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The response of a two-storey RC school building in the town of Argostoli, Cephalonia Island, Greece, during the seismic sequence of January and February 2014, is examined. The structure was built following an older generation of seismic codes dating from the 1950s, which provide limited strength and ductility against lateral loads. Despite the severity of ground shaking and the two successive events, the building suffered relatively minor damage, like most of the RC buildings in the town. Following a short presentation of some basic seismological, structural and geotechnical aspects of the seismic sequence, the paper focuses on the seismic performance of the structure at hand. To this end, a series of detailed non-linear static and time-history dynamic analyses are reported, which highlight the interplay of soil, foundation and superstructure in modifying the seismic demand. It is demonstrated that SSI had an unexpectedly important (detrimental) role in the behaviour of the structure, increasing its natural period by about 25% and aggravating ductility demand in almost all columns, despite the moderately soft soil conditions (average VS = 180 m/s). The results shed light on the seismic performance of the building and help drawing conclusions on the engineering effects of the 2014 Cephalonia earthquake sequence. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The Samos Island (Aegean Sea) Earthquake occurred on 30 October 2020. It produced a tsunami that impacted coastal communities, ground shaking that was locally amplified in some areas and that led to collapse of structures with 118 fatalities in both Greece and Turkey, and wide-ranging geotechnical effects including rockfalls, landsliding, and liquefaction. As a result of the global COVID-19 pandemic, the reconnaissance of this event did not involve the deployment of international teams, as would be typical for an event of this size. Instead, following initial deployments of separate Greek and Turkish teams, the reconnaissance and documentation efforts were managed in a coordinated manner with the assistance of international partners. This coordination ultimately produced a multi-agency joint report published on the 2-month anniversary of the earthquake, and this special issue. This paper provides an overview of the reconnaissance activities undertaken to document the effects of this important event and summarizes key lessons spanning topic areas from seismology to emergency response. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Two strong earthquakes hit Thessaly region on March 3rd, 2021 (Mw = 6.3) and on March 4th, 2021 (Mw = 6.1). The epicentres of the earthquakes were located at approximately 23 and 29 km respectively NW of Larissa, one of the most populous cities in Greece. Several aftershocks followed thereafter. Although no injuries were recorded, several structures suffered significant damage close to the epicentre, while some others collapsed. Approximately 300 residents of the village of Damasi were transferred to temporary settlements and tents. The event occurred during the COVID19 lockdown and created significant stress and disruption to residents. This paper focuses on the earthquake swarm itself as well as the damages observed in residential buildings, schools, and churches in the earthquake-stricken region. The earthquakes mainly impacted low-rise domestic masonry buildings, while the more modern reinforced concrete structures built following the recent seismic regulations were almost unaffected. The typology of buildings in the region, together with photographs demonstrating the extent of damage are presented herein. Despite the rather satisfactory performance of modern buildings in recent earthquakes in Greece, the preliminary investigations from the Thessaly Earthquakes showed that there is still a significant level of vulnerability in existing masonry building stock constructed using traditional methods and materials. This issue could re-emerge in future earthquakes striking other rural areas of Greece, something that needs to be addressed systematically in the future. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]