Title:
Comparing the Effects of the 2023 Turkey Earthquakes and the Effects of Other Earthquakes
Author(s):
Pujol
Publication:
Web Session
Volume:
ws_F23_Pujol.pdf
Issue:
Appears on pages(s):
Keywords:
DOI:
Date:
10/29/2023
Abstract:
It is relatively simple to assign the responsibility of the disaster caused by the Turkey Earthquakes of February 2023 to deficiencies in workmanship and lack of quality control. But there is a larger story behind the disaster, which is related the proportions of the damaged structures. Structural proportions, by and large, were not affected by construction quality. Instead, they were the result of design procedures that allow for large drift demands. It is well known that large drift demands in elements with inadequate detailing lead to structural failures. But large drift demands in buildings with well-detailed structures can also lead to problems in non-structural elements and structural instability. As a consequence, buildings with structures with inadequate proportions, i.e. structures without sufficient robustness to control drift, are buildings that are likely to respond poorly to earthquakes. In this presentation, the proportions of building structures surveyed over the last 31 years in 14 countries are compared in quantitative terms. These comparisons suggest that the frequency of failures observed in Turkey aligns with what has been observed elsewhere. This realization implies that all countries allowing the construction of RC structures without the robustness needed to control drift (to a fraction of the drift allowed today) are likely to see large damage frequencies in future earthquakes. It is urgent that the RC industry works with the rest of the profession to reduce seismic drift limits.