There is very little research on total house strength that includes contributions of non-structural elements. This testing programme provides inclusive stiffness and response data for five houses of varying ages. These light timber framed houses in Christchurch, New Zealand had minor earthquake damage from the 2011 earthquakes and were lateral load tested on site to determine their strength and/or stiffness, and to identify damage thresholds. Dynamic characteristics including natural periods, which ranged from 0.14 to 0.29s were also investigated. Two houses were quasi-statically loaded up to approximately 130kN above the foundation in one direction. Another unidirectional test was undertaken on a slab-on-grade two-storey house, which was also snapback tested. Two other houses were tested using cyclic quasi-static loading, and between cycles snapback tests were undertaken to identify the natural period of each house, including foundation and damage effects. A more detailed dynamic analysis on one of the houses provided important information on seismic safety levels of post-quake houses with respect to different hazard levels in the Christchurch area. While compared to New Zealand Building Standards all tested houses had an excess of strength, damage is a significant consideration in earthquake resilience and was observed in all of the houses. http://www.aees.org.au/downloads/conference-papers/2015-2/
A photograph looking west down Cashel Street towards the intersection with Manchester. On the right is a severely damaged building. Rubble from the top storey has fallen onto the street. In the distance, the Grand Chancellor can be seen, with the slump in the left side noticeable.
A photograph of the earthquake damage to the Christchurch Chinese Methodist Church on Papanui Road. The bricks in the gable have crumbled, exposing the wooden structure underneath and crushing a van below. Police tape has been placed around the building as a cordon.
A photograph of the earthquake damage to Ambrose Heal Furniture on the corner of Barbadoes Street and Edgeware Road. The brick walls have cracked and crumbled, exposing the inside of the building. Police tape has been placed around the property as a cordon.
A photograph of the earthquake damage to the Cranmer Courts on the corner of Montreal and Kilmore Streets. One of the gables of the section of the building on the corner has crumbled. Ties have been placed around all of the gables as bracing.
Photograph captioned by BeckerFraserPhotos, "The Cathedral of the Blessed Sacrament, Barbadoes Street. After the February earthquake the statue of Mary was facing outwards towards the street, whereas before the earthquakes the statue faced inwards towards the church".
A photograph of the earthquake damage to the Loyal Benevolent Lodge on Canon Street. The top of the façade has crumbled, and the bricks have fallen oto the ground, taking the awning with them. Plastic fencing has been placed around the building as a cordon.
A photograph of a member of an emergency management team standing in front of an excavator on Manchester Street. The excavator is sitting on top of a pile of rubble from several earthquake-damaged buildings. In the background is another excavator clearing rubble.
A photograph of an earthquake-damaged building on St Asaph Street. The top of the side walls have collapsed, the bricks and other rubble spilling onto the driveway and footpath below. Emergency tape has been draped over the driveway as a cordon.
A photograph of the earthquake damage to the Coachman Inn on Gloucester Street. Sections of the façade have crumbled, the bricks spilling onto the footpath in front. Wire fencing has been placed across the left side of the building as a cordon.
A photograph of the earthquake damage to the Churchills Pub on the corner of Colombo and Battersea Streets. The top of the façade has crumbled into the street below, bringing the awnings down with it. Wire fencing has been placed around the building as a cordon.
A photograph of the earthquake damage to the Cranmer Courts on the corner of Montreal and Kilmore Streets. The tops of the gables of the section of the building on the corner have crumbled. Ties have been placed around all of the gables as bracing.
A photograph of the damaged former Lyttelton Borough Council Chambers on the north-east corner of the intersection between Sumner Road and Oxford Street. The top of the facade has crumbled onto the street below and wire fencing has been placed around the building as a cordon.
A photograph looking west down Cashel Street towards the intersection with Manchester. On the right is a severely damaged building. Rubble from the top storey has fallen onto the street. In the distance, the Grand Chancellor can be seen, with the slump in the left side noticeable.
People walk and drive along Manchester Street shortly after the 22 February earthquake. Bricks from collapsed buildings litter the road. The photographer comments, "Just after the aftershock settled on Tuesday afternoon, myself and colleagues fled our Tuam Street office to absolute devastation outside. We couldn't see more than a block in either direction due to the clouds of dust that had arisen from buildings that had just collapsed ... From here, we picked up our vehicles from the CCC car park and headed out to get out of the chaos to a position where we could check on loved ones. Heading first along Manchester Street, buildings that were already heavily damaged were now completely written off".
A photograph of rubble from earthquake-damaged buildings along Colombo Street near the intersection with St Asaph Street. On the left-hand side of the street cars have been crushed by falling rubble. The road has been cordoned off with wire fencing.
A photograph of High Street looking towards the intersection of Manchester and Lichfield Streets. Rubble from earthquake-damaged buildings litters the street to the right. In the distance excavators are clearing rubble from Manchester and High Streets while emergency management personnel look on.
A photograph of the earthquake damage to the Country Theme store on St Asaph Street. Sections of the façade crumbled. The bricks have been cleared from the footpath below. Steel fencing and road cones have been placed around the building as a cordon.
A photograph of the earthquake damage to the Country Theme store on St Asaph Street. Sections of the façade crumbled. The bricks have been cleared from the footpath below. Steel fencing and road cones have been placed around the building as a cordon.
A photograph of members of the Wellington Emergency Management Office walking down Gloucester Street towards the intersection of Manchester Street. Bricks from an earthquake-damaged building cover the footpath in the distance. Wire fences have been placed around the rubble as a cordon.
A photograph of the earthquake damage to the Country Theme store on the corner of Manchester and St Asaph Streets. Sections of the second storey walls have crumbled, and the bricks have fallen onto the footpath below. Wire fences have been placed around the building as a cordon. Red stickers on the front door and the wire fence indicate that the building is not safe to enter.
A photograph of the earthquake-damaged buildings and rubble on Colombo Street near the intersection of St Asaph Street. The walls of the top storey of the buildings to the left have crumbled, and bricks and other rubble have fallen onto the footpath and road below. Wire fencing and police tape have been placed across the street as a cordon. An excavator from Daniel Smith Industries Ltd is parked in front of the fence.
A view down Manchester Street, looking south. The road is noticably buckled, and rubble from damaged buildings can be seen beyond the cordon fence. The photographer comments, "Today I ... went for a walk along the cordon to the north of Christchurch CBD which runs about one street back from Bealey Avenue. The soldiers manning the cordon seemed happy for me to take photos but I couldn't see much of the city from the barrier ... what you can see shows there's obviously a lot of damage. The roads are swollen and raised in many place. The once flat CBD will now feature plenty of hills as well as natural traffic calming features".
A view across Battersea Street in Sydenham to Churchill's Tavern, which has been badly damaged in the 22 February 2011 earthquake. Masonry from the building's top storey has collapsed onto the footpath and several of its windows have fallen out. A member of the New Zealand Police Force is walking across Colombo Street in the background.
A house on Avonside Drive showing damage from the 4 September 2010 earthquake. Numerous cracks in the masonry can be seen, and several sections of brick have fallen off the walls. The building's porch has also collapsed. A pile of dried liquefaction is visible in the driveway.
A brick house on Centaurus Road with damage to the top left window and "Danger Keep Out" tape around the edge. A yellow sign on the front window indicates that the building should only be entered for "Restricted Use". This means it has faired better than the brick house next door which is red-stickered.
A photograph of the earthquake damage to the Ruben Blades on the corner of Lichfield and Manchester Streets. The front and top-half of the building have collapsed and the rubble has spilled onto Manchester Street. There are also substantial cracks in the Lichfield Street facade.
A photograph of the earthquake damage to the Country Theme store on the corner of Manchester and St Asaph Streets. The brick façade has crumbled in various places, the bricks spilling onto the footpath below. A red sticker on the door indicates that the building is no longer safe to enter.
A photograph of the earthquake damage to the Knox Church on the corner of Bealey Avenue and Victoria Street. The gable walls have crumbled, exposing the wooden structure inside. Wire fencing, road cones and cordon tape have been placed around the building as a cordon.
A photograph looking west down Lichfield Street towards the intersection of Manchester Street. Bricks and other rubble from the earthquake-damaged buildings on either side of the road have scattered on the footpath and street. Road cones and plastic fencing has been used as cordons.