Damage to Chinese Courtyard Houses During the September 21, 1999 Chi-Chi Earthquake in Taiwan

The courtyard house is a traditional style Chinese residence which still prevails in Asian architecture today. When the Chi-Chi earthquake struck central Taiwan in 1999, many courtyard houses around the epicenter encountered various degrees of damage. In this article, an introduction to the features of courtyard houses is followed by our observations on common modes of failure from a field investigation of 61 cases after the earthquake. It is found that the interface of different materials and the damage to the load bearing wall are the two factors that may cause greater damage. The building damage, in amount and type, was clearly related to various construction and layout variables. As shown in many cases, the use of wood frames, alone, or with masonry, significantly improved the buildings' ability to resist earthquakes.