Building Science Resource Library

The Building Science Resource Library contains all of FEMA’s hazard-specific guidance that focuses on creating hazard-resistant communities.

You can search for a document by its title, or filter the collection to browse by:

  • Topic: High winds, flood, earthquake, etc.
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FEMA P-2055, Post-disaster Building Safety Evaluation Guidance

This report is on the current state of practice for post-disaster building safety evaluation, including recommendations related to structural and nonstructural safety and habitability. FEMA P-2055 summarizes and references best practice guideline documents or provides interim recommendations for issues without best practice guidance. It also identifies recommended improvements and needs, including a primer for state, local, tribal, and territorial governments that have the authority to set standards or policy related to the implementation of post-disaster evaluations, to protect the design professionals who volunteer as evaluators, and legislation to create the authority to evaluate and post buildings, deputize evaluators, and restrict occupancy.

The following incident types are covered in the Guide: earthquakes; hurricanes; floods; tornadoes; tsunamis; landslides and other land instabilities; volcanoes; snow, hail, and ice storms; fire; and explosions. The Guide can be a reference for any post-incident evaluation process and is not limited by the scale or official declaration of a disaster.

This Guide was developed as required by the Disaster Recovery Reform Act of 2018, Section 1241: Post-disaster Building Safety Assessment. For more information please see: https://www.fema.gov/disaster-recovery-reform-act-2018

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Earthquake Strengthening of Cripple Walls in Wood-Frame Dwellings (FEMA P-1024-RA2)

On August 24, 2014, a magnitude-6.0 earthquake occurred in Napa, California. In response to this earthquake, the Special Projects task of the National Earthquake Technical Assistance Program (NETAP) was used to fund an investigation. At the time, this event had not yet been declared a federal disaster, and disaster funds were therefore not available. Because of limitations to this funding, some issues, such as performance of lifelines or building investigations in additional areas, could not be investigated. Past earthquakes in California have resulted in significant improvements to national and local building codes. For the 2014 South Napa earthquake, work was focused on documenting the observed performance of buildings and nonstructural components in order to lead into future improvements in future building codes, and to do so within six months.

Recovery Advisory 2 (RA2) is Appendix B of the FEMA P-1024 report. RA2 addresses measures to mitigate cripple wall vulnerabilities before an earthquake occurs and provides information on how and when to use the accompanying FEMA Plan Set.

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FEMA P-774, Unreinforced Masonry Buildings and Earthquakes Developing Successful Risk Reduction Programs

This publication provides guidance on reducing the risks faced by those who own, occupy, or use unreinforced masonry (URM) buildings in seismically active areas. Among structures currently in use in U.S. communities, URM buildings are typically the most vulnerable to earthquake damage and the type of construction that is most commonly singled out for voluntary and mandatory seismic risk reduction programs. The publication includes illustrations and photographs of URM buildings and describes their seismic vulnerabilities. It discusses policy and regulatory issues that often must be considered in efforts to reduce URM risks, such as retrofit costs, the economic viability of older buildings, numbers of occupants and types of use, and historic or architectural values. Rather than prescribing a rigid sequence of steps for URM risk reduction, FEMA P-774 documents a wide variety of successful approaches that have been developed across the United States.

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FEMA NEHRP Funding Breakdown Infographic

Established by Congress in 1977, the National Earthquake Hazard Reduction Program (NEHRP) works to reduce risks to life and property resulting from earthquakes. Focusing on research, building code standards, technical guidance, and education, NEHRP is a collaborative effort among the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST), the National Science Foundation (NSF), and the United States Geological Survey (USGS).

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State Assistance Poster Infographic

Established by Congress in 1977, the National Earthquake Hazard Reduction Program (NEHRP) works to reduce risks to life and property resulting from earthquakes. Focusing on research, building code standards, technical guidance, and education, NEHRP is a collaborative effort among the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST), the National Science Foundation (NSF), and the United States Geological Survey (USGS).

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Building Codes Save: Nationwide Losses Prevention Infographic

Outlines the background and process of the study.

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Guidelines for Design of Structures for Vertical Evacuation from Tsunamis (FEMA P 646)

Vertical evacuation is a programmatic issue central to the National Tsunami Hazard Mitigation Program, driven by the fact that there are coastal communities along the West Coast of the United States that are vulnerable to tsunamis that could be generated within minutes of an earthquake on the Cascadia Subduction Zone. Vertical evacuation structures provide a means to create areas of refuge for communities in which evacuation out of the inundation zone is not feasible. This guidance document includes the following information to assist in the planning and design of tsunami vertical evacuation structures: general information on the tsunami hazard and its history; guidance on determining the tsunami hazard, including tsunami depth and velocity; different options for tsunami vertical evacuation structures; guidance on siting, spacing, sizing, and elevation considerations; determining tsunami and earthquake loads and related structural design criteria; and structural design concepts and other considerations.

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NEHRP Overview

Established by Congress in 1977, the National Earthquake Hazard Reduction Program (NEHRP) works to reduce risks to life and property resulting from earthquakes. Focusing on research, building code standards, technical guidance, and education, NEHRP is a collaborative effort among the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), the National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST), the National Science Foundation (NSF), and the United States Geological Survey (USGS).

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FEMA P-58, Seismic Performance Assessment of Buildings - Volume 7 - Building the Performance You Need

The principal product under this combined 10-year work effort was the development of a methodology for seismic performance assessment of individual buildings that properly accounts for uncertainty in our ability to accurately predict response, and communicates performance in ways that better relate to the decision-making needs of stakeholders. This project completed the development of a methodology for seismic performance assessment of individual buildings in December 2018. The final products together describe the resulting methodology, as well as the development of basic building information, response quantities, fragilities, and consequence data used as inputs to the methodology. To allow practical implementation of the methodology, work included the collection of fragility and consequence data for most common structural systems and building occupancies, and the development of an electronic Performance Assessment Calculation Tool (PACT) for performing the probabilistic computations and accumulation of losses. This is Volume 7.

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FEMA P-58, Seismic Performance Assessment of Buildings - Volume 5 - Expected Performance

The principal product under this combined 10-year work effort was the development of a methodology for seismic performance assessment of individual buildings that properly accounts for uncertainty in our ability to accurately predict response, and communicates performance in ways that better relate to the decision-making needs of stakeholders. This project completed the development of a methodology for seismic performance assessment of individual buildings in December 2018. The final products together describe the resulting methodology, as well as the development of basic building information, response quantities, fragilities, and consequence data used as inputs to the methodology. To allow practical implementation of the methodology, work included the collection of fragility and consequence data for most common structural systems and building occupancies, and the development of an electronic Performance Assessment Calculation Tool (PACT) for performing the probabilistic computations and accumulation of losses. This is Volume 5.