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MCEER in the News



In Haiti's Rebuilding, Calls For Stronger Structures

NPR; Jan. 14, 2011 (Includes Morning Edition audio interview with Pierre Fouché and Andre Filiatrault.)

A year ago in Haiti, a magnitude 7 earthquake turned Port-au-Prince into a death trap. Engineers say casualties could have been avoided if buildings had been built better, so as Haiti rebuilds, they're trying to improve standards. But poverty and corruption pose considerable challenges.

In the capital, there is still so much rubble on sidewalks that people walk in the streets. Everywhere buildings sag in a state of semi-collapse. When engineer Pierre Fouche returned to Port-au-Prince last year after the quake, he hardly recognized his hometown.

Article and Audio Interview

UB student focused on helping home country of Haiti

YNN.com; Jan. 12, 2011

Pierre Fouche is a PhD student studying earthquake engineering at the University at Buffalo. He's also Haitian, so Wednesday's anniversary is a reminder of what he's working towards. Article

One Year Later, Haiti's Engineers Are Acquiring Tools to Begin Rebuilding the Right Way

UB News; Jan. 10, 2011

As Haitian citizens struggle to achieve some normalcy a year after the devastating Jan. 12, 2010, earthquake, its structural engineers and architects are demonstrating an unwavering resolve to rebuild the country the right way, despite the daily challenges. Article

Haitian Native, an Earthquake Engineering Student, Puts Training to Good Use in Home Country

UB News; Jan. 11, 2011

Like most doctoral candidates, University at Buffalo student and Haitian native Pierre Fouché is a study in focus and determination and, if anything, the Jan. 12, 2010, earthquake that struck his home country only intensified these traits. Article

UB Transportation Project Could Help Region Better Manage Traffic During Bad Weather

UB News; Dec. 3, 2010

UB transportation engineer Adel Sadek, PhD, is developing a system to help the region better manage traffic during inclement weather conditions. Article

World's First Geologic Hazards Facility Being Planned Near Buffalo, N.Y.

UB News; Sept. 15, 2010

Planned facility to allow for study of full-scale volcanoes, other hazards, in controlled setting. Article

Haiti’s engineers begin seismic design and construction

UB News; July 21, 2010

Six months after the Jan. 12 earthquake, as the result of a partnership between Quisqueya University (UniQ) and the University at Buffalo’s Multidisciplinary Center for Earthquake Engineering Research (MCEER), approximately 200 Haitian engineers and architects will begin a new chapter in their professional lives, learning to incorporate seismic design into their work. Article

Haiti's Engineers Begin New Chapter of Study: Seismic Design and Construction

UB News; July 15, 2010

Before the devastating Jan. 12 earthquake, Haiti's engineers and architects had received little, if any, formal training in seismic design and construction principles. Haitian universities didn't offer any courses or programs that were dedicated to earthquake engineering. Article

Haiti Takes Major Step toward Earthquake Resilience, with Help from UB's MCEER

UB News Release; May 27, 2010

More than 200 people participated in an earthquake engineering seminar in Port-au-Prince. Article

UB Professor Surveys Damage in Chile

The Buffalo News; March 17, 2010

UB's Gilberto Mosqueda surveyed damage in Chile after an 8.8-magnitude earthquake hit the country. Article

Earthquake Preparedness Video

CNN.com; March 2, 2010

MCEER Director Andre Filiatrault talks to CNN about how prepared the United States is for a major earthquake. Video

UB Engineer Leads French-speaking Team to Haiti

WBFO.com; January 21, 2010

MCEER Director Andre Filiatrault leads a team of engineers to Haiti to help identify any safe buildings that could be used for relief efforts. Article and Audio Interview

A plan to reconstruct my country

CNN.com; January 20, 2010

Pierre Fouché, UB Doctoral Candidate in Earthquake Engineering, talks about how he chose to study earthquake engineering in anticipation of a disaster like the one that occurred in Haiti. Article

UB Reaches Out to Haiti through Work of Earthquake Engineering Lab and University Relief Effort

UB News Release; January 19, 2010

BUFFALO, N.Y. -- The University at Buffalo's world-renowned earthquake engineering faculty, and the internationally diverse students who come here to train in this critical field, are always intensely interested in any earthquake that occurs.
News Release

UB quake center providing vital data, hands-on help

The Buffalo News; January 15, 2010

The earthquake that struck Haiti on Tuesday is a tragic reminder of how critical the development, application and regulation of building codes are, according to one local expert. Article and Video

Haiti's Buildings Weren't Fit To Withstand Quakes

NPR; January 14, 2010

Haiti’s magnitude 7.0 earthquake struck a country whose buildings were barely built to engineering standards and were hopelessly fragile in the grip of such a strong quake. That's the assessment of Pierre Fouché, an earthquake engineer from Haiti — in fact, the country's only earthquake engineer, to his knowledge. Article

MCEER Joins in "Vigilant Guard" - National Guard Earthquake Response Exercise

MCEER News; November 13, 2009

Six-day training event in Buffalo/Niagara Falls, NY draws participation of 2000-plus military and civilian emergency responders from Northeast US, Canada and abroad. Article

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Slow Motion Earthquake Testing Probes How Buildings Collapse in Quakes

UB News; August 24, 2009

BUFFALO, N.Y. - New technique is safer, far less expensive than shake table tests. More

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Managing Disasters with High-tech Imaging Could Save Lives

RIT University News; August 19, 2009

RIT, University at Buffalo seek to improve emergency response with real-time information. More

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UB teams up with Calspan

WIVB News, Channel 4, Dan LaDelfa; July 14, 2009

BUFFALO, N.Y. (WIVB) - The University at Buffalo is teaming up with a local company to help build better bridge. Article and Video

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UB and Calspan Partner to Improve Bridge Design

WBFO News, Joyce Kryszak; July 14, 2009

CHEEKTOWAGA, NY (WBFO) - A bridge collapse two years ago in Minnesota plunged cars into the river and killed 13 people. But UB and Calspan are teaming up for an unprecedented project that could help protect the nation's crumbling bridges. Article and Podcast

These ‘bridges to nowhere’ may help avert future disasters

The Buffalo News: Business Today, Brian Hayden; July 12, 2009

In a Town of Ashford field, thousands of feet away from the closest residence and disconnected from any roads, will stand Western New York’s own “bridges to nowhere.” More | pdf

MCEER: Defining Resilience for Extreme Events

UB Engineering ENews, Spring 2009

MCEER investigations of New York’s World Trade Center complex following the attacks of September 11, 2001 served as a catalyst for the center’s transition to leverage earthquake engineering knowledge to enhance resilience against other hazards. More

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Media Advisory: Building a Better Bridge

Researchers Tap into Buffalo's Climate to Test Full-Scale Bridges

UB News; July 13, 2009

BUFFALO, N.Y. - Researchers from the University at Buffalo's MCEER and from Calspan will discuss details and provide images of plans to build two 72-foot-long bridges in Ashford, N.Y., 35 miles south of Buffalo, as part of a project to test how adverse weather conditions and seismic vibrations affect new bridge technologies. More

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MCEER Research: Enabling Disaster-Resilient Communities

NEHRP Seismic Waves: How the National Earthquake Hazards Reduction Program Is Advancing Earthquake Safety; November 2008

This is the last in an intermittent series of articles about the
earthquake engineering research centers funded over the
past decade by the National Science Foundation. These
centers have “graduated” from the Foundation’s engineering
research centers program and are transitioning into the
next chapters of their organizational lives. The articles
briefly review their accomplishments and future plans. More (pdf)