2011 Van Earthquakes: Lessons from Damaged Masonry Structures
Publication: Journal of Performance of Constructed Facilities
Volume 31, Issue 5
Abstract
On October 23 and November 9, 2011, two earthquakes struck the Van Province in eastern Turkey. Masonry buildings in the region were severely damaged. This paper presents an investigation on the seismic performance of masonry dwellings after the 2011 Van earthquakes. The seismicity of the region and its seismic hazards were considered, and a door-to-door reconnaissance study was conducted after these strong earthquakes to examine the seismic response of the masonry structures. Rural regions particularly suffered extensive damage from these earthquakes, and the reasons for the observed damage are complex. Regulations of the current Turkish earthquake code for masonry structures were compared with field observations, and the latest and draft versions of the code regarding masonry buildings were evaluated. Approaches to enhancing the seismic behavior of masonry dwellings are discussed. On the basis of the field investigation, the construction quality and control issues were fundamental factors that affected the performance of masonry dwellings. Hence, out-of-plane and in-plane behaviors contributed to the observed damage.
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Acknowledgments
The authors express their deepest appreciation to the rectorate of ITU and to the academics that contributed and participated in the reconnaissance studies.
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Information & Authors
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Published In
Journal of Performance of Constructed Facilities
Volume 31 • Issue 5 • October 2017
Copyright
©2017 American Society of Civil Engineers.
History
Received: Sep 10, 2016
Accepted: Jan 27, 2017
Published online: Apr 17, 2017
Discussion open until: Sep 17, 2017
Published in print: Oct 1, 2017
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