COUNTRY REPORT

DISASTER MANAGEMENT ON
INFRASTRUCTURE (RIVER, ROAD AND
PORT)(A)

BY

FELIPE BENNETTS TOLEDO

CONTENTS
CONTENTS ................................................................................................................................... 1
ABSTRACT ............................................................................................................................................ 3
INTRODUCTION ................................................................................................................................... 3
1 DESCRIPTION AND ANALYSIS OF CURRENT SITUATION .............................................................. 3
2 PROGRAMS, PLANS AND POLITICS FOR RISK MITIGATION ......................................................... 4
2.1 BULDING AND INFRASTRUCTURE INSPECTION ....................................................................... 4
2.2 MEXICAN BUILDING REGULATIONS ........................................................................................ 4
2.3 MITIGATION OF RISK IN HEALTH INFRASTRUCTURE SAFE HOSPITAL PROGRAM ................ 5
2.4 Development of geospatial tools for risk management.......................................................... 7
2.5 RESEARCH AS A WAY OF IMPROVES MEXICAN BULDING AND INFRASTRUCTURE
REGULATION. ...................................................................................................................................... 8
3 DAMAGE IN THE INFRASTRUCTURE OF MEXICO....................................................................... 10
3.1 CASE STUDY: BRIDGES ........................................................................................................... 10
4 REFERENCE ................................................................................................................................ 15

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2
 ABSTRACT

Mexicos Government works on risk reduction and is preparing to bear earthquake impact
similar to those occurred in September 1985. In addition, the earthquakes occurred in Haiti
and Chile on 2010 enforced interest of all Latin-American countries to improve policies on
prevention and mitigation of vulnerability against seismic events.

A national plan for preparation and prevention against a big earthquake and tsunami
(earthquake plan) was carried out on 2011, within National System of Civil protection,
participating over 30 Mexican governmental institutions. On this program Mexico has
developed tools in order to carry out risk studies that can be able to include on an integral
system for disaster risk information named National Risk Atlas, this impacts in capability to
perform simulations, issue recommendations for timely decision-making and establish
effective measures of mitigation and prevention of risk.

INTRODUCTION

Structural assessment of vulnerability of infrastructure gets main importance, because

within its useful lifetime the infrastructure will be exposed to earthquake, typhoons, land
sliding and other natural phenomena; as well as many events produced for misuse and
material deterioration. Aforementioned, generates the need of make preventive measures
aimed to reduce damages and identify vulnerable infrastructure that could be a risk for its
occupants during a disaster.

Because of big amount of existing methods to make these evaluations, concerns to

National Center for Disaster Prevention (CENAPRED)

1 DESCRIPTION AND ANALYSIS OF CURRENT SITUATION

Supported for twenty years of research developed in the CENAPRED, a process to assess
structural safety is established in 2010, altogether with a national evaluation network
considering several criteria and former process employed among civil engineers.
In the same period, CENAPRED has participated in different work groups and committees
to elaborate review and improve technical regulation about civil construction in Mexico. On
the other hand, an online training system was developed supported in the methodology
proposed, which permits to any citizen to be part of the network with different level of
participation and depending on his own technical knowledge, its participation will be as an
evaluator or as a simple collector of information.
Earthquake evaluation network will stablish an action plan to support regional
governments, civil society and private sector to reduce damage consequences of an
earthquake impact.

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 2 PROGRAMS, PLANS AND POLITICS FOR RISK MITIGATION

2.1 BULDING AND INFRASTRUCTURE INSPECTION

After an earthquake has occurred, inspection of building or infrastructure in vital lines was
realized without any specific action plan, once in the affected zone the evaluation group
carries out a recognition route, in order to identify damaged structures. Depending on the
damage level, inspectors issue recommendations for reconstruction or rehabilitation of
buildings, is in this stage where technical regulations take an important role because of
new or reinforced structures ought to take into account those regulations.
The objectives earthquake plan of CENAPRED is improve and apply a unique action plan
of damage assessment and collect structural information to carry out analysis of
vulnerability to contribute with technical regulations, taking part on reviewer work groups
and committees.
The way to contribute with improvement of Mexican regulation is implement experimental
and analytical research on infrastructure performance. Nowadays, CENAPRED has an
annual program of investigation on structural engineering, this program in 2017 considered
four projects: seismic tests of masonry walls, seismic test of post-tension floor systems,
seismic test connections of precast concrete members and an analytical study of the
vulnerability of structures of bridges in zones of great influence of tropical cyclones.
The course DISASTER MANAGEMENT ON INFRASTRUCTURE (RIVER, ROAD AND
PORT)(A) will encourage annual program of investigation of CENAPRED, because will
contribute to upgrade specialists on the matter of damage mitigation, through instruction on
Japanese regulations that could lead to identify new projects that cover most urgent needs
on Mexican building.

2.2 MEXICAN BUILDING REGULATIONS

The highest law in the country is the National Constitution which establishes the bases for
every regulation over Mexican territory; this law gives responsibility to municipalities to
elaborate buildings regulations and use it as a land planning regulations.
Mexicos territory is constituted by 2455 municipalities grouped on 32 states. But there are
only about 165 local regulations above construction of buildings. This forces professionals
on structural design to use the one of Mexico City, Civil Works Manual of the Electrical
Federal Commission CFE or other technical regulation even foreign like those published
for the ACI, AASTHO, or other institutions. Around 45 percent of existent local regulations
do not have any supplementary technical specifications, like seismic or wind
recommendations for design. Despite of this, 75% recommend a seismic coefficient similar
to CFE civil works manual.
CECAPRED has gathered some building regulations and has made a map where could be
observed coverage, showing the need of improve the standards of construction in Mexico,
more important the deficiency of technical regulations in seismic zones and those areas
where typhoons strikes frequently. Figure 1 shows technical building regulations on
Mexico.

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 - Municipal
- State

Figure 1 Building regulations on Mexico (2016). CENAPRED.

Hence, the need of develop a national standard for construction and bridges takes main
importance especially where natural phenomena like earthquakes and typhoons are a
constant hazard.

2.3 MITIGATION OF RISK IN HEALTH INFRASTRUCTURE SAFE HOSPITAL

PROGRAM

Background

2004. The Pan American Health Organization (PAHO / WHO) presented the initiative for
the adoption of a national risk reduction policy for Safe Hospitals in the Face of Disasters
"to ensure its ability to continue operating in emergency situations.

2005. At the World Conference on Disaster Reduction held in Kobe Hyogo, Japan, 168
countries, including Mexico, endorsed Resolution CD 45.R8 and undertook the
commitment to carry it out in their facilities with health services.

2006. The National Civil Protection Coordination convened experts from different areas of
public, private and social institutions to form the National Committee for Evaluation,
Diagnosis and Certification of the Safe Hospital Program.

Objectives and goal

The main objective of this program is that the hospitals have the structural, non-structural
and functional elements to remain accessible and functioning at their maximum capacity
and in the same infrastructure, during a natural or anthropogenic threat and immediately
after it.

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In Mexico, this program is directed by the Ministry of the Interior through the National
Coordination of Civil Protection before the National Committee for Evaluation, Diagnosis
and Certification of the Safe Hospital Program (CNEDCPHS).
The Ministry of Health holds the presidency of the CNEDCPHS coordinates its operation in
the institution and, as the governing body of the National Health System, promotes the
incorporation of hospital units so that, in the event of an emergency or disaster, they
provide services with the opportunity and quality that the population requires.
Organization

Its in charge of the National Coordination of Civil Protection of the Ministry of the Interior,
through a collegial group called the National Committee for Evaluation, Diagnosis and
Certification of the Safe Hospital Program (CNEDCPHS), which has similar bodies in the
32 states.
To support the operation, programming and monitoring of the activities, a Technical
Advisory Group is available.

National Committee for

Evaluation, Diagnosis and
Certification of the Safe
Hospital Program

Advisory Group is
available.

State Committees

Figure 2 Organization chart of the Hospital Safe Program

Stages of the Program

Part 1 Part 2
Classification and Prioritization Self-assessment
1.1 Identification of units to be self-evaluated 2.1 Training for self-evaluation.
1.2 Classification of hospitals by capacity of 2.2 Self-evaluation.
response 2.3 Integration of results.
1.3 Prioritization of units for Self-evaluation. 2.4. Analysis of results.

CENAPRED, as part of the National System of Civil Protection, is one of the great
promoters of this program. Among his major contributions to the program are the
collaboration for the creation of the training course for evaluators, as well as to contribute
with technically qualified staff to carry out the evaluations of the hospitals.

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2.4 DEVELOPMENT OF GEOSPATIAL TOOLS FOR RISK MANAGEMENT

National Risk Atlas

Is a on line comprehensive information system, it allows the establishment of databases

and the analysis of hazard, vulnerability and disaster risk at national, regional, state and
municipal levels, in order to generate maps and geographic information systems. This will
be able to simulate disaster scenarios, issue recommendations for timely decision making
and establish effective prevention and mitigation measures. The figure 3, shown the portal
of the National Risk Atlas, and it can be found in the next link
http://www.atlasnacionalderiesgos.gob.mx/.

Figure 3 Current view of the National Atlas of Risk portal

The phenomena that are analyzed with this tool are origin of geological,
hydrometeorological, chemical, sociorganizational and sanitary type. With this tool are
obtained: hazard maps by phenomenon, maps of vulnerability, location and quantification
of affected systems, cost of disasters, expected cost of occurrence of phenomena,
systems of consultation by Internet.
The importance of developing these tools is that can incorporated into a urban
development programs, and territorial reorganization, allowing to reduce the risk and
safeguard the life of the population. In addition, they serve to give certainty to the
investment programs as they allow to ensure that the new infrastructure is safe.In addition,
to design public policies for territorial management, strengthen and ensure the observation
of the legal framework of risk, guide public and private investments,
to facilitate emergency and disaster declarations and finally assess the socio-economic
impact of disasters.

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2.5 RESEARCH AS A WAY OF IMPROVES MEXICAN BULDING AND
INFRASTRUCTURE REGULATION.

Since 1970 decade de National University (UNAM), through its Engineering Institute (II-
UNAM) had invest on building research mainly on housing (masonry walls). II-UNAM had
tested over 500 specimens of walls and materials, in order to generate technical
information which could be useful to improve construction standards to ensure structural
safety of building.

Figure 4 Experimental tests of masonry walls in Engineering Institute of UNAM

After September 1985 earthquake, Mexico got technical support from abroad, in order to
discover constructive and design deficiencies that generated damage on structures.
CENAPRED is a direct consequence of this support, because at its beginning it worked
like a research center on seismic engineering sponsored by Japan International
Cooperation Agency, this during late 1980s decade. This center grew constantly on
1990s decade, research studies was made mainly on masonry walls performance and
affordable housing with assistance Japanese researchers whom settled on Mexico City. In
order to keep a good academic development, Mexican researches involved on research
were part of National University. Around 2000 year, Japanese assistance was withdrawn
and research facilities delivered to Mexican government, then CENAPRED diversifies its
study field to include, as well as seismic risks studies, several phenomena: typhoons,
floods, land sliding, volcanoes and recently climatic change.

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Figure 5 Masonry specimen at real scale, tested in the decade of the 90s, in order to
knowing its behavior against seismic loads.

During the following decades CENAPRED has continued to encourage research on anti-
seismic structures, collaborating with universities, research centers, public and private
institutions, to use of the structures laboratory. Examples of these efforts are shown in
figures 6 and 7.

Figure 6 Study of the behavior of hollow bridge piles of concrete reinforced under seismic
loads, tested in 2012 2013.

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Figure 7 Precast concrete joint specimen at real scale, tested in February 2017, in order to
knowing its behavior against seismic loads As part of the 2017 experimental testing
program.

3 DAMAGE IN THE INFRASTRUCTURE OF MEXICO

3.1 CASE STUDY: BRIDGES

BACKGROUND

As a result of the earthquakes of September 1985, about 250 bridges were surveyed in the
road and rail network of the States of Guerrero, Michoacn and Colima, in the area near
the epicenter, in order to identify and evaluate the damages caused by these earthquakes
and take measures to ensure the safety of users. Of the total number of structures
reviewed, approximately one-third suffered minor damage, five suffered moderate
damage, and in only three cases was it necessary to interrupt vehicle traffic in view of the
importance of the damage. Each time an important event happens, a detailed review of the
bridges that have been affected is carried out.

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In other countries the bridges have shown a poor seismic behavior, as occurred during the
seismic events of Northridge (1994), Kobe (1995), Chi Chi (1999), Chile (2010) among
others. In most of these earthquakes the collapse of the bridges was attributed to the
predominant fault of their columns which shows that they are structural elements highly
vulnerable to the action of the earthquake in comparison with another part of the structure.

STATISTICAL DATA OF BRIDGES IN THE FEDERAL ROAD NET

In the approximately 48,300 km of the federal highway network, there are 7,230 bridges
with a length of the order of 300 km (data for 2006) representing an investment of more
than 11.5 billion pesos. The first inventory of the bridges of the federal highway network
was lifted with a systemic approach in 1983 and a few years later, a system was
implemented, for the attention of the bridges of the network. Generally, the preliminary and
main inspections have been carried out by personnel of the Ministry of Communications
and Transportation.
Numbers of Bridges by State
Numbers of Bridges by State

State
Figure 8 Number of Federal Network Bridges per state. Source: SCT, 2006

AVERAGE AGE OF BRIDGES IN MEXICO

The average age of the bridges is greater than 30 years and there are a significant number
of bridges with more than 40 years (figure 9). Most of these bridges were built before 1980
with design standards that used criteria that considered loads less than those allowed by
the current regulation (2008) and much lower than the loads currently circulating on the
roads.

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 Number of bridges per lustrum

Figure 9. Number of bridges per construction period

DAMAGE CAUSED BY EARTHQUAKES

In Mexico, moderate damage has been reported in bridges during past earthquakes, such
as Michoacan (1985) and Manzanillo (1995), sufficient to interrupt vehicular traffic. Thus, it
have been appreciated, damage to retaining walls, damage to expansion joints, failure of
the attachment of the column and its head, and failure of the top of the piles to prevent
lateral sliding of the superstructure (Romn et al., 1999; Orozco JM y Hernndez IE,
2005).

According to socio-economic impact studies, during the occurrence of relatively recent

earthquakes in the country, such as: Tehuacan (1999), Oaxaca (1999) and Tecomn
(2003), the communications and transport sector, The bridges, recorded less costs of
damages compared to other sectors in which their amounts are high, such as: housing,
school infrastructure and health, mainly. However, within the communications and
transport sector, damage to bridges has a strong socio-economic impact, even though
they do not collapse due to seismic excitation. The most common damages caused by
earthquakes are listed below:

- Movements and settlement of the bridges approaches fills or embankment

Figure 10 Damage in approach of bridge

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- Transversal Displacement of the super-structure

Figure 11. Total collapse of the Cuajilote bridge by earthquake

- Damage in expansion joint

Figure 12. Damage in the expansion joints

- Damage in abutment

Figure 13 Damage in abutment

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 - Damage in retaining wall

Figure 14 Damage in retaining wall of a bridge. Source: SCT, 2006

- Damage in piles and foundations

Figure 15. Damage in bridge column. Experimental tests carried out at the Institute of
Engineering of the UNAM. (Mario Rodriguez, et al, 2013)

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 - Damage in deck

Figure 16. Collapse of the Tonala bridge

4 REFERENCE

Secretaria de Gobernacin (SEGOB), Coordinacin General de Proteccin Civil.

Estrategia de preparacin y respuesta de la administracin pblica federal, ante un sismo
y tsunami de gran magnitud Plan Sismo. Mxico D.F., septiembre 2011.

Ing. I. Enrique Hernndez Q., Ing. L. Carlos Campos de la Fuente. DAOS

FRECUENTES ORIGINADOS POR SISMO EN LOS PUENTES DE LA RED FEDERAL
MEXICANA. Sociedad Mexicana de Ingenieria, XVI Congreso Nacional de Ingeniera
Estructural, Veracruz, Veracruz, 2008.

Dario Rivera Vargas. Cuaderno de Investigacin, Evaluacin Simplificada de la

Vulnerabilidad Ssmica de los Puentes Urbanos. Centro Nacional de Prevencin de
Desastres. Direccin de Inveswtigacin, SEGOB. 2007.

Miguel A. Torres Matos and Mario E. Rodrguez. Seismic behavior of socket connection
between footing and precast reinforced concrete bridge column. Institute of Engineering.
National Autonomous University of Mxico. Ciudad Universitaria, Mexico D. F, 2013.

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