| EPSRC Reference: |
EP/D075262/1 |
| Title: |
Post earthquake field investigation of the Kashmir earthquake in Pakistan of 8th October 2005 |
| Principal Investigator: |
Burton, Dr P |
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| Department: |
Environmental Sciences |
| Organisation: |
University of East Anglia |
| Scheme: |
Standard Research |
| Starts: |
21 November 2005 |
Ends: |
20 July 2006 |
Value (£): |
22,258
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Summary on Grant Application Form |
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Post Earthquake Field Investigation of the Kashmir Earthquake in Pakistan of 8th October 2005 (Summary)An Earthquake Engineering Field Investigation Team (EEFIT) of the Institution of Structural Engineers, London is to undertake observations in the stricken zone in Pakistan. It will be a small, mobile team consisting of three earthquake engineers and one seismologist drawn from Arup Geotechnics, Sir Robert McAlpine's, University College London and the University of East Anglia.The earthquake of 2005 October 8 hit a large area of the North West Frontier Province and Kashmir region of Pakistan. The magnitude is estimated at 7.6 M / a major earthquake. Over 70,000 people have already been reported killed. Worldwide about twenty-three major earthquakes each with in excess of 50,000 deaths has been previously documented historically dating back to 893AD as indicated in the World Atlas of Natural Hazards (including the great Sumatran 2004 earthquake and tsunami). Previously in Pakistan the earthquake of 1935 May 30 with magnitude 7.5 M hit the Baluchistan region, caused 30,000-60,000deaths, and Quetta was almost completely destroyed. In this year's earthquake damage has occurred to all types of construction including ethnic rural dwellings and concrete structures of low and mid-rise elevation; there are dams and other installations in the area. This earthquake was shallow and occurred in the upper to mid crust of the Earth and reached ground shaking intensity X (which causes general destruction of buildings: most simple rural dwellings may collapse and many concrete buildings show gaps in walls and parts collapse). It occurred in a young mountainous system where there are steep and rapidly eroding slopes. Intensity VII (much less damaging to buildings) or commensurate ground acceleration will induce landslides; this earthquake produced individually massive landslides and lesser ones over a large area. The landslides as a secondary hazard to the earthquake cause direct damage and disrupt infrastructure and lifelines (e.g. roads) and inhibit post-disaster relief efforts and the management of recovery. This is a rare earthquake with its own lessons to teach, but these lessons will be applicable to other communities and regions requiring engineered protection and development. There are comparable terrains in South and North America, other parts of Asia, and relevance even extends to terrains in New Zealand.EEFIT has tasks in this earthquake area to:? Observe example landslides and review the general landslide distribution (the geographical distribution and size and frequency of occurrence of landslides).? Observe and review local construction materials and methods.? Observe and review damage experienced by building types and bridges, and the distribution of damage (in relation to casualties, population and building density).? Review earthquake impact on lifeline infrastructure (particularly roads).? Obtain an understanding of the emergency recovery management in this earthquake.These field tasks are with a longer term view of identifying recommendations for future construction, repair and retrofit strategies and review of any existing local seismic-resistant design codes. The provisional field programme for work in the most damaged areas targets the five towns of: Muzaffarabad (huge landslide north of this city), Bagh, Rawalakot, Abbotabad and Manshera. Islamabad is also included in the field observations as at least one large building collapse has been reported there (about 95 km from the epicentre).
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Potential use in non-academic contexts |
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Impacts |
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| Description |
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Sectors submitted by the Researcher |
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This information can now be found on Gateway to Research (GtR) http://gtr.rcuk.ac.uk
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| Project URL: |
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| Further Information: |
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| Organisation Website: |
http://www.uea.ac.uk |