While damaging earthquakes are less frequent in Australia when compared to other weather related events, when they do occur close to communities they can cause major damage and injury. This community risk to life, property, social fabric and the local economy is significant. The risk also presents associated challenges for government agencies with a role in emergency response, health care and community recovery both in the short and longer term. For some communities recovery to pre-event conditions may never be fully realised due to the destruction of heritage value that may be central to local business activity. Resources for building resilience to earthquakes need to be prioritised against those needed for other hazards. What are the benefits of earthquake retrofit of high risk buildings to communities and what exemplars of risk management driven from government exist? What resources exist for a business case to be articulated for limited resources and for motivating investment by property owners to reduce their individual risk?
This document seeks provide useful answer these questions. It presents information that explains the nature of earthquake hazard in Australia, the risk it presents and vulnerability factors behind it. It also provides information on the effectiveness of retrofit in reducing the impact of earthquakes, emergency management logistics and recovery needs. It further provides links to resources that can be used to advance local programs for building community resilience. The primary focus is the most vulnerable building construction type, unreinforced masonry, but the principles are informative to the address of other high risk building types in communities.
