PRESENTATION ON PAST EARTHQUAKE

Earthquake occurred in Pakistan

Muzaffarabad
(Kashmir Earthquake)

Introduction

Earthquakes mostly cause damage due to ground
shaking. The most devastating event recorded in the
history of Pakistan on 8th October 2005. The
major cities and towns affected were Muzaffarabad A
devastating earthquake measuring magnitude 7.6 on
Richter scale. Its epicenter was reported about 95
kilometers north-west of the capital Islamabad.
Kashmir Earthquake
The collision of the Indian and the Eurasian
plates
Modes of Failure

Modes and degrees of damage varied among
the buildings. Different modes of failure are
discussed as follows:
Failure due to Foundation Settlement

The main cause of failure for most of the
buildings is the differential foundation settlement.
The differential settlement caused serious cracking
of the walls, sagging of the floors and distress to the
structural frame due to development of additional
moments/stresses.
The intensity of damage due to differential
settlement for different buildings is shown in
pictures below :
Damaged column near
plinth level due to foundation settlement

Sagging of the lobby floor
Cracks due to non-uniform foundation
settlement
Differential movement of the landing of
staircase, main-reinforcement is exposed
Cracking of the masonry column due to
non-uniform settlement
Cracking of the masonry column due
to non-uniform settlement
Cracking of the staircase due
to differential settlement
Shear Movement of the Structural Columns

Quite large shear movement of the structural
columns of the triple storey wing of the public
building was observed. The modes of failure are
shown in pictures below :
Shear movement of structural
column and collapse of block masonry.
Failure of the beam column joint
Failed column at a store-front
showing three aspects of damage
1. Column Failure
2. Soft/Weak storey at store-front
3. Infill walls preventing total
collapse of the building

Large shear movement of the ground
floor column due to poor reinforcement
detailing
Large shear movement of the ground
floor column
Large shear movement of the ground
floor column due to poor reinforcement
detailing and weaker concrete
Shear Movement of the Column due to Cold Joint

Shear movement of the top floor column of an under-
construction triple storey building was observed. A triple storey
frame structure building with brick masonry cladding was under
construction. Shear movement of the column mainly due to cold
joint was observed and is shown in the pictures.

. Collapse of Block-Masonry Cladding

Total and partial collapse of the Block-masonry at many locations
was observed as shown in picture below.
Shear movement of column due
to cold joint
Shear movement of column
due to cold joint
Failure of block masonry walls
Alligator Cracking of the Brick-Masonry



Serious alligator cracking was observed in
the brick masonry walls of the hall, mainly due
to greater wall length and height and lack of
bond with the RCC structural frame. The failure
modes are shown in pictures below :

Failure of brick masonry and hanging slab
Collapse of the back wall

Buckling of main Reinforcement of Columns

The buckling of longitudinal column
reinforcement due to lack of stirrups was observed
as shown in pictures below :

Buckling of the main column reinforcement
due to lack of stirrups
(Shear Reinforcement)
Conclusions

1. In hilly areas soil investigation for each building should
be made separately with specific recommendations to
control the differential settlement.

2. Most of the failures have been initiated due to weak
zones resulting from poor quality of construction.

3. To reduce the financial and human loss, design
structures earthquake resistant.
References

[1] EERI Special earthquake report December 2005.

[2] Wikipedia 2005 Kashmir Earthquake.

[3] Report of Asian Development Bank and World Bank
Islamabad, Pakistan, November 12, 2005.

[4] J.G. Knoeff and G.J. Akkerman Geotechnical
contribution to risk reduction of natural hazards
PP-281

THANK YOU