Earthquake Data collection is typically conducted by EERI members after earthquakes as a part of our LFE reconnaissance efforts. A summary of past efforts is at the LFE Archive page. For large events, data collection is also supported by an EERI virtual clearinghouse website which provides tools for members to assist with data collection and archival.
Several past events, described below, have also been conducted by EERI to consider strategies and approaches for consistent, high quality earthquake data collection.
2014 Post-Earthquake Data Collection Workshop
A workshop to discuss recent experiences and future needs related to post-earthquake data collection was held in Anchorage, Alaska from July 20 – 22, 2014 with participants from several different countries including New Zealand, Italy, Chile, Japan, Canada, and United States. Due to recent earthquakes in many of the represented countries, the workshop provided a unique opportunity to review data collected internationally, critically evaluate current data collection approaches, initiate collaborative international research efforts to maximize the knowledge gained from recent devastating events, and begin to develop international consensus on data collection protocols for future events.
Support and funding for this workshop was provided by the University of British Columbia, Ministry for Business Innovation and Employment (New Zealand), and the Earthquake Engineering Research Institute via its the National Science Foundation grant entitled “Seismic Observatory for Community Resilience – A Program to Learn from Earthquakes” (Award No: 1235573).
Downloads:
Workshop Summary Report & Resolutions with Appendix (pdf file, 76 MB)
Workshop Executive Summary (pdf file, 3 MB)
Collection and Management of Earthquake Data: Defining Issues for An Action
This 118-page report issued in 2003 represents the first step in developing an action plan to define a systematic protocol for the collection and management of earthquake data. It is the outcome of a September 2002 two-day invitational workshop organized by EERI as part of its Learning from Earthquakes Program, supported by the National Science Foundation. Over seventy members of the multidisciplinary earthquake community identified the following three major tasks that must be accomplished in order to develop an action plan: (1) improving data collection, (2) improving data access, and (3) improving data organization and use. This report discusses the problems with current data collection, the opportunities that have been lost from lack of data, types of data that need to be collected after earthquakes, and their purposes. This report also makes recommendations to serve as the framework for an effective action plan. The report includes several appendices, including background papers entitled “Learning from Earthquakes: A Survey of Surveys” and “An Overview of Post-Earthquake Damage Assessment in Italy.”