The paper describes the output of a survey carried out in the district of L’Aquila, Italy, in May 2009 after the April earthquake and later in January 2010, and the consequent vulnerability assessment completed by the authors. Observations collected on site regard masonry buildings of the historic centre of L’Aquila and the towns of Paganica and Onna; particular focus was given to a number of buildings of interest, which better represent two locally recurrent building typologies: the mansion and the common dwelling. A description of the main structural features and their influence on damage mechanism is provided, stressing the importance of elements such as wall lay-out, quality of masonry and strengthening interventions. The gathered information is used as input for the application of the FaMIVE method (D’Ayala and Speranza in Earthq Spectra 19(3):479–509, 2003), whereby feasible collapse mechanisms and the associate failure load factors can be identified. The procedure is briefly outlined and results are discussed from the point of view of the performance point: push-over curves produced by statistical elaboration of FaMIVE’s output are compared both with the demand spectra obtained from EC8 and the response spectrum for the main shock as recorded by the closest station to the town. Conclusions are drawn on the reliability of the FaMIVE method with respect to its capability of predicting the damage mechanism identified on site.

Assessment and analysis of damage in L’Aquila historic city centre after 6th April 2009

The medieval fortresses are a very common and distinctive type among the Emilian historical constructions and the earthquake of May 20 and 29, 2012 highlighted their high vulnerability. Starting from the analysis of the geometrical and constructive features, the interpretation of their seismic vulnerability has been based on an accurate damage assessment and supported by the numerical results of typical configurations. An abacus of recurring seismic damage mechanisms in fortresses has been proposed: it in particular concerns the towers and their interaction with the fortress perimeter walls. Moreover, the seismic response of the most important fortresses in the epicentral area has been described referring to their historical notes, the recent interventions and their influence on the seismic damage.

Damage assessment of fortresses after the 2012 Emilia earthquake (Italy)

Comprehensive FE numerical insight into Finale Emilia Castle behavior under 2012 Emilia Romagna seismic sequence: Damage causes and seismic vulnerability mitigation hypothesis

Earthquake-induced damage assessment and partial failure mechanisms of an Italian Medieval castle

The Maule, Chile, earthquake of February 2010 affected the Central Valley stretching from north of Santiago to the Rio Bio-Bio in the south. The architectural heritage suffered considerable losses,...

Historic and Traditional Structures during the 2010 Chile Earthquake: Observations, Codes, and Conservation Strategies

The earthquake occurred on the 6th of April 2009 in the Abruzzo Region of Italy, seriously hit the Cultural Heritage (C.H.) patrimony with major destructive effects on L’Aquila, a city of 70,000 inhabitants with the size and the historical and strategic importance of the Region capital. The emergency activities to protect the C.H. have been developed on two parallel levels: (1) survey and assessment of damages, (2) implementation of temporary safety measures. The organization of the emergency actions was managed by a centralized structure, the so called Function 15 “Protection of Cultural Heritage”, that coordinated the surveys of protected buildings and the design and implementation of temporary safety measures. This allowed the cooperation among different involved subjects (Ministry of Cultural Heritage officers, experts on structural engineering, architects and historians from Universities and private offices and fire brigade teams). The first level of the operating process was carried out on site by expert teams filling up dedicated survey forms for churches and palaces, developed by the Civil Protection Group GLABEC (a Working group for Cultural Heritage); the forms were based on the standardization of damage survey allowing for its immediate interpretation. The second level was based on the past experience in the field of temporary safety measures; the idea was to provide a technical and scientific support in order to assist the work of fire brigade, highly experienced professionals in the “emergency” field. After the first emergency phase the damages of the most important buildings were more carefully investigated and the possible damage progression constantly monitored. The paper presents the case of the Spanish Fortress in L’Aquila, severely damaged by the earthquake; the description concerns the definition of the damages and the interpretation of the activated collapse mechanisms. Finally the design of the provisional strengthening interventions and the on site diagnostic investigations are presented.

L Cantini

Papers

Emergency actions and investigations on cultural heritage after the L’Aquila earthquake: the case of the Spanish Fortress