RAPID: Multi-Hazard Performance of Load Bearing Wall Systems: A Case Study in Haiti following the January 2010 Earthquake and October 2016 Hurricane Matthew

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This grant for Rapid Response Research (RAPID) will enable a team of wind, coastal, and structural engineers from the University of Notre Dame and the University of Florida to conduct a forensic analysis across the Tiburon Peninsula of Haiti to examine the performance of low-rise construction during the October 2016 Hurricane Matthew. Strengthening community resilience to natural disasters depends critically on improving construction practices across a private sector dominated by low-rise buildings. This issue becomes particularly urgent for coastal communities, where hurricane risk is escalating under changing sea levels and climate conditions. Historically, masonry load bearing wall systems had served as a trusted mode of low-rise construction in such settings. For example, builders in the southeastern United States commonly use masonry for churches, schools, commercial buildings, and even residences. Despite their popularity, the vulnerabilities in these systems to natural hazards can be significant, particularly within states that have yet to enact statewide minimum building standards. Regrettably, these vulnerabilities are only revealed under extreme wind, wave, and storm surge loads associated with the passage of major hurricanes. This makes the forensic analysis of building failures during major hurricanes a critical source of knowledge to improve the design state-of-the-art. The passage of Hurricane Matthew over Haiti in October 2016 provides an opportunity to conduct a forensic analysis of low-rise masonry building performance under one of the most significant hurricanes in recent history. This setting includes construction preferences that facilitate unique comparative analyses of variables known to influence performance of masonry buildings under wind, wave, and storm surge. Moreover, the fact that portions of Haiti have recently undergone reconstruction, following the devastating January 2010 earthquake in that country, with greater vigilance toward seismic detailing, furthers the potential for impact, as there has been no prior opportunity in the United States to explore the in-situ performance of structures under multiple significant hazards in a limited time period (strong earthquake followed by major hurricane). Through a combination of aerial and ground-based techniques, the multi-institutional team will collect perishable data to answer the following questions: (1) How did traditional masonry structural systems perform under hurricane wind, wave, and storm surge? (2) How did the new structural systems that have emerged in response to the 2010 earthquake and aseismically detailed traditional masonry systems perform in this major hurricane? (3) How does the performance of traditional masonry load bearing walls in Hurricane Matthew compare to that observed in the 2010 earthquake? How can this inform future multi-hazard designs? These insights will contribute to advancing more resilient, multi-hazard construction practices to reduce future losses of life and property.