Photos from the EERI Structural Team

3/17/10

Department store in Concepcion after looting and being set afire.

Figure 1 below

Midrise concrete building in Concepcion. Significant damage to concrete walls over nearly entire height of building. Lateral system features two longitudinal walls running NW/NE with transverse walls. Transverse walls heavily damaged in at least first and second stories.

Figure 2, Figure 3 below

Highrise concrete core-wall building in Concepcion. Severe damage including axial shortening of stories on SW face, severe damage on NW face, insignificant damage visible on other two faces. View of north NW corner (Figure 6). Collapsed story on NW face (Figure 5). Damage to NE face (Figure 8). Close-up of pier damage on NE face (Figure 7). View of NE face (Figure 9).

Images Figure 4, Figure 6, Figure 5, Figure 8, Figure 7, Figure 9.

Midrise concrete building in Concepcion. Two towers arranged in L configuration, separated at intersection, where elevator shaft is located (Figure 10). Note failure of penthouse spanning the elevator shaft and expansion joint. Subterranean parking adjacent to the towers. Towers themselves on unknown foundation. Damage to pavement surrounding Tower A suggests rocking (Figure 13). Structural damage to Tower A (Figure 11) mainly concentrated in transverse walls. Crushing and inclined cracking damage of end wall in Tower A (Figure 12). Diaphragm cracking suggests transfer from discontinuous walls to continuous walls.  Tower B has only minor damage.

Images Figure 10, Figure 13, Figure 11, Figure 12.

Group of several similar concrete midrises. One tower (the first constructed in the group, ca 2001) had balcony beams that apparently coupled walls out of plane; may be source of wall boundary damage (Figure 14). Significant damage to one concrete wall (Figure 15) led to axial subsidence that buckled adjacent partition wall (Figure 16).

Images Figure 14, Figure 15, Figure 16.

Concrete building on square in Concepcion (ca 1965). Unable to enter building. Portion extending horizontally beyond lower stories apparently has concrete columns with masonry infill. Substantial concrete walls reported to be inside the remainder. Note failure of columns at setback.

Figure 17.

 

 

Figure 1.	Figure 2.	Figure 3.
Figure 4.	Figure 5.	Figure 6.
Figure 7.	Figure 8.	Figure 9.
Figure 10.	Figure 11.	Figure 12.
Figure 13.	Figure 14.	Figure 15.

Figure 16.	Figure 17.