Assessment of Residential Housing in Léogâne,Haiti,and Identification of Needs for Rebuilding after the January 2010 Earthquake

Abstract

Two months after the 2010 Haiti Earthquake, a reconnaissance team from the University of Notre Dame traveled to Léogâne with a follow up trip in August 2010. The team sought to determine the failure modes for residential housing in the area and survey the structural systems, construction materials, building practices, and non-engineering constraints that dictate these practices. The failure modes observed were commonly initiated from undersized/under-reinforced columns, though even structures with adequately sized columns sustained significant damage due to shear forces transferred by stiff but brittle unreinforced masonry walls. Inadequate seismic detailing of reinforced concrete elements, deficient materials and construction practices, and lack of seismic considerations in the design of structural systems with sufficient lateral interconnectivity were also observed. Finally, strategies now being pursued by the authors will be showcased in an effort to develop multihazard-resilient housing that can be sustained locally.