Human Casualties In Earthquakes

Assessment of human casualties in earthquakes has become a topic of vital importance for national and urban authorities responsible for emergency provision, for the development of mitigation strategies and for the development of adequate insurance schemes. In the last few years important work has been carried out on a number of recent events (including earthquakes in Kocaeli, Turkey 1999, Niigata Japan, 2004, Sichuan, China 2008 and L'Aquila,Italy 2009). These events have created new and detailed casualty data, which has not until now been properly assembled and evaluated. This book draws the new evidence from recent events together with existing knowledge. It summarises current trends in the understanding of the factors influencing the numbers and types of casualties in earthquakes; it offers methods to incorporate this understanding into the estimation of losses in future events in different parts of the world; it discusses ways in which pre-event mitigation activity and post-event emergency management can reduce the toll of casualties in future events; and it identifies future research needs.

This manuscript sets out a process for estimating fatalities in collapsed buildings due to ground shaking in an earthquake. The aim of this research is to supplement current earthquake loss estimation with fatality rates (percentage of occupants killed) for use in models which are based on recent empirical information on deaths from earthquakes. This document specifically explores the lethality potential to occupants of collapsed structures. Whilst earthquake casualty modeling has admittedly suffered from a lack of post-earthquake collection of data and rigour in assessing these data, recent earthquakes such as 2008 Wenchuan (China) and 2011 Christchurch (New Zealand) have brought to light some important findings. Under the auspices of US Geological Survey’s PAGER, empirical fatality data related to collapses of buildings from significant earthquakes in the past 40 years have been thoroughly examined. Through detailed investigations of fatal building collapses and the volume reductions within these buildings, important clues related to the lethality potential of different failure mechanisms of global modern and older construction types were found. The gathered evidence forms the basis of the derivation of a set of fatality rates for use in loss models. The set of judgment-based rates are for 31 global building types. This significant advancement in casualty modeling, the resolutions and quality of available data, the important assumptions made, and the final derivation of fatality rates are discussed here. This document contributes to global efforts to develop a way of estimating probable earthquake fatalities very rapidly after an earthquake has taken place. The fatality rates proposed here can be incorporated directly into earthquake loss estimation models where fatalities are derived from collapses of different types of buildings.

The book provides information on the major EEW systems in operation and on the state-of-the-art of the different blocks forming an EW system: the rapid detection and estimation of the earthquake’s focal parameters, the signal transmission, the engineering interface and the information reliability/false alarm problem. It is the first time that so many aspects of EEW systems have been specifically focused upon within a single book.

This book collects 5 keynote and 15 topic lectures presented at the 2nd European Conference on Earthquake Engineering and Seismology (2ECEES), held in Istanbul, Turkey, from August 24 to 29, 2014. The conference was organized by the Turkish Earthquake Foundation - Earthquake Engineering Committee and Prime Ministry, Disaster and Emergency Management Presidency under the auspices of the European Association for Earthquake Engineering (EAEE) and European Seismological Commission (ESC). The book’s twenty state-of-the-art papers were written by the most prominent researchers in Europe and address a comprehensive collection of topics on earthquake engineering, as well as interdisciplinary subjects such as engineering seismology and seismic risk assessment and management. Further topics include engineering seismology, geotechnical earthquake engineering, seismic performance of buildings, earthquake-resistant engineering structures, new techniques and technologies and managing risk in seismic regions. The book also presents the Third Ambraseys Distinguished Award Lecture given by Prof. Robin Spence in honor of Prof. Nicholas N. Ambraseys. The aim of this work is to present the state-of-the art and latest practices in the fields of earthquake engineering and seismology, with Europe’s most respected researchers addressing recent and ongoing developments while also proposing innovative avenues for future research and development. Given its cutting-edge content and broad spectrum of topics, the book offers a unique reference guide for researchers in these fields. Audience: This book is of interest to civil engineers in the fields of geotechnical and structural earthquake engineering; scientists and researchers in the fields of seismology, geology and geophysics. Not only scientists, engineers and students, but also those interested in earthquake hazard assessment and mitigation will find in this book the most recent advances.

Since the publication of the successful first edition of Earthquake Protection there have been 110 lethal earthquakes, killing 130 000 people; there have also been significant developments in the field of earthquake risk management, particularly in the modelling and analysis of risk for insurance and financial services. Furthermore, major earthquake disasters, such as the 1994 Northridge earthquake in California, the 1995 Kobe earthquake in Japan and the 1999 Kocaeli earthquake in Turkey have occurred. The experience and knowledge gained through these events have improved our understanding of how to manage, mitigate and work towards the prevention of similar catastrophes. The 1990s were in fact the costliest decade on record in terms of disaster management due to such seismic events, placing unprecedented pressure on the insurance industry in particular, and changing its view of earthquake protection. Significantly revised and updated, this second edition continues to provide a comprehensive overview of how to reduce the impact of earthquakes on people and property, and implement best practice in managing the consequences of such disasters. It also includes significant coverage of the techniques of modelling earthquake catastrophe. Each chapter deals with a separate aspect of protection, and covers a wide range of economic and social conditions, drawing on the authors' considerable personal experience and with reference to real life examples. Key features include: Recent event coverage Modern developments in the theory and practice of planning and engineering loss estimation techniques, along with new engineering techniques such as microzonation and hazard-mapping Historic buildings experience An entirely new chapter on 'Earthquakes and Finance' This valuable book provides essential reading for earthquake and structural engineers and geoscientists, as well as insurers and loss prevention specialists, risk managers and assessors involved in managing earthquake risk, urban and regional planners, and emergency management agencies.

Learn from the personal experience and insights of leading earthquake engineering specialists as they examine the lessons from disasters of the last 30 years and propose a path to earthquake safety worldwide Why Do Buildings Collapse in Earthquakes?: Building for Safety in Seismic Areas delivers an insightful and comprehensive analysis of the key lessons taught by building failures during earthquakes around the world. The book uses empirical evidence to describe the successes of earthquake engineering and disaster preparedness, as well as the failures that may have had tragic consequences. Readers will learn what makes buildings in earthquake zones vulnerable, what can be done to design, build and maintain those buildings to reduce or eliminate that vulnerability, and what can be done to protect building occupants. Those who are responsible for the lives and safety of building occupants and visitors - architects, designers, engineers, and building owners or managers - will learn how to provide adequate safety in earthquake zones. The text offers useful and accessible answers to anyone interested in natural disasters generally and those who have specific concerns about the impact of earthquakes on the built environment. Readers will benefit from the inclusion of: A thorough introduction to how buildings have behaved in earthquakes, including a description of the world’s most lethal earthquakes and the fatality trend over time An exploration of how buildings are constructed around the world, including considerations of the impact of climate and seismicity on home design A discussion of what happens during an earthquake, including the types and levels of ground motion, landslides, tsunamis, and sequential effects, and how different types of buildings tend to behave in response to those phenomena What different stakeholders can do to improve the earthquake safety of their buildings The owners and managers of buildings in earthquake zones and those responsible for the safety of people who occupy or visit them will find Why Do Buildings Collapse in Earthquakes? Building for Safety in Seismic Areas essential reading, as will all architects, designers and engineers who design or refurbish buildings in earthquake zones.

The study of disaster statistics and disaster occurrence is a complicated interdisciplinary field involving the interplay of new theoretical findings from several scientific fields like mathematics, physics, and computer science. Statistical studies on the mode of occurrence of natural disasters largely rely on fundamental findings in the statistics of rare events, which were derived in the 20th century. With regard to natural disasters, it is not so much the fact that the importance of this problem for mankind was recognized during the last third of the 20th century - the myths one encounters in ancient civilizations show that the problem of disasters has always been recognized - rather, it is the fact that mankind now possesses the necessary theoretical and practical tools to effectively study natural disasters, which in turn supports effective, major practical measures to minimize their impact. All the above factors have resulted in considerable progress in natural disaster research. Substantial accrued material on natural disasters and the use of advanced recording techniques have opened new doors for empirical analysis. However, despite the considerable progress made, the situation is still far from ideal. Sufficiently complete catalogs of events are still not available for many types of disasters, and the methodological and even terminological bases of research need to be further developed and standardized. The present monograph summarizes recent advances in the field of disaster statistics, primarily focusing on the occurrence of disasters that can be described by distributions with heavy tails. These disasters typically occur on a very broad range of scales, the rare greatest events being capable of causing losses comparable to the total losses of all smaller disasters of the same type. Audience: This SpringerBrief will be a valuable resource for those working in the fields of natural disaster research, risk assessment and loss mitigation at regional and federal governing bodies and in the insurance business, as well as for a broad range of readers interested in problems concerning natural disasters and their effects on human life.