EERI Sends Investigation Team to Chile
March 2010 - A large team of EERI members and colleagues will be traveling to Chile next week to document the effects of the massive 8.8 earthquake that struck that country on February 27th. Under the leadership of Professor Jack Moehle of UC Berkeley, EERI is sending this team to bring back lessons for practice and academia in both the U.S. and Chile. Joining Moehle in providing leadership for the overall reconnaissance effort are EERI member Professor Rafael Riddell of the Pontificia Universidad Catolica de Chile and Professor Ruben Boroschek of the University of Chile. The team is organized under the umbrella of EERI's Learning from Earthquakes (LFE) Program, which is supported by the U.S. National Science Foundation. Many partnering organizations are providing travel support for the LFE team members. The team will regularly post field observations and photographs on EERI's Chile Clearinghouse site: http://www.eqclearinghouse.org/20100227-chile/

FEMA E-74 Available Online
March 2010 - FEMA 74 explains the sources of earthquake damage that can occur in nonstructural components and provides information on effective methods for reducing risk associated with nonstructural earthquake damage. It is intended for use by a non-engineer audience that includes building owners, facility managers, maintenance personnel, store or office managers, corporate or agency department heads, and homeowners. The reference material contained within the third edition of FEMA 74 is now approaching 20 years old. A considerable amount of new information now exists as a result of ongoing National Earthquake Hazard Reduction Program (NEHRP) activities, local and state government programs, private sector initiatives, and academic work focused on reducing the potential for nonstructural earthquake damage.