Earthquake simulation on urban areas: Improving contingency plans by damage assessment

Abstract

Crisis produced by earthquake events are often dramatic for their severity and their impact on population. Damages may extend from buildings to Critical Infrastructures. Predicting the functionality of the latter after an event is relevant for the design of contingency plans, as availability of primary services empowers the action of first responders in the aftermath management. This work deploys a complex earthquake simulator (CIPCast-ES) which allows to explore a realistic earthquake event occurring in the city of Florence (Italy) by predicting disruptions on buildings and Critical Infrastructure and by designing a reliable scenario, accounting for roads obstruction due to building collapse, to be used to design an efficient contingency plan.