The recent earthquake in Lorca (11-05-2011) was the most destructive recorded event in Spain, despite its moderate magnitude. This paper describes the numerical simulation of the dynamic response to the main record of the Lorca earthquake of six 3 and 6-story buildings with one-way concrete slabs with wide beams; these buildings were designed without any seismic consideration. We have chosen this type of construction because it is potentially highly vulnerable. The six considered buildings were selected to represent a large number of buildings of this type in areas of low-to-medium seismicity (as Lorca) of Spain along the period 1974-1994. The results show that these buildings, even with the cooperation of the walls, do not have sufficient capacity to withstand the most severe component of the Lorca record.

Peer Reviewed