Date: May 30, 2012
Presenter: Dr. David Hopkins, Consulting Engineer, Wellington, New Zealand
David Hopkins delivered a compelling presentation on the Canterbury earthquakes. He provided an brief overview of the earthquakes and their impact, and then described some of his experiences in the immediate aftermath of the February 22 earthquake; helping to assess and stabilise some of the tallest buildings.
After six weeks in this critical buildings role, David was asked by the Department of Building and Housing to manage investigations into the collapse of four buildings in the February 22 earthquake. He outlined that work, with some detail about the collapse of the CTV Building in which 115 people died. David concluded by sharing some personal observations relating to structural engineering that result from the critical buildings assessment and the DBH investigation.