Seismic reinforcement work on A-bomb Dome is nearly complete
Jul. 12, 2016
by Masanori Wada, Staff Writer
On July 11, the City of Hiroshima announced that it has nearly completed the first seismic reinforcement project on the A-bomb Dome, a World Heritage site located in Naka Ward. While taking into account its aesthetic appearance, the building has been fortified with steel rods at three points from the inside of the brick walls. The minimum amount of work necessary was performed so that the structure can withstand an earthquake with a seismic intensity of six.
On this day, two city officials undertook a completion inspection of the dome. They mounted the 14-meter-high scaffolding, standing alongside the interior wall of the dome’s north side, and approved the two locations where the existing support columns were reinforced with the additional steel rods. The reinforcement work on one other spot, on the building’s south side, was completed at the end of March. The company contracted by the city government to carry out the work will soon remove the scaffolding from the building, and the entire project to reinforce the building will be concluded by late July.
The City of Hiroshima began this work on the A-bomb Dome in December 2015 after conducting an earthquake-resistance inspection in fiscal year 2013. The inspection had found that the building was in danger of collapsing in an earthquake that measured a lower six on the scale of seismic intensity. Total costs for the project have come to around 28.80 million yen.
The dome building underwent several reinforcement projects to preserve the structure in fiscal years 1967, 1989, and 2002. An official from the City’s Park Development Division said, “We plan to continue checking the condition of the building every three years and, with the advice of experts, taking the necessary steps to maintain its preservation.”
(Originally published on July 12, 2016)
On July 11, the City of Hiroshima announced that it has nearly completed the first seismic reinforcement project on the A-bomb Dome, a World Heritage site located in Naka Ward. While taking into account its aesthetic appearance, the building has been fortified with steel rods at three points from the inside of the brick walls. The minimum amount of work necessary was performed so that the structure can withstand an earthquake with a seismic intensity of six.
On this day, two city officials undertook a completion inspection of the dome. They mounted the 14-meter-high scaffolding, standing alongside the interior wall of the dome’s north side, and approved the two locations where the existing support columns were reinforced with the additional steel rods. The reinforcement work on one other spot, on the building’s south side, was completed at the end of March. The company contracted by the city government to carry out the work will soon remove the scaffolding from the building, and the entire project to reinforce the building will be concluded by late July.
The City of Hiroshima began this work on the A-bomb Dome in December 2015 after conducting an earthquake-resistance inspection in fiscal year 2013. The inspection had found that the building was in danger of collapsing in an earthquake that measured a lower six on the scale of seismic intensity. Total costs for the project have come to around 28.80 million yen.
The dome building underwent several reinforcement projects to preserve the structure in fiscal years 1967, 1989, and 2002. An official from the City’s Park Development Division said, “We plan to continue checking the condition of the building every three years and, with the advice of experts, taking the necessary steps to maintain its preservation.”
(Originally published on July 12, 2016)
