In October 2005, a 7.6-magnitude earthquake shook Pakistan, leaving 80,000 dead, 100,000 injured, and over two million people homeless. It ranked among the worst natural disasters in the history of Pakistan and of the Indian subcontinent, causing devastation of villages, schools, transportation and water supplies across the country. Following the earthquake, World Vision Pakistan (WVP) began a recovery, rehabilitation, and reconstruction initiative to examine the requirements to rebuild 80 schools in the Siran Valley region.
BWB Involvement
BWB partnered with WVP in the NW Pakistan region to inspect the extent of school damage, assess reconstruction requirements and recommend safer reconstruction sites. BWB provided a civil engineer and a structural engineer who worked with the village communities and spent three weeks inspecting partially or totally collapsed schools (Pictured: Bob Culbert, Ali Hassan of WVP). A report was prepared by BWB that proposed the use of confined brick masonry construction as an appropriate school reconstruction method.
Our Impact
The school reconstruction technique recommended by BWB uses local available materials and provides employment for local masons. Structures created also are positioned in safer locations and are stronger and less susceptible to damage in future seismic events.