NC State Civil Engineering PhD Student Ana (Gabby) Haro is part of a team that will visit Ecuador to assess damage from the recent earthquake. Gabby will be traveling as part of a 5 member team sponsored by the Earthquake Engineering Research Institute (EERI) through their ‘Learning From Earthquakes’ program. The team began its mission on May 8, 2016, and will investigate damage, response, and recovery in the aftermath of that country’s M7.8 earthquake of April 16, 2016.

Other team members include team leader Forrest Lanning from Miyamoto International, Mei Kuen Liu, Senior Engineer with Forell/Elsesser, Arturo Schultz, professor of Civil Engineering at University of Minnesota, and Adrian Tola, PhD student in Civil Engineering at Virginia Tech. Héctor Monzón Despang and Alberto José Monzón Posadas, two members of the Asociación Guatemalteca de Ingeniería Estructural y Sísmica (AGIES) from Guatemala will travel with the team in Ecuador.

The EERI reconnaissance mission will be based in Manta, and from there travel to affected towns for observations and meetings with government officials and local organizations. The team will coordinate observations and activities with reconnaissance efforts organized by GEER, Degenkolb, Build Change, EEFIT, Technalia, and other teams. EERI has set up a virtual clearinghouse website for the Muisne, Ecuador earthquake as a central location for data collected by EERI reconnaissance efforts as well as other colleagues, members, collaborators and contributors.

Gabby is a native of Ecuador, and her research at NC State is focused on the stability of reinforced concrete structural wall elements typically found in buildings and bridge piers. Her research is partially supported by the Alaska Department of Transportation and Public Facilities and is under the supervision of Dr. Mervyn Kowalsky. Upon completion of her PhD, Gabby will return to Ecuador and serve as a Professor at the Escuela Politécnica Nacional.