The Oklahoma City Bombing: Summary and Recommendations for Multihazard Mitigation

Abstract

From visual inspection and analysis of the damage that occurred in the Murrah Building as a result of a blast caused by a large truck bomb, it is shown that progressive collapse extended the damage beyond that caused directly by the blast. The type of damage that occurred and the resulting collapse of nearly half the building is consistent with what would be expected for an ordinary moment frame building of the type and detailing available in the mid-1970s when subjected to the blast from such a large truck bomb. Using information developed for the Federal Emergency Management Agency and the Department of Housing and Urban Development, types of structural systems that would provide significant increases in toughness to structures subjected to catastrophic loading from events such as major earthquakes and blasts are identified. One of these systems is compartmentalized construction, in which a large percentage of the building has structural walls that are reinforced to provide structural integrity in case ...