Pre-empting earthquakes
Experts have looked at ‘how the land in the municipality will respond’ to a large tremor
ELCHE has taken the first steps towards improving its resistance to earthquakes with the publication of a seismic risk study.
This examination of possible scenarios looks at how land might move, what damage might be caused, losses suffered and emergency plans, explained town planning councillor José Manuel Sánchez.
The research was led by Alicante University (UA) thanks to an agreement with city hall which obtained the required funding from the ministry for the economy and the EU.
The results will be incorporated into a municipal seismic risk action plan, and will also be useful to take into account for future town planning and building inspections.
The UA has already given city hall the scientific data and will hand over the first draft of the plan in June and a definitive version in October.
“So far they have looked at how the land in the municipality will respond, given there are two fault lines nearby (Crevillente and Bajo Segura),” he said.
“From now on the study will focus in greater detail on how buildings will respond according to the type of land they are on.”
The analysis used simulations of various earthquakes on the Crevillente fault and an earthquake in Torrevieja to measure their impact on the municipality and be able to plan the emergency response and future urban development accordingly. Project director Sergio Molina explained that, in general terms, an earthquake of magnitude five on the Crevillente fault would cause an average damage impact of 1.6%, while one measuring 6.5 would have an impact of 60% and the one simulated in Torrevieja would cause 30%.