Field team survey of a school in Acquasanta Terme (AP)

Translation from Italian to English by Elide Pantoli (University of California, San Diego)

Date:                                    August 29th 2016

Category:                           School

Building typology:         Load-bearing masonry

Municipality:                   Acquasanta Terme (AP)

Epicentral distance:      [15 km]

Description of the structure:

This building is located on a slight slope and isolated on all its sides. It is composed by two stories above ground ~500 m² each (no story below ground) in load bearing masonry, and it was built between 1919 and 1945. The masonry walls are created with a vertical alternation of irregular stones and brick courses. The roof is non-thrusting and the floor slabs are semi-rigid.

Description of damage:

Visual inspection revealed significant damage to more than 2/3 of the vertical load bearing elements (masonry piers) and the nonstructural partition walls. Namely, the structure had shear cracks in many of the load bearing walls, meaning that the maximum strength of the structure was reached during this event. Damage to spandrels was also observed. The stairway structure shows small minor damage. Falling of plaster and internal objects was observed during the inspection. Evidence of foundation settlements was not observed.

Figure 1. Acquasanta Terme school.	Figure 2. Exterior views of the structure.
Figure 3. Cracks between floors and masonry piers at the ground level.	Figure 4. Shear cracks in the masonry piers.