Journal ArticleDOI
A preliminary report on the Great Wenchuan Earthquake
TLDR
Wang et al. as discussed by the authors reported preliminary information that has been gathered in the first 18 days after the event, covering seismicity, search and rescue efforts, observed ground motions, and damage and loss estimates.Abstract:
The May 12, 2008 Great Wenchuan Earthquake has resulted in more than 68,858 deaths and losses in the hundreds of billions RMB as of May 30, 2008, and these numbers will undoubtedly increase as more information becomes available on the extent of the event. Immediately after the earthquake, the China Earthquake Administration (CEA) responded quickly by sending teams of experts to the affected region, eventually including over 60 staff members from the Institute of Engineering Mechanics (IEM). This paper reports preliminary information that has been gathered in the first 18 days after the event, covering seismicity, search and rescue efforts, observed ground motions, and damage and loss estimates. The extensive field investigation has revealed a number of valuable findings that could be useful in improving research in earthquake engineering in the future. Once again, this earthquake has shown that the vertical component of ground motion is as significant as horizontal ground motions in the near-source area. Finally, note that as more information is gathered, the numbers reported in this paper will need to be adjusted accordingly.read more
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Journal ArticleDOI
Landslide hazards triggered by the 2008 Wenchuan earthquake, Sichuan, China
Yueping Yin,Fawu Wang,Ping Sun +2 more
TL;DR: Wen et al. as discussed by the authors classified the landslide failure surfaces into concave, convex, terraced, and terraced failure surfaces based on their overall shape, and analyzed the capacity of landslide lakes, the height of landslide dams and the composition and structure of materials that blocked rivers.
Journal ArticleDOI
Field Investigation on the Performance of Building Structures During the 12 May 2008 Wenchuan Earthquake in China
TL;DR: In this paper, the authors present the findings of a post-earthquake reconnaissance field mission carried out by the Earthquake Engineering Field Investigation Team (The Institution of Structural Engineers, UK) and by the European Laboratory for Structural Assessment of the Joint Research Centre of the European Commission, through the description of the damage sustained by three of the towns that suffered the largest levels of devastation: Yingxiu Town of Wenchuan County, Beichuan Town of Beicuang County, and Hanwang Town of Shifang City.
Journal ArticleDOI
The Impact of the 12 May 2008 Wenchuan Earthquake on Industrial Facilities
TL;DR: In this article, the authors describe the results of a field trip to the area affected by the 12 May, 2008, Wenchuan earthquake to analyse its impact on industrial facilities, highlighting the need to consider potential site effects when selecting the location for a facility.
Journal ArticleDOI
Building-damage detection using post-seismic high-resolution SAR satellite data
Timo Balz,Mingsheng Liao +1 more
TL;DR: Tory assumptions about the appearance of collapsed buildings in high-resolution SAR images were drawn and verified with visual feature interpretations of real SAR images from the area to assess the areas of damage.
Journal ArticleDOI
Landslides associated with the May 12, 2008 Wenchuan earthquake: Implications for the erosion and tectonic evolution of the Longmen Shan
TL;DR: In this article, satellite images and aerial-photography following the Wenchuan earthquake show that a broad area experienced severe landsliding in association with the main earthquake and aftershocks, and a zone of high density landsliding (>10% landslide surface area affected) stretches for ~ 240 km along the earthquake region, in proximity to the Yingxiu, Beichuan and Pennguan faults, which ruptured during the earthquake.
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