Seismic Resistant Housing, Pakistan

On the morning of October 8, 2005 the North West Frontier Province (NWFP) and the Pakistani administered state of Azad Jammu and Kashmir (AJK) in Northern Pakistan were devastated by a tremendous earthquake. Over 73,000 people perished and an estimated 3.3 million were left homeless in Pakistan alone. Even though the region is prone to earthquakes and seismic activity, the houses built and rebuilt after these events invariably contain no seismic mitigation techniques. Article 25 were approached by the international NGO, Muslim Aid, to develop building designs and lead workshops that would enable local people to take part in the rebuilding projects by illustrating how they can rebuild safely using a small amount of aid and their reclaimed building materials.