Study of Recent Building Failures in the United States

Abstract

A total of 225 building failures in the United States from 1989 to 2000 were recorded in this study. The result shows that failures of low-rise buildings constitute about 63% of all cases, followed by multistory buildings as a distant second. In terms of their functions, apartments are the most frequent to fail. External events and construction and maintenance deficiencies have been identified as the most frequent principal causes. External events include rain, wind, snow, vehicular impact, and collision. Construction deficiencies encompass improper renovation, unplanned demolition, poor workmanship, and unsafe excavation operations. Maintenance deficiencies are associated with building deterioration that was overlooked and improperly maintained. A comparative analysis conducted between this study and two previous studies indicates an inclined trend of relative failure occurrences of low-rise and multistory buildings. The study also suggests that, despite the recent enhancement of information technology, current sources of information are still incomplete. The creation of new complete databases, further improvement of information sources, and their dissemination through the Internet are deemed essential to prevent building failures from recurring.