Integration of dynamic monitoring data for near-real-time urban seismic damage scenarios

Near-real-time seismic damage scenarios at the urban scale are crucial for effective emergency response and post-earthquake recovery. This paper investigates the enhancement of these scenarios through the integration of dynamic monitoring data. This is achieved by leveraging information from sensors located at the building base to accurately characterize the seismic input, contributing to improved earthquake localization and site-specific ground motion parameters. Concurrently, sensors deployed on the over-structure provide critical information on the building’s dynamic behavior, in the peacetime (i.e.allowing for the estimation of its natural vibration periods, frequencies, and mode shapes), but also offer direct insights into the observed response and its evolution, after a seismic event. The paper discusses how these observational data facilitate the updating and calibration of vulnerability models representing classes of similar typologies (informed by observed performance), and help refining the ground shaking intensity maps that drive the overall scenario. The Municipality of Sanremo, where several buildings have been instrumented with a network of low-cost sensors, serves as the case study for this investigation. By incorporating real-world observational data, this approach aims to significantly improve the accuracy, reliability, and timeliness of urban seismic damage scenarios, thereby supporting more informed decision-making for emergency management and resilience planning.