Schinnerer's RM Blog - earthquake tag

Back-up City for Tokyo

Thu, 10 Nov 2011 13:00:00 GMT

In the wake of the recent devastating earthquake in Japan, the Japanese government is exploring the idea of building a “back-up” city for Tokyo. The idea is that if disaster were ever to demolish Tokyo, the government could continue to function by moving to the back-up city. The back-up is named Integrated Resort, Tourism, Business and Backup City (IRTBBC). It will sit 300 miles west of Tokyo. In addition to being able to house the government, it will also include offices, resorts, casinos, and parks. IRTBBC would hold 50,000 residents and a workforce of 200,000. At this point the plan is still just a concept that will be further explored.

Surviving an Earthquake

Thu, 16 Jun 2011 12:15:00 GMT

While engineers are concerned with designing buildings that are able to survive earthquakes, maybe there are also other ways to combat such an emergency. Bob von Bereghy remembers the horror and helplessness of being in a multi-story building during several earthquakes in the 1990s. The terrible experiences led him to found a company called LifeGuard Structures that specializes in “earthquake-proof” desks. The desks can allegedly withstand more than a million pounds of debris. Von Bereghy expects anyone that has a LifeGuard desk and utilizes it during an earthquake will live, due to the brute strength of the desks. The desks are engineered with steel and armor, come stocked with basic emergency items, and stood up to being tested in a demolished multi-story building. Though the company has yet to ship out any desks, they are hopeful that their product will be attractive due to the peace of mind it could give those who work and live in earthquake country.

Japan’s Building Codes Saved Lives

Wed, 16 Mar 2011 17:45:00 GMT

Although the toll in lost life is still rising from Japan’s earthquake, it is safe to say that Japan’s building codes saved countless lives. As noted in a New York Times article, extra steel bracing, giant rubber pads, and embedded hydraulic shock absorbers are common features in Japan’s modern buildings.

Historically, building codes have been reviewed and revised after every major earthquake, and design professionals (especially structural engineers) should pay close attention to the proposed revisions in building codes.

Rebuilding Haiti

Tue, 02 Feb 2010 13:11:00 GMT

The devastating earthquake that crushed Haiti on January 12 killed more than 150,000 people, and pummeled the poverty-stricken nation’s infrastructure. A group of Haiti’s most prominent architects and engineers have begun meeting every day, already focusing on planning the laborious task of rebuilding a nation. They have their work cut out for them.

The structural losses that Haiti suffered in the magnitude 7.0 quake are incalculable. The National Palace is in ruins. So is Parliament, the nation’s highest court, the Roman Catholic Cathedral, virtually all of the downtown commercial district, the city’s biggest and most modern supermarket, countless schools, banks, hotels, churches and, of course, homes in what is the Western Hemisphere’s poorest country.” (LA Times)

One of the goals of this group of design professionals is to build a new Haiti that will not be as susceptible to something this destructive happening again. Simply rebuilding Haiti is not enough. Rather, Haiti needs to be rebuilt stronger and smarter.

A problem inherent in the buildings of Haiti that crumbled during the earthquake was twofold. First, according to Leslie Voltaire, Haiti’s special envoy to the United Nations, many of the buildings were not constructed to the Haitian building code. This is because much of the infrastructure was not built by professionals (though it should be noted that the National Palace was constructed with the oversight of United States naval engineers in 1920). Second, even in cases where the code was used, it may not have mattered. The building code was only two pages, and was not created primarily with earthquakes in mind. Hurricanes were thought to be the bigger threat in Haiti. Buildings were built with heavy cinder blocks and cement, which quickly collapsed into rubble when the earthquakes struck.

Rebuilding a smarter Haiti that will not be as prone to earthquake destruction will not be an easy chore. The building code will have to be reworked, and enforced. In many cases, steel may be unaffordable for Haitians. But the fact that the island's best architects and engineers are unifying in an attempt to address these drastic problems at least provides some measure of hope for the future.