Post-Disaster Reconnaissance

Earthquake – September 8, Al Haouz Province, Morocco, 6.8-magnitude Earthquake
2.8 million people were affected; more than 59,000 houses were damaged, of which more than 30% collapsed. Earthen homes performed worse than masonry homes, but damage was observed in both types.

Earthquake – February 6, Kahramanmaraş, Turkiye, 7.8-magnitude Earthquake
Poor quality of concrete and steel reinforcement, poor rebar detailing, insufficient building separation, weak and/or soft stories and deterioration of structural elements were common vulnerbabilities across residential building types that suffered damage or collapse.
Report

Earthquake – November 21st, Cianjur, Indonesia, 5.6 magnitude Earthquake
School infrastructure in Indonesia is substantially vulnerable as demonstrated in Cianjur and many prior earthquakes. Build Change repaired and retrofit SDN Tamansari school in Cianjur after the earthquake, ensuring that 240 children can go back to learn and play in a safer environment.

Flood – September, Sula Valley, Honduras Flooding
The event validated Build Change’s approach to improving houses in the area to be flood resilient. The homes were previously retrofit and vertically expanded; this enabled owners to save their belongings upstairs and quickly resume their normal lives, even while others were still in the process of cleaning the first stories from mud.

Super Typhoon Karding/Noru – September 25, Philippines
Over 1 million people affected and over 50,000 houses damaged. Out of 438 houses that was supported by the disaster resilient housing microfinance loan program none reported damage on their structures.
Report

July 31, 6.0 magnitude Earthquake
Newly built stone with mud mortar (SMM) houses with earthquake-resistant elements survived the Khotang earthquake with little or no damage, whereas newly built SMM houses without any horizontal bandages or vertical reinforcement were severely damaged.
Report

Earthquake – July 27, Abra, Philippines, 7.0 magnitude Earthquake
A structural assessment of various residential and commercial structures in the vicinity of the Bangued area found that most houses without ring beams suffered out of plane damage to the walls, resulting in corner separation and walls that were not stable.

Super Typhoon Rai/Odette – December 12-22, Philippines
Many homes were severely damaged or destroyed, in particular, houses constructed with timber and other light materials were damaged at high rates. Timber homes with masonry skirt walls rebuilt after the 2013 earthquake were destroyed by the storm.
Report

Marshall Fires – December 31 Boulder, Colorado
The fire’s rapid spread was primarily fueled by airborne flaming debris, exacerbated by the forceful winds prevalent in the area that day. Additionally, the proximity of adjacent buildings and the use of combustible building materials, including wood frame structures with wood/composite siding and asphalt shingles also contributed.

August 14, Tiburon Peninsula, Haiti, 7.2-magnitude Earthquake
Extensive damage was noted in residential buildings, schools, police stations and healthcare facilities. The observed damages were primarily attributed to irregular building configuration, such as soft story and vertical irregularity, and compounded by the poor quality of materials, design and construction.
Report

November 8-15, Philippines Category 4 equivalent Typhoon Vamco/Ulysses
A housing sub-sector study in the first phase of implementing a home strengthening loan product with MFI partner ASHI in the Calabarzon region showed that the single-story masonry houses affected by the storm were in need of repair and strengthening, and also feel within the applicability of the loan product.

The hurricanes led to floods with water levels surpassing three meters, affecting approximately 4.7 million people. In response, Build Change initiated a climate-resilient housing project, with the primary objective of exploring innovative solutions to allow people to remain safely in their homes during seasonal weather events.

Approximately 75% of dwellings were impacted. The quality of self-built houses varied. Construction costs were noted to be high, attributed to competition from the high-end market and challenges such as import delays and associated costs.
Report

Many unreinforced limestone masonry houses totally collapsed during the earthquake and a even reinforced concrete houses suffered out of plane failure of gable wall and wall cracks.
Report

September 6, Category 5 Hurricane Irma
In one- and two-story houses, timber-framed roofs and poor quality or deteriorated timber-framed walls suffered the most damage due to the hurricanes. Timber-framed walls and roofs also detached from the foundation or walls below due to inadequate connections.

October 6, 5.9-magnitude Earthquake
The severe damage to many buildings visited was due mostly to the use of poor construction practices, such as the use of poor-quality material. This was especially common in masonry buildings, where low-strength blocks and the use of sea sand was frequently observed.

Earthquake and Tsunami: September 28, 2018 – Central Sulawesi (Palu), Indonesia, 7.5-magnitude. Build Change conducted a field visit in late October and early November 2018 to the impacted areas, including four cities,  17 sub-districts and 24 villages.
2018 Central Sulawesi (Palu) Earthquake and Tsunami Reconnaissance Report

September 15, Typhoon Ompong/ Mangkhut
Reconnaissance in Cagagyan and Benguet was performed. Timber houses were the most affected by the storm, particularly light-framed roofs. Concrete block walls of masonry homes where wooden posts were used in the walls instead of reinforced concrete columns were also damaged due to the typhoon.

Earthquake: August 5, 2018 – Lombok, Indonesia, 7.0-magnitude. Build Change conducted a field visit in early September 2018 to the impacted areas including Lombok Timur and Lombok Utara. This report summarized the findings and general recommendations based on the observed damage.
2018 Lombok Post-Earthquake Reconnaissance Report

Floods in 2017 affected Terai districts such as Morang, Sunsari, Saprari, Siraha, Dhanusa. The effect on houses was more prominent in low areas without proper drainage systems. The houses that had mud mortar foundations were the most affected.

Surigao Earthquake: February 10, 2017 – Surigao del Norte, Mindanao, Philippines
Build Change Post-Earthquake Reconnaissance Report following magnitude-6.7 earthquake.

Roughly 45% of houses were complete destroyed or substantially damaged. A common vulnerability was insufficient connections, particularly between timber elements (such as roofs or walls) and concrete elements (like masonry walls and foundations). Many of the homes can be repaired and retrofit to better withstand future events.

September 19, 7.1-magnitude Earthquake
In the Jojutla, Morelos area, the trend was less clear in relation to the age and type of construction systems that collapsed, where many confined masonry houses also collapsed. This is probably attributable to configuration and construction quality deficiencies as well.

September 7, 8.2-magnitude Earthquake
In Oaxaca and Chiapas there is a clear predominance of collapse in older structures, mainly built using unreinforced construction systems, such as brick masonry, or earth construction; modern confined masonry structures also collapsed, although in a lower proportion, likely due to configuration and construction quality deficiencies.