U.S. seismologists at CA’s Scripps Institution of Oceanography have released a study indicating fault zones weaken in select locations shortly after a fault reaches an earthquake tipping point. This can then transform a smaller series of quakes into a large mega-quake.
The recent August 24, 2014 earthquake outside of Napa, California again demonstrated the seismic risk posed by a building’s nonstructural components. In general, the components of a building’s structural system that support the building and keep it standing—the frame, walls, and roof—performed very well in the Napa Valley earthquake. However, the nonstructural components of a building—the cladding, interior walls, ceilings, utilities, and contents – were responsible for more than 90 percent of the damage.
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