials. It is to be noted that the seller knew nothing about this. Rather he has lost his property. Please advise what the buyer should do according to Shari`ah. May Allah reward you!

What is the fate of the children who died in the recent Indonesian quake?

As-salamu `alaykum. Many countries have had earthquakes, such as Morocco, Japan, some Asian countries, and lately Iran. Does this have any significance?

If diseases begin to spread in the areas devastated by the Asian earthquake and tsunami, can those living in the affected areas leave to a remote area to be away from epidemics? How does this affect the role of relief workers?