Earthquake Engineering Research Institute
Learning From Earthquakes

Photos of Earthquake Damage

Damage to structures with asmolen floors (similar to flat plate):   Figure 1 Figure 2         Damage to village masonry houses:   Figure 3 Figure 4          

Initial Impressions from Erdem Canbay, METU

Van’da sadece 6 bina toptan gocmus. Sayi cok az ve bundan dolayi cok ilginc. 6 binanin kalintilari kaldirildiktan sonar kalanlar (bodrum ve zemin kat) incelenmeli. Hepsinde de tuyler urpenten ipucalari bulunabilir diye dusunuyorum. Soylentiler cok; bircok kolonun alan kazanmak icin kesildigi yonunde.  Only six buildings in Van collapsed. The serious damage is limited and that […]

Moderately Damaged School Building in Van

  Figure 1. General view of the structure. Figure 2. Spalling of plaster on exterior façade of the structure.         Figure 3. Infill wall damage inside a classroom. Figure 4. Diagonal shear cracks at an infill wall inside a classroom.         Figure 5. Spalling of plaster along the interior […]

Social Security Administration Building Damages

  Figure 1. General view of the structure. Figure 2. Heavily damaged interior column.         Figure 3. Collapse of interior partition walls made of concrete blocks along the corridor. Figure 4. Spalling plaster of the exterior infill walls, and heavily damaged exterior concrete column.          

October 28th Observations from Van

As a not very atypical example, his building at beginning appear to have only non-structural damage. But it came out that there is a heavy stair damage with a loss of about 50% of the section. Such type of damages with no clear sign from outside, but with seriously impaired members inside creates a difficult situation for  street type […]

Ready to Use Guideline for Details of Low Rise Reinforced Concrete Buildings without Masonry Infill from the Nepal Building Code

  There has been a proliferation of reinforced concrete (RC) framed buildings constructed in the urban and semi-urban areas of Nepal in the last 35 years. Most of these buildings have relied on little seismic design considerations. The RUD Guideline presents ready-to-use designs intended for non-professional laborers to use when constructing structural as well as […]

Hospital Built by China in Nepal Withstands Earthquake

The Civil Service Hospital in Minbhawan, Katmandu, a China-aid project built in 2008, has been honored as the “Strongest Building,” and has served as an important rescue center following the April 25 earthquake. The article reports the following about the seismic performance of the hospital: Major structure, including the outer wall, doors, windows and glass are solid […]