Module 3

EARTHQUAKES/Lightning/Floods/Fire
s
• Earthquakes are one of the most destructive natural hazards
that cause huge amount of loss of life and property.
• Earthquakes are natural phenomena which are yet to be
fully understood. Scientific knowledge about them exists,
but their time of occurrence, location and magnitude are
difficult to forecast.
• In the last quarter century, severe earthquakes on the world
like 1995 Kobe, Japan, 1998 Afghanistan, 1999 Kocaeli,
Turkey, 2001 Gujarat, India, 2003 Bam, Iran, 2004 Indian
Ocean, 2008 Wenchuan, China, 2009 L’Aqulia, Italy, 2010
Haiti, 2010 Chile, and 2011 Van earthquakes have happened
• The earth consists of layers which have different properties.
The outer layer of the earth is called as “crust.”
• Plate tectonic deals with movement and strain of earth
crust. 
• Earthquake occurs in some parts of the plate and these
parts act relative to each other.
• When the increased stresses reaches to bearing capacity of
the crust on faults, this event causes sliding (breakthrough). 
• Propagation of wave from hypocenter that results surface
sliding is perceived as earthquake 
• Earthquakes can cause devastating effects in terms of life and
property. The destructive potential of earthquakes depends on
factors like
• Location-In seismic zone etc
• Magnitude- The Richter magnitude scale, as it is known, is
logarithmic, so each step up represents an increase in energy of a
factor of 10. The more energy in an earthquake, the more
destructive it can be.
• Depth: Earthquakes can happen anywhere from at the surface to
700 kilometers below.
• In general, deeper earthquakes are less damaging because their
energy dissipates before it reaches the surface
• Distance from the epicenter: The epicenter is
the point at the surface right above where the
earthquake originates and is usually the place
where the earthquake's intensity is the greatest.
• Local geologic conditions: The nature of the
ground at the surface of an earthquake can have
a profound influence on the level of damage.
Loose, sandy, soggy soil can liquefy if the
shaking is strong and long enough, for example.
• Secondary effects: Earthquakes can trigger
landslides, fires, floods or tsunamis. 
• Architecture: Even the strongest buildings
may not survive a bad earthquake, but
architecture plays a huge role in what and
who survives a quake. for example, poor
construction, weak cement and unenforced
building codes can make matters worse
Response of reinforced concrete (R/C) structures

• Soft and weak storey mechanism

• In some R/C buildings, especially at the ground floor,
walls may not be continuous along to height of building
for architectural, functional, and commercial reasons.
• The reason of soft storey collapse occurs due to low
rigidity of reinforced concrete structural members at
ground floor. In case of the absence of the infill wall,
the rigidity of the ground floor is lower than the upper
storeys. Thus, this failure mechanism is triggered by
earthquake.
• Inadequate transverse reinforcement in
columns and beams.
• Shear forces increase during an earthquake
especially at columns and beam–column
joints. Inadequate transverse reinforcement
and no bending of hooks of ties in structural
elements cause damages. 
• Short column
• Lateral forces that occurred by an earthquake are carried by
columns and shear walls. Failures reason of short column is
especially occurred due to partially filled infill walls in R/C frame
system.
• Inadequate gaps between adjacent buildings
• the buildings that have not adequate gaps pound to each other
during the earthquake. If the floors of the buildings are not at the
same level, pounding effect of the buildings becomes more
dangerous.  During the earthquake, after first shake, different
natural vibration periods cause hammer effect and then result in
total collapse. 
• Strong beam–weak column.
• Deep and rigid beams are used with flexible
columns in type of buildings. Therefore, these
beams resist more moments, occurred by
dynamic loads, than weak columns.
• In such a design during an earthquake while
deep and rigid beams show elastic behavior,
shear failure or compression crushing causes
plastic hinges at flexible columns.
•  Failures of gable walls
• The most common failure mode at gable walls is out-
of-plane collapse in the earthquakes. Although failures
of gable walls are not structural damages, these
damages may be cause loss of lives and properties.
• Poor concrete quality and corrosion
•  low concrete strength and workmanship. Concrete
quality is an important factor for building performance
against to earthquakes.
• Detachment of infill wall during the Bingöl
earthquake and (b) In-plane damage of during
the Van earthquake.
 Response of masonry structures

• Earthen roof damages

• These buildings are constructed with thick adobe and stone
walls and mostly vulnerable to strong ground motions.
• Also, heavy earthen roofs are constructed because a thick
roof keeps the house cool or warm according to the seasons
• As a result of these heavy roofs, the structures are subjected
to larger inertia forces during the earthquakes . During the
horizontal displacements, these heavy roofs are very
vulnerable since they can easily slide over the walls
• Thick and heavy earthen roofs are one of the reasons for the
damages. 
• Corner damages
• Corner damages are common in the adobe and masonry
buildings
• During an earthquake, the stress concentrations increase at
intersection of the walls. In this way, vertical or inclined cracks
appear in the corners of masonry buildings. If bond beams are
not used in the corners or connection, two walls are not
properly anchored to each other, intensity of the cracks
increases and these cracks spread along the height of the wall.
• Corner damages are developed due to insufficient wall-to-wall
connections and lack of horizontal and vertical bond beams. 
• Out-of-plane mechanism
• Lack of bond beams, poor connections among
the walls and the roofs, and large unsupported
wall lengths cause the separation of walls and
cause damage to occur via the of out-of-plane
mechanism. Thus, the whole or the significant
parts of the wall fall down during the
earthquake
• Disintegration of stone masonry walls
• Most of the masonry buildings are constructed with thick stone walls.
• As the thickness of the walls is relatively large, these stone walls are
constructed by using more than one stone along the thickness
direction.
• In these walls, stones are placed in a random order.
• Smaller rubble stones with mud mortar are used between two
exterior layers.
• Using mud mortar instead of cement mortar causes insufficient
adherence between the layers. Thus, the interior and exterior layers
of the wall behaves independently and separates each other during
the earthquake
 Earthquake of Gujarat
• The regional building techniques have two distinct
characteristics. 
•  Firstly, there is a large heritage of building methods and
appropriation of shelters which is patronized by the people
themselves out of their instinctive traditional wisdom and
know-how.
• These types of shelter building practices are still confined
to the tribal cultures in the agrarian regions of Saurashtra
and Kutch. These shelter forms, which were a product of
the ecology of the area, sustained themselves in the event
of such earthquakes and are more or less unaffected.
• This was because of the form of the shelter
and also the materials and techniques with
which these were put together.
• There is always some sort of instinctive ability
in people who live close to nature to
understand the forces of nature
• The second type were structures built in villages and urban areas
by masons and builders involving quasi-modern techniques with
easily available materials and hybrid techniques.
• These buildings were of various types and using different
structural possibilities offered by contemporary materials.
• In the villages there was also an element of cheaper
construction using waste stones and materials which were not
particularly good for building purposes.
• In the case of masonry construction, it was also a practice to
use soil as a binding material and in many cases the soil used
was of a very inferior quality.
• Quality of construction, choice of the form of
buildings and also the magnitude of the tremor.
• The building form has in the first place to be seen as
a balanced form which if laterally shaken should be
able to retain its equilibrium in all the directions as
the tremors are multi directional. For this reason, in
addition to designing a balanced form, it is
important to provide inbuilt flexibility to the corners,
planes and the upper parts of the structures
• Normally the upper parts of the structures are
lighter than the lower parts and should be
strengthened and made flexible to absorb the
shocks.
• In addition, it should be a practice to secure the
overall form of the building for planar movements.
This is necessary parallel to the plane and also along
the plane. This is done by introducing keying and
lapping of horizontal layers of masonry by longer
pieces of stones, continuous bands and plates.
• As far as possible it is useful to adopt building
materials which are local and natural, used in
form of units for construction.
• The roofs and floors also should be such that the
entire construction is possible as an assembly of
parts.
• These materials are more friendly and adaptable
for repairs, maintenance and most of all non
damaging to human life in the event of failures..
• In the villages where almost all the houses simply
turned into heaps of material debris, the loss of
human life was almost none.
• In contrast to this wherever in the towns and cities,
modem industrial materials were used, the chunks
of poured concrete crushed many people even in
one single building, and it was humanly impossible
to remove debris as even lifting debris to salvage
injured people required mechanical handling of
huge chunks of building elements.
• Jamnagar- Dabargadh, Jamnagar - Darbar Hall
• An interesting feature was a
reinforced concrete façade
probably built around the
beginning of the twentieth
century to support the
masonry building behind it.
Although the reinforcement
was severely corroded, the
overall structure was
holding well and there was
no sign of earthquake
induced damage.
• Wankaner
• Wankaner is situated about 95km south of the
fault.
• undamaged random rubble buildings
• Ranjit Vilas Palace
• The palace is situated on
top of a ridge on the rock
• The main building is a
rectangular block of 2 to 3
storeys, with a central hall,
circular corner turrets
becoming octagonal and a
square central tower on
the north façade about
40m high.
• The main damage is at the
roof terrace level. The
corner turrets are both
very severely damaged
and the eastern baradari
(single storey penthouse)
has collapsed completely.
Many of the balustrades
of the terrace
have collapsed.
• Morbi
• Morbi lies about 65
km SSE of the fault
• The Manimandir palace
is a highly ornate
building which dates
from 1927.
• Dabargadh, Maliya
• It lies about 35km south of
the fault
•  It is severely damaged at
first floor level particularly
at the northern corners, and
the single storey penthouse
has completely collapsed
taking much of the first floor
slab with it; what remains of
the floor slab is precarious.
• Bhuj Collapse of Queens’ Quarters, Bhuj City Palace

• Bhuj was within 20km of the

fault break, and suffered very
severe damage.
• The palace complex is in the old
walled city. It consists of a
collection of buildings in a
variety of styles, dating from the
18th century.
• Some of the buildings are of
random masonry construction,
and have suffered extensive
damage and collapse.
• A collection of chatris, Collapse of City Wall, revealing ancient wall
beneath  
commemorating
members of the ruling
family in Bhuj damaged
• The domes are heavily
cracked, and masonry
panels over the
windows in the dome
have shifted outward
significantly, and there
is damage to
ornamentation
• Ahmadabad
• TOMB OF SAYED
USMAN
AT USMANPURA
SIDE BASHIR’S MINARS NEAR
RAILWAY STATION
These two tall minars are called the
shaking minars, because they have the
feature that inducing sway in one
minar causes the other to vibrate as
well. They are over 30m high and date
originally from the 10th century. The
earthquake caused some cracking
which had been temporarily restrained
by steel rope 
• Typically damage in engineered structures is greater
in the lower half of the structure, reflecting the
increased shears and bending moments at lower
levels.
• The damage patterns seen in the Gujarat heritage
buildings were exactly the opposite; there were
numerous examples of buildings which were heavily
damaged at roof and upper levels, but suffered very
much less severely on the ground floor
• Four possible reasons for the higher damage
at the top of masonry buildings are as follows.
• 1. Weathering
• This applies particularly to brick mortar
construction, where the mortar joints tend to
be more exposed to wind and rain at the top
and so tend to deteriorate more. This weakens
their seismic resistance.
• 2.More open structure
• Both for reasons of aesthetics and because of
the reduced gravity loads, masonry buildings
often become much more open toward the
top than is the case for modern buildings.
• This weakens their lateral resistance and may
make them more prone to damage.
• 3.Consequences of increased accelerations with height
• The swaying in an earthquake causes accelerations to increase
towards the top. This especially affects decorative elements, such
as parapets and external ornamentation, which were observed to
be heavily damaged.
• It affects main load carrying walls, because the ‘out of plane’
seismic forces (ie the earthquake pushing the wall out at right
angles to itself, which is its weak direction) depend directly on
the acceleration at that level. By contrast, the ‘in plane’ seismic
forces (acting along the length of the wall in its strong direction)
increase towards the bottom of the building, because they are
accumulated from the floors above.
• 4.Shear strength of dressed stone masonry depends
primarily on friction
• The horizontal strength of dressed, good quality stone
depends mainly on the vertical load from above, tending to
clamp the stone blocks together.
• This vertical clamping force is less at the top of the building
because there is less of the building weighing down from
above. Therefore, the seismic resistance is also less towards
the top of the building. However, the influence of vertical
clamping force, and hence friction, on seismic strength is
probably much less important in random rubble masonry
• There are some interesting consequences of this
clamping effect.
• Firstly, it means that adding weight to the top of a
building - something that earthquake engineers are
always warned not to do - may be much less harmful
in dressed masonry buildings than in modern
reinforced concrete buildings it may even be beneficial
• It remains true that the additional weight increases
the seismic loads, but for masonry buildings it also
increases the resistance
• lack of maintenance aggravated the damage
they suffered
• The quality of construction was also related to
the level of craftsmanship involved, which is
another factor determining the degree
of damage.
Lightning
 Lightning
• Lightning is an intensely bright spark or streak of
light through the air to ground.
• There are different types of lightning: cloud to
ground, cloud to cloud and within a single cloud,
rare variations as ribbon and ball lightning.
• On average a cloud to ground strike would be in
the order of 20,000 amperes with a duration of
0.2 seconds, and at its peak, the power released
can be 100 megawatts per metre.
• The actual lightning discharge commences with a
stepped downward leader (invisible to the naked eye)
negatively charged searching for an easy path to earth.
• This induces a positive charge in the form of an
upward streamer from a structure or object on the
ground such as a building or monument.
• When the two meet, the potential difference between
the cloud and 'ground' is equalised, causing the bright
flash known as the 'return stroke'.
• The effect of a lightning conductor placed appropriately on
any building is to create an 'apparent earth' short circuiting
the intense electric field below a thundercloud.
• This allows positive ions to be transferred through the
conductor to the atmosphere as an upward streamer.
• The lightning conductor is not an 'attractor' as the movement
of positive ions is governed by the prevailing wind conditions.
• It does give the current the easiest path to earth, avoiding the
transfer of current through less conductive building
materials and the subsequent structural damage this can
cause.
• The points on a structure most vulnerable will be
those points nearest the stepped downward leader
on its last step, the length of which is termed the
'striking distance'.
• This distance is represented in the British Standard by
a sphere of radius 60m which, in effect, can be rolled
around the plan and elevations of the structure to
determine the extent of protection required.
• Reducing the radius to less than 60m gives greater
protection but adds to the cost of the installation.
 PRINCIPLES OF PROTECTION

• The provision of a system depends on the type of

historic building under consideration,Concerning
the location, use and construction of a structure.
• The latest standards recommends that a series of
down conductors is installed to protect the whole
building, with towers and spires having a
minimum of two down conductors placed
diametrically opposite each other and horizontal
conductors (coronas) vertically at 20m centres.
• The remainder of the building should be protected
with a series of conductors interconnected to form
a 20m x 10m 'Air Termination' grid, using where
possible elements of the structure, such as
metallic gutters, lead roofs, and so on.
• Also prominent features such as pinnacles,
crosses, and flêches should have additional air
terminals, as they will form upward streamers
under the right conditions.
• The air termination must then be connected to
ground with a series of down conductors spaced
around the perimeter of the buildings, one for
every 20m of perimeter (for structures more than
20m high this is decreased to 10m spaces).
• Once installed, down conductors and air
terminations must be adequately earthed to ground
with a series of electrodes, which may take the form
of either driven rods, plates or mats made from
copper.
• Historic buildings were not
constructed with lightning
protection in mind -can appear
intrusive.
• Typically in a well designed
installation, the air termination is
hidden behind parapet walls with
short finials, and down conductors
are placed behind pinnacles and in
returns of buttresses or other key
features.
• They should always be straightened
and installed with a string line,
following the lines of the building. 
• The provision of a lightning conductor system
will not prevent the occurrence of a lightning
strike.
• The purpose of the installation is to direct the
current discharged from the strike to earth
safely- protecting the structure and its
occupants from the effects of the strike.
FLOODS
• Certain natural catastrophes have left a lasting mark on
cultural history and historic consciousness; the destruction
of Pompeii by the eruption of Vesuvius in 79 A. D for eg.
• Cultural heritage is increasingly prone to the impact of
natural hazards such as floods, landslides, and storms.
• The risk of floods is considered the most common and
most destructive risk for cultural heritage.
• As a result of climate change, there will be an increase in
frequency and severity of natural hazards including floods
in the near future.
• Comprehensive flood risk management involves
conducting flood risk assessments and developing
flood risk plans and maps.
• Flood risk assessments are used for evaluating the
risks of water sources such as groundwater, surface
water, rivers, streams, and inundation of coastal
areas due to sea level rise.
• In addition, these assessments can appraise the
vulnerability and potential impact on cultural
heritage structures and areas.
• Cultural Heritage can also be a
historical example of flood risk
reduction .
• In various countries different
cultural heritage practices
contribute to prevention and
mitigation of flood risk, often
coupled with the traditional land
use system .
• For example, in the Guadalentin
catchment in Murcia, Spain,
vegetated earth-banked terraces
•
• These terraces help to reduce the formation of
gullies and retain water from upslope, thereby
mitigating flooding, as well as reducing the
impact to infrastructure and siltation of water
reservoirs.
• The terrace ridge act as a sink to reduce the
velocity and runoff, while the vegetation on
the terrace improve the soil structure and
increasing the water infiltration capacity
• The Guwahati Smart City Development project in India
deals with the prevention of flood risk of the Brahmaputra
river.
• Every year the Brahmaputra river floods extensively with
major risks for the environment, local communities, and
their cultural heritage.
• In Guwahati, temple ponds (water tanks) were essential
components of the historical water management system.
• These surface water bodies sustain water flow dynamics
between the highland and the lowland of the city’s
landscape, functioning as storm water reservoirs
• Being close to a water source had huge benefits with
respect to transport links, strategic defence
requirements, provision of water for domestic and
agricultural needs and the powering of many industries.
• Our ancestors had a good eye for reading the landscape .
• Historic sites remain unaffected by flooding directly as
they have been constructed on topographic highs or by
using materials (and implementing building practices)
that can tolerate a certain degree of saturation.
• Many buildings and sites of historic
significance are at direct risk from flooding-
• Mainly due to alterations that humans have
made to the environment and landscape, e.g.
the construction of impermeable road and
paving surfaces, which can increase the risk
of surface water flooding.
 Waterfront sites

• Historically many buildings built next to rivers and

streams, were expected to be intermittently flooded,
and those that have survived often include materials
and design features that have allowed them to
withstand intermittent flooding.
• Warehouses, boathouses and mills are examples of
this type of building.
• Problems arise when new materials or design features
are introduced on refurbishment which do not take
account of the likelihood of intermittent flooding.
 Coastal sites

• Buildings on coastal sites - flooded due to

breaching of sea defences or 'backing up' of
floodwater by high tides.
• A well-known example of this is London,
where the Thames Barrage had to be
constructed to prevent flooding.
 Ground drainage
• Many individual historic buildings suffer flooding due
to defective or poorly managed ground drainage.
• On a local scale-Commonly due to rising ground levels
and defective street drainage- which may allow local
surface water to 'run off' and drain into, rather than
out of, ground floor or basement structures.
• On a larger scale, mismanagement of the river
catchment drainage system by the local authority can
result in surface and ground drainage water being
'held back' to create unplanned 'flood plains‘..
• This can occur due to poor maintenance and
blocking of drains or culverts, but sometimes it
is the result of a deliberate policy to prevent
flooding in other more sensitive areas.
• In this way, historic buildings built on relatively
high ground can be put at risk by measures
taken to prevent further flooding of a larger
number of new buildings built on flood plains
or water meadows down stream.
Roof drainage, services and building failures
• It is important to remember that many incidents of flooding in historic
buildings are due to failures of roof drainage systems or other building services
such as water mains.
• Water will often flood through buildings, causing damage to structures,
furnishings and fittings, and accumulate in porous materials such as masonry,
pugging or other insulation.
• These can then act as 'moisture reservoirs', providing the conditions for long-
term damp and decay.
• Particular problem in poorly maintained and infrequently occupied structures.
• The most catastrophic example of building failure causing flooding is fire. In
this case, many thousands of litres of water may be used in fire fighting, and
further water penetration occurs afterwards due to damage to roof drains
and services. As a result, around four times as much damage is often caused
by subsequent 'flooding' than is caused by the fire itself.
 REFURBISHING FLOODED OR AT-RISK BUILDINGS

• The first step in refurbishing flooded or at risk buildings is

to reinstate the drainage systems so as to remove water
from the structure and foundations.
• The second step is to identify current or potential
'moisture reservoirs' in the structure so that appropriate
measures can be taken to allow long-term drying and
prevent damp or decay to vulnerable materials.
• This is a specialist task, but accumulations of pugging
materials, debris or insulation under floors and the build-
up of earth against walls are common problems in historic
buildings.
• The general principals are to detail drainage, through-
ventilate cavities, and to use breathable finishes.
• Our ancestors were well aware of these requirements
and excellent results can often be achieved by using
original materials or techniques such as lime plasters
and hardwoods or original details such as chimneys
and cellars.
• Modern systems including through-ventilated dry
linings and highly breathable masonry paints, are also
useful.
 Cob
• Cob, clay lump and other forms of unbaked earth wall construction are
particularly vulnerable to damage by water.
• To protect them from damp ground conditions, cob buildings are
always built on top of a solid plinth of 300 to 600mm height.
• If the floodwater rises above the plinth for any prolonged period, the
cob will begin to disintegrate. To reduce the risk of flood damage, it is
important to maintain the condition of the external plaster finish.
• Where the cob surface has eroded, it should be cleaned down and
repaired with a low strength plaster.
• Large holes should be filled with rubble stone rather than with new or
reconstituted cob, as this would shrink and would therefore not
adhere to the old work.
• Chalk walls like cob are vulnerable to damp
and will soon disintegrate if they become
saturated.
• The plinth and plaster finish should be kept in
good condition to offer full protection to the
wall.
• Repairs should be carried out using low
strength lime plasters
 Wood panelling
• Immediately after the flood abates, any water
trapped behind the panelling must be allowed
to drain out.
• This can be hastened by drilling small discreet
holes in the bottom of the panelling or skirtings.
• If there has been extensive saturation of
panelling, it may be necessary to carefully
dismantle it and dry the elements in a controlled
way to avoid distortion.
 Wood floors
• Wood floors
• When wood becomes damp, it swells.
• When timber floors are saturated, they expand and
buckle upwards.
• Services and heating
• Repair or replacement of services can also cause
damage to the historic structure.
• Special care should be taken in detailing conduit ducting
or trenches below floor level, so as to allow drainage
and drying in case of flood
• Drainage
Backing up and overflow of foul water and
sewage systems are a not uncommon
consequence of flooding.
• The installation of additional breather vents
and manholes may reduce this risk.
• Drain water clear of the structure and, if required, prevent
further water penetration by the use of temporary roof and
ground drainage systems.
• Remove all damp materials and debris from the structure,
including all damp furnishings, fittings, carpets, rubbish, damp
infill and collapsed building materials.
• Demolish or otherwise remove all parts of the structure not to be
retained on refurbishment. In particular, remove any damp
plaster, masonry masses or floor infills.
• Provide through-ventilation to all parts of the structure, including
all structural cavities such as sub-floor voids, chimney stacks and
wall cavities.
Fire
• Fire has long been an enemy of heritage
structures, with some older structures falling
victim many times.
• One of the sustainable ways to conserve our built
heritage is by adaptively reusing them.
• Adaptive reuse is the act of finding a new use for
an existing/old building.
• This recycling of buildings has been an important
and effective historic preservation tool.
• What do we gain
• Avoidance of demolition and reconstruction
• Energy and in turn, Environmental benefits
• Social advantage by reinforcing a sense of
pride
• Conserving or adapting is a challenging task. It is more
difficult for historic buildings to adapt to new uses than
constructing a new building because adaptive reuse involves:
• minimal impact on the heritage significance of the building
and its setting
• need to do some physical changes to the existing one
• major or minor upgrading to produce better quality building
• physical upgrading of certain elements particularly with
regard to fire protection
• The outbreak of fire in historic buildings -more serious
consequences than on modern buildings.
• This is caused due to the vulnerability of the large amount
of timber and brick used in the structure.
• This adds on to the weakness of the fabric in fire
resistance.
• A tragic example of reused heritage building- a museum, is
the Brazil Museum Fire. Brazil’s oldest and most important
historical and scientific museum has been consumed by
fire, and much of its archive of 20 million items is believed
to have been destroyed.
• Thousands of historic buildings have been partly or
completely destroyed by fire around the world through the
centuries.
• Historic building fires are usually started by arson, human
error, faulty equipment, or natural disaster.
• Compliance with mandatory building codes does not usually
provide adequate fire protection for irreplaceable buildings
and collections.
• This is because building codes do not reflect concern over the
possibility of fire destroying the building and its collections, as
long as people are evacuated safely and the fire is confined.
• Analysing previous research work on fire risk
assessment, a fire protection concept should
aim at:
• Reducing the risk of fire breaking out
• Preventing the spread of flames and smoke
• Ensuring that all occupants are evacuated safely
• Enabling the emergency services to take action
• On critical examination, the traditional construction techniques
commonly used in historical buildings present a number of
additional factors-
• Open and ill-fitting doors
• Non insulating wall construction
• Structural discontinuities
• Unknown wall and floor voids
• Open staircases
• Unstopped ventilation and service routes
• Undivided roof voids
• General lack of compartmentalization
• Due to the complex structures and lack of fire
protection measures, most historic buildings are
faced with serious fire threats as they can be
damaged by flame, heat, smoke, dirt, falling debris,
together with inappropriate fire measures.
• The Heritage structures are divided in three
categories from the point of view of materials used
in their construction viz wood, stone and bricks.
• Concerning wooden building-
• The most cause of damage is due to twisting, joints
are crushed, and partially rotted these damages may
occur in limited area of the structures but the major
cause of destruction is due to fire accidents.
• The fire protection of heritage buildings is necessary
because a large proportion of the buildings are made
of wood. They are historic wooden structures that
are densely packed and where the threat from fire is
high.
Main “intrinsic” building vulnerabilities
• Combustible materials of structural
elements,finishes,furnitures.
• Low fire resistance of some building components-walls,
slabs, roofing
• Building layouts-Narrow spaces (passages, exits,
staircases)
• Additional low ceilings,possible concealed spaces that are
unused
• Vertical openings, Double height areas, monumental stairs
• Possible absence of active fire protection systems
• Fire precaution issues can be broadly broken
down into two very specific categories:
'passive' protection measures which rely on
physical barriers to restrict the development
or spread of fire
• 'active' fire protection measures including, for
example, fire detector and extinguisher
systems.
 Passive Strategies for Fire Protection
• Passive fire protection is building materials and designs that resist
and slow the expansion of fire in a building.
• Passive fire protection includes firewalls, fire separation walls, fire
barriers, fire doors and fire-rated enclosures.
• The major concept behind passive fire protection is to use the
design of the building to limit the spread of fire until active fire
protection can extinguish it (sprinkler systems or fire fighters).
• In general, prescriptive fire safety standards that rely on passive
protection, usually involve: enclosure of staircases and corridors
leading to final escape points and the provision of fire doors across
passageways.
• But in case of heritage/historic structure this is questionable.
• The usual requirement is to ensure that all elements of a defined
fire compartment can resist the passage of fire and smoke for a
minimum period.
• The main weak spots are the openings: original doors are rarely
able to satisfy the minimum time requirement.
• Older buildings may have been constructed with provision for
very different methods of transferring air, heat and light around a
structure, often in the form of ducts and shafts.
• Recent tragic history has shown, as with the fires at Hampton
Court Palace, London and Windsor Palace, Berkshire, England
that such void can contribute to the propagation and rapid
spread of fire.
• Firewalls or fire stopping is “concealed fire-resistant
barriers or materials that can prevent the spread of
fire.”
• Particularly between buildings that share common
walls, fire stopping is important because it slows the
spread of fire from one building to the next.
• Fire stopping can be achieved with the use of building
materials during construction and renovations and it
can be achieved in concealed and smaller spaces with
fire-resistant materials such as mineral wool insulation
• Newer methods are being developed for passive fire protection. When
applied to a surface, these can isolate the fire for up to an hour so that
fire crews have enough time to respond.
• Fire/Flame Retardant: Chemical added to a combustible material to delay
ignition and combustion of the resulting material when exposed to fire.
• Fire/Flame Retardant Coating: Paint or varnish applied to a combustible
surface to reduce the likelihood of ignition and flame spread of the
surface material. Such coatings can be clear or coloured and are usually
applied over wood surfaces.
• Intumescent Coating: An intumescent coating is a substance that swells
as a result of heat exposure, thus increasing in volume, and decreasing in
density. When exposed to a fire, the coating bubbles and foams and then
hardens into a charred surface. Such coatings can be coloured or clear.
• The more a building is divided into compartments, the
greater the chance to limit fire spread.
• All such buildings should evaluate how they can further
incorporate vertical and horizontal barriers to resist fire
spread.
• Example: Fire Curtains Smoke and fire curtains are a high-
performing solution for libraries and museums. These
heavy curtains block off certain parts of the room thereby
ensuring compartmentalisation, hence controlling the
direction of smoke.
• This reduces damage and allows faster evacuation
 Vandalism

• The damaging, the degradation, the destruction or

looting of monuments, works of art or artefacts
•
Vandalism, or acts of deliberate destruction, has occurred
throughout history.
• Irrespective of vandalism’s social, political, or religious intent, the
act itself constitutes damage upon the material landscape.
• It is an interaction between an individual and his or her direct
material environment.
• The act derives from this environment and leaves a material trace.
Thus, it often calls for the conservator’s attention.
Most important types of vandalism
• War and political vandalism
• Religious vandalism
• Financial vandalism
• Social vandalism
• Unconscious vandalism
• In times of peace to protect CH, there is need
for
• Awareness, education, respect, appreciation,
tolerance, multicultural exchanges
• In times of conflicts, damage is a result of State of
emergency, wars, territory occupation,
pillaging, looting
 Vandalism
• Implications -INTANGIBLE VALUES
• Loss of Cultural identity
• Self respect
• Dignity
• Education
• Leads to-
• Social psychological stress
• Disorientation
• Despair
 Vandalism
• Implications-TANGIBLE VALUES
• Loss of Jobs
• Material resources
• Tourism
• Economic development
 Creation of Public Awareness
• Circulation of reliable verified documentation
• Education training (principles of UNESCO
Recommendation New Delhi 1956)
• Involving the civil society and informing the
military (principle of The Hague 1954
Convention)
• Professional national and international
networking (principle of conventions UNESCO
1970, The Hague 1954)
• Access to cultural heritage databases
• Capacity building of cultural institutions
• Publication and dissemination of the relevant
international agreements and conventions
(principle of conventions UNESCO 1970, The
Hague 1954)
 Recording and Documentation

• Ensure that documentation will expand to cover

data related to the context of the CH entities
• Enhancement of recording systems that enable
addition of new records and information
• Provision of several national and international
alternative locations for storage of existing
data and archives
• Development of techniques to enhance recording
and analysis of mental maps (intangible CH)
• Aiding in training and support to develop such
extensive database
• Development of appropriate digital and non
digital methodology to standardise the data
structure of CH
• Provision of accessibility to basic raw data
 Damage Assessment

• Building up an independent and multi disciplinary

team of experts in cooperation with local ones to
assess damage to different CH sites and artefacts
• Allowance of full accessibility to damage sites
and artefacts
• Use of Communication and Information Technology
(ICT) for reconstruction of damaged items as
extension of existing database
• Increase awareness and publicity of damaged items
through multiple and varied public and
professional communication channels
• The violent destruction of heritage has been recognized as
war crime. 
• In India, the Ancient Monuments and Archeological Sites and
Remains Act, 1958. deals with the issue
• The Prevention of Damage to Public Property Act, 1984 also
talks about vandalism.
• Under Section 4 of this act, the miscreant(s) shall be held
liable for any intentional damage to public property.
• In India, in the name of protests, hooligans take maximum
advantage and end up vandalizing a lot of public property.
But the enforcement of these laws seems lacking.
• Cultural heritage sites are being vandalized by
hooligans
• Reasons: severe shortage of attendants who actively
protect these monuments.  
• In the absence of adequate security personnel, various
cultural spots have become a hotspot for drug
peddlers. 
• Even world heritage sites like Humayun’s Tomb and
Red Fort have not been spared and have fallen prey to
graffiti tagging, flower picking and other such activities.
• The Archaeological Survey of India (ASI) has openly stated
that “It would be humanly impossible to stand guard at
every monument; a better option would be to sensitize
visitors against defacing or destroying heritage
structures”.
• looted antiquities are traded globally.
• It is necessary for nations, public and private institutions,
and individuals around the world to stop purchasing illicit
antiquities. Museums have a role in protecting art by not
purchasing or accepting unprovenanced antiquities, as
doing so will only fuel the market for loot.
• For collectors and actors in the private market, the solution is simple:
• Commit to completing and facilitating due diligence and refrain from
buying antiquities when faced with insufficient information about the
objects.
• Social media and the press have important roles in educating buyers as
to the source of black market goods, and the dissemination of this
information may prevent buyers from claiming ignorance about the
looted nature of antiquities from conflict zones.
• For buyers unwilling to ignore their thirst for acquisitions, the law must
step in to protect our collective human history and historical legacy.
• The collaboration between archaeologists, media, the press, and the
law is the best way to tackle the illicit market that is murdering our
shared cultural past.