MITCNC Science and Technology Lecture Series
2008 Sichuan, China Earthquake: Lessons Learned
Wednesday, July 9th, 2008
Wilson Sonsini Goodrich & Rosati
Terrace 2D
950 Page Mill Road
Palo Alto, California 94304-1050
Phone: 650-493-9300
Fax: 650-493-6811
6:00-7:00 PM Registration, Drinks and Hors d’oeuvres
7:-8:20 PM Presentations and discussion
8:20- 9:00 PM Continued informal networking and Q&A
Contact: Dr. Charles C. Zhou, Quantum Intelligence, Inc. and Cascade Clean Energy, Inc.
The MIT Club of Northern California wants to thank our sponsor Wilson Sonsini Goodrich & Rosati.
Abstract:
Through the Eyes of the First Foreign Engineers to Reach the Disaster Area
The Magnitude 8.0 Sichuan Earthquake of May 12 killed over 70,000 people with 20,000 still missing as of mid-June. Hundreds of thousands of buildings were damaged or destroyed. The earthquake particularly affected schools, hospitals, residential buildings, and industries in the area and presents valuable risk management lessons for China and world. The catastrophic damage could have been avoided through earthquake risk management – particularly the identification and rehabilitation of dangerous buildings and the protection of nonstructural components.
Miyamoto International and Global Risk Miyamoto dispatched a team of earthquake engineers to the affected areas to investigate and analyze the damage, and to document lessons learned in order to prevent such losses in future earthquakes. This team was the first and so far only foreign engineering team to reach the disaster area.
Mr. Miyamoto and Mr. Yanev also investigated together the destructive Magnitude 6.8 Niigata, Japan earthquake of August 2007 and will contrast that event to the China earthquake. The Niigata earthquake is particularly notable for its effects to high-tech and power industries, and like the Sichuan earthquake, presents valuable lessons for earthquake risk management to industries and organizations in Silicon Valley and Northern California.
About the Speakers:
Kit Miyamoto:
A licensed structural engineer in ten states, Kit Miyamoto is C.E.O. of Miyamoto International. Under his leadership, over 3,000 structures have been successfully completed nationally and internationally. He has performed numerous expert consultations for countries and private sector organizations worldwide. He is a past Director of the Structural Engineers Association of California, serves on the Seismic Task Committee of ASCE 7 which produces a source document for the International Building Code. He is an adjunct professor at California State University, Sacramento. He has published over 70 technical papers on advanced structural and earthquake engineering topics, and he has lectured at numerous international conferences.
Peter Yanev (MIT '70):
As an earthquake and structural engineer he has investigated over 50 earthquakes and sent teams to more than 115 natural disasters around the world. He co-founded EQE International in 1981 and grew the company to 750 people to become the largest earthquake engineering and risk management company in the world. Currently he serves on the boards of Miyamoto International and Global Risk Miyamoto and consults to the World Bank on earthquake and risk management projects. He is also active in several MIT and University of California, Berkeley engineering committees.