Vallejo’s earthquake safety technology may have saved lives in the Turkey and Syria earthquake

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Earthquake survivors face freezing conditions

Earthquake survivors in Turkey and Syria face freezing conditions amid devastation 04:20

Vallejo – The devastating earthquakes that rocked Turkey and Syria on Monday killed more than 23,000 people, destroyed more than 5,600 buildings and left the area a disaster zone, but a company based in Vallejo may have saved more lives. Lost.

Earthquake Protection Systems (EPS), located at a 12-acre factory on Mare Island, builds giant “friction pendulum bearings” called seismic isolators, which essentially put massive structures like buildings, bridges, and refineries on moving plates that absorb the shock of large earthquakes.

EPS has been shipping its massive shock absorbers worldwide since 1987 and “several thousand” of them have been installed in Turkey, according to company founder Victor Zeyas.

Earthquake Protection Systems (EPS) CEO Victor Zayas at his company’s manufacturing facility in Vallejo, Calif., on February 10, 2023. Zayas developed Friction Pendulum™ insulation technology and materials, manufacturing and testing methods. Ray St. Germain/BayCity News

The systems were in place at the epicenter of seismic activity in a major hospital in Adana, Turkey, and remained operational at 100 percent after the magnitude 7.8 and 7.5 quakes nine hours apart, according to Zias.

Also read: Satellite images show earthquakes in Turkey and Syria ‘similar to the 1906 earthquake that devastated San Francisco’

“The whole area was destroyed,” Zayas said on Thursday. “Our hospital was far from the largest in the entire region.”

Although many buildings in the area were constructed of cryptocurrency to protect them from earthquakes, many are still failing after being bombed this week, but not the buildings with EPS. At least nine hospitals in the region have collapsed without seismic isolators, according to a report from the company compiled after Monday’s disaster, with more than 30 remaining standing but losing all jobs.

February 11, 2023, Turkey, Antakya: Men walk near a destroyed building. It is believed that thousands of victims are still buried under the rubble. Teams of assistants from all over the world are working in the disaster area. Boris Roessler Alliance / picture via Getty Images

This was Zayas’ life goal: not just to keep buildings standing during big earthquakes, but to keep them up and running, especially in places like hospitals.

EPS protected buildings in Turkey are more than 12 storeys high. Zayas said the hospital with EPS was able to care for 3,000 patients immediately after the disaster stopped.

Also read: Turkey and Syria earthquake 2023: How to help the victims

Over the years, the systems have protected no fewer than 18 buildings around the world from earthquakes, from South America to New Zealand.

“Now we have the evidence that our engineering theories actually work,” said Zayas.

A seismic insulator is tested at Earthquake Protection Systems (EPS) in Vallejo, Calif., on February 10, 2023. Ray Saint Germain/Bay City News

Zayas is an outgoing, kind person who gives tours of his huge factory located at the far end of Mare Island, which holds an impressive earthquake simulator used to test its products. EPS is housed in a former marine structure.

The first test of its products came in Turkey in 2020 when the city of Elazig was hit by a 6.7-magnitude earthquake, which is exactly what happens with three EPS-equipped hospitals. While 87 multi-storey buildings collapsed, EPS hospitals remained standing and fully operational.

Zayas bearings range in size from a few feet to huge platters. In the Bay Area, they can be found supporting the Benicia-Martinez Bridge, Zuckerberg San Francisco General Hospital, Stanford Medical Center, Mills-Peninsula Medical Center in Burlingame, Christ the Light Cathedral in Oakland, the Dumbarton Bridge, and Apple Campus in Cupertino.

Zayas wants to improve building codes around the world, most of which still leave room for a percentage of total collapses or job losses. He said simply letting people out of the building alive was not enough. Critical buildings must remain operational.

“For 50 years, building codes have sought only to limit the collapse of structures to less than ten percent,” said a report from EPS. “Building codes need to be updated to set standards that minimize earthquake damage, not just limit damage to less than ten percent. This would avoid most collapses and also save many lives by keeping most hospitals functioning.”

For Zayas and his 80-plus engineering firm, human resilience is the foundation of their operations.

“I think we saved a lot of lives,” he said.

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