Field team survey of a school in Force (AP)

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

Date:                                 August 30th 2016

Building typology:         Load-bearing masonry

Municipality:                   Force (AP) – Public preschool building

Epicentral distance:      [34.5 km]

Description of the structure:

This building is isolated and positioned on a flat terrain.  It is composed by two stories above ground ~500 m² each (no floor below ground) . The structure has load-bearing masonry walls, and it was built before 1919. The walls are composed of stone masonry with bond beams. Both the non-thrusting roof and the floors are made of concrete and hollow brick clay.

Description of damage:

Visual inspection revealed significant damage to large sections of the vertical load bearing elements, especially  shear cracks in the masonry piers. Falling of plaster and internal objects was observed during the inspection. Evidence of foundation settlements was not observed.

Figure 1. Building exterior.

Figure 2. Shear crack in the load-bearing walls (piers).	Figure 3. Damage in the stone masonry.
Figure 4. Damage in the spandrels.	Figure 5. Damage in the corner of the building.