The Spanish Fortress in l’Aquila: emergency actions, investigations and monitoring

The earthquake occurred on the 6th of April 2009 in the Abruzzo Region of Italy seriously hit the Cultural Heritage (C.H.) patrimony with major destructive effects on l’Aquila, a city of 70,000 inhabitants with the size and the historical and strategic importance of the capital of the Region. The emergency activities to protect the C.H. have been developed following two parallel levels: (i) damage survey and (ii) design and implementation of temporary safety measures. The organization of emergency actions was managed by a centralized structure, the so-called Function 15 “Protection of Cultural Heritage” directed by a Special Commissioner. The structure coordinated the on-site surveys of protected buildings and the design and implementation of temporary safety measures. Several Italian Universities during and after these first emergency actions were invited by the Commissioner to work on selected Case Histories: the aim was on the one hand to provide a first interpretation of the observed damages and on the other hand to define some guidelines for a higher level of investigation.