1 Department of Civil Engineering, University of Ottawa, Ottawa ON K1N 6N5, Canada
2 Laboratory for Applied Geomatics and GIS Science, University of Ottawa, Ottawa ON K1N 6N5, Canada
3 Geological Survey of Canada, Natural Resources Canada, Quebec City, QC G1K 9A9
4 Hazard Mitigation and Disaster Management Research Centre, University of Ottawa, Ottawa ON K1N 6N5, Canada
ABSTRACT
Recent earthquakes have demonstrated the seismic vulnerability associated with poorly designed masonry buildings in densely populated urban areas. Given the large stock of unreinforced masonry buildings in cities such as Vancouver, Montreal and Ottawa, there is an urgent need to assess the seismic vulnerability of older unreinforced masonry buildings in Canada. This paper presents results from an ongoing research program which forms part of a multi-disciplinary effort between the University of Ottawa’s Hazard Mitigation and Disaster Management Research Centre and the Geological Survey of Canada (NRCAN) to facilitate the data collection and seismic vulnerability assessment of buildings in dense urban areas. A general building inventory and its spatial distribution and variability are key variables needed for earthquake loss assessment and risk management. The Urban Rapid Assessment Tool (Urban RAT) is designed for the rapid collection of building data in urban centres. The Geographic Information System (GIS) based assessment tool allows for intense data collection and revolutionizes the traditional sidewalk survey approach to collecting building data. Currently, this research effort includes 8 major downtown neighbourhoods in the City of Ottawa comprised of approximately 14,000 buildings which includes a large stock of unreinforced masonry buildings. This paper presents data related to the condition of existing unreinforced masonry buildings in the City of Ottawa, including information on year of construction, occupancy class and structural irregularities relevant to seismic risk assessment.
KEYWORDS: building inventory, seismic vulnerability, earthquake risk assessment, unreinforced masonry (URM)
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