UNIVERSITY OF THE CORDILLERAS

COLLEGE OF ENGINEERING AND ARCHITECTURE

MSCE 510 - Earthquake Engineering

NAME: ANTHONY AUGUST MUÑOZ
PROBLEM SET PROBLEM SET 101: The 1990 Luzon Killer Quake Event
DATE September 12, 2021

The July 16 1990 Luzon Earthquake Rupture

OVERVIEW
The 16 July 1990 Luzon earthquake triggered and induced numerous
landslides in northern and central Luzon, Philippines. Abundant
landslides occurred northwest and west of the ground rupture along
Digdig Fault and on a narrow zone closely following the rupture along
the Philippine Fault Zone. Landslides were observed as far as Lagayan,
Abra in the north; Agoo, La Union in the west and Dingalan, Aurora in
the southeast. The landslide-affected region is part of the Luzon
Central Cordillera Volcanic Belt and marks the junction of the
southern end of the N-S trending Luzon Cordillera Mountain Range and
the Caraballo Mountains. The uplifted mid tertiary volcano-tectonic
complexes of the Luzon Cordillera Mountains join with the Pliocene-
Pleistocene volcanic centers of the Caraballo Mountains to form a very
rugged topography.

Nature and characteristic of the earthquake

The July 1990 earthquake (Ms = 7.8)surface wave magnitude, depth of
25.1 km and produced a 125 km-long ground rupture that stretches from
Dingalan, Aurora to Kayapa, Nueva Vlzcaya as a result of strike-slip
movements along the NW segment of the Philippine Fault Zone and its
splay, the Digdig Fault. The earthquake epicenter was placed at 15º
42' N and 121º 7' E near the town of Rizal, Nueva Ecija.
DAMAGE INCCURED
Damage to buildings, infrastructures, and properties amounted to at
least P 10B, a part of which was caused by ground rupturing.
Structures directly straddling the ground rupture were totally damaged
as a result of large lateral shifting and substantial vertical
displacement. However, some houses within 1-2 m on either side of the
ground rupture survived owing to their light-weight construction while
those built of reinforced concrete within this zone suffered partial
damage. Damages beyond 2m depended mainly on the structural integrity
of the building and effects of local topography and ground conditions.
These observations underscore the advantage of using lightweight
materials for construction purposes as well as the need to observe
sound construction and design of buildings particularly in areas close
to the ground rupture and in places that may be affected by future
movements along active faults.
Figure 1: Surface Fault Rapture

Figure 2: settlement and tilting of building possible liquefaction

Figure 3: damage due to soft story at ground floor

Figure 4: column did not have enough shear resistance.

Figure 5: pancaking of building during earthquake.

In Cabanatuan City, Nueva Ecija, the tallest building in the city, a

six-story concrete school building housing the Christian College of
the Philippines, collapsed during the earthquake, which occurred
during school hours. Around 154 people were killed at the CCP
building.

In Dagupan City, about 90 buildings in the city were damaged, and

about 20 collapsed. Some structures sustained damage because
liquefaction caused buildings to sink as much as 1 metre (39 inches).
The earthquake caused a decrease in the elevation of the city and
several areas were flooded. The city suffered 64 casualties of which
47 survived and 17 died. Most injuries were sustained during stampedes
at a university building and a theater.
Possible structural measures should have been undertaken to prevent
such damage.

Mapping of the extent of the ground rupture and the documentation of

fault-related features, aside from their value, will have significant
implications for future land use and zonation planning, especially in
areas close to or transected by active faults. Future movements of
these faults are expected to follow pre-existing fault traces. Post-
earthquake studies of the ground rupture may likewise provide
additional insights into possible scenarios that might be expected
when the Digdig Fault or other active faults in the Philippines next
move. Furthermore, a study into the structural controls that affect
rupture propagation arrest might provide us clues where strong ground
motions that generally and enable us to identify sites along the fault
trace where strong ground motions that generally account for a
majority of earthquake-related damages might be expected.
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