In December 2003, a 6.7 earthquake struck the city of Barn in southeastern Iran. The city lost over 40,000 inhabitants and the historic citadel of Arg-e Barn was destroyed, despite surviving numerous previous earthquakes during its 2000 year existence. The paper examines the reasons for the devastation and the needs for reconstruction aid in the future. (C) 2006 Published by Elsevier Ltd.