Development, Security, and Cooperation

Office for Central Europe and Eurasia

Response to the Pakistan Earthquake of October 8, 2005

In early November 2005, following the devastating earthquake that struck Pakistan on October 8, officials of the Pakistani Higher Education Commission (HEC) proposed launching a joint initiative with the U.S. National Academies (NAS) to consider effective ways of assisting Pakistan in its research and policy efforts related to post-disaster reconstruction and rehabilitation. With funding provided by the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID), the NAS, working in collaboration with the American Society of Civil Engineers (ASCE), organized a series of two team visits and two individual exchanges. Detailed reports prepared by the participants may be accessed by clicking on the highlighted headings below.

First Visit by NAS Team

In the first team visit, a group of American engineering and technical experts traveled to Pakistan December 11 – 18, 2005. The specific objective of this seven-day trip was to explore various means of providing support to the then-recently formed Earthquake Rehabilitation and Reconstruction Authority (ERRA) and other relevant Pakistani organizations as they developed policies and strategies for reconstruction in earthquake devastated areas. A complementary objective was for the team to identify research priorities that could be supported by targeted grants under the ongoing Pakistan-United States Science and Technology Cooperation Program.

The five U.S. team members (Melvyn Green, Team Leader; Marjorie Greene; William Holmes; M. Ali Khan; and Michael Sanio) took part in a series of meetings and discussions in Islamabad with a variety of key organizations and officials, including ERRA, the Ministry of Housing and Works, HEC, the Pakistan Engineering Council, the Pakistan Meteorological Department, U.S. Ambassador Ryan C. Crocker, and USAID staff involved in relief and reconstruction efforts. The team also made a one-day site visit to Muzaffarabad and surrounding areas to see the devastation and the reconstruction efforts first-hand. Following the trip, the team members prepared individual reports of their observations and recommendations.

In summing up their reactions following the first visit, the team members concurred that after the initial phase of urgent disaster relief, Pakistan needed to focus on medium- and longer-term reduction of risk from earthquakes and other disasters. Two types of capabilities are needed.

First, the team concluded that Pakistan needs a central independent organization that can assume an authoritative advisory role. This organization would take on the explicit mission to provide decision makers and the general public with recommendations for educational, technical, and governmental programs that will reduce future earthquake losses. These programs need to be cost-effective, feasible within cultural and institutional constraints, and free of pressures from groups that may have political or economic interests at stake. This policy-oriented organization would provide a means of bridging communications gaps between the scientific/technical and policy communities and would also serve as a useful clearinghouse for liaison with international organizations and experts. The California Seismic Safety Commission may serve as a model. The team did not necessarily advocate the creation of a new institution, believing that the sort of organization described could develop on the basis of an existing institution or group of institutions. 

Second, the team highlighted the need for enhancing the capabilities of one or more strong Pakistani earthquake science and engineering research and training centers. These centers would maintain updated scientific and technical expertise as well as design innovative solutions for earthquake damage prevention and recovery activities that are consistent with local customs and available technologies.  These centers could focus on three main areas: (1) fundamental research in seismology, geology, and engineering necessary to provide the basis for decision-making and action with regard to earthquake damage mitigation and recovery; (2) engineering of earthquake-resistant structures in the context of the type of construction used in Pakistan; and (3) retrofitting of existing structures to improve earthquake resistance for both engineered and non-engineered owner-built structures. 

Second Visit by NAS Team

In view of these two objectives identified by the experts who participated in the December 2005 visit, the NAS organized a second team visit to Pakistan June 12-17, 2006, to consult with a variety of Pakistani researchers and officials to share insights as to how such policy and research capabilities might be developed and nurtured both during the next several months and in the longer term. Team leader Melvyn Green and two participants in the first visit, William Holmes and Michael Sanio, were joined by newly-recruited team members L. Thomas Tobin and Leonardo Seeber.

For their report on this second visit, the team members elected to prepare a single document highlighting the top priorities they have identified for the short, medium, and longer terms. Although these observations represent the consensus among the team members, they do not represent consensus findings, conclusions, or recommendations of the U.S. National Academies. In addition, team member Leonardo Seeber, a seismologist, stayed on in Pakistan for a few extra days to make a field visit to the earthquake zone, and his individual report on his findings there is included as an appendix.

Individual Exchange Visits, December 2006 and March 2007

As a means of helping to strengthen the capabilities of the Earthquake Engineering Center of NWFP University of Engineering and Technology (UET), a key Pakistani research center in the area of earthquake-related research, two individual exchange visits were organized as targeted follow ups to the NAS team visits. In December 2006, Syed Mohammad Ali of the EEC attended the annual meeting of the American Geophysical Union in San Francisco and met with counterparts at the University of California, Berkeley, the Earthquake Engineering Research Center/Pacific Earthquake Engineering Center, the California Institute of Technology, and the California Strong Motion Instrumentation Program (CSMIP) of the California Geological Survey. In March 2007, Mr. Ali hosted CSMIP Director Anthony Shakal for a week-long stay in Pakistan, including visits to earthquake-affected sites and consultations with colleagues at NWFP UET. In particular, the discussions focused on plans for the creation of the Pakistan Strong Motion Instrumentation Program, which involves the creation of a network of sensors that will be installed on selected structures to study their response during earthquakes. The joint report on this exchange of individual visits includes additional details, photos, and recommendations made by the exchange participants. In addition, the visits and ongoing collaboration are described in a newsletter published by NWFP UET and a press release from the California Geological Survey.

Although this project ended as of March 31, 2007, it is hoped that the contacts made during the visits will prove valuable for both the Pakistani and American participants alike as they continue their efforts to increase the safety of populations living in earthquake-prone regions. For more information about this project, please contact Kelly Robbins at krobbins@nas.edu.