Canterbury Earthquakes Royal Commission Te Komihana Rūwhenua o Waitaha Canterbury Earthquakes Royal Commission – Te Komihana Rūwhenua o Waitaha

Those who lost relatives and friends in the 22 February earthquake can be assured that there will be a very thorough inquiry into the failure of buildings that resulted in loss of life.
Chair, Justice Mark Cooper

Department of Building and Housing Expert Panel Report on the PGC, Forsyth Barr and Hotel Grand Chancellor Buildings, released 30 September 2011

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Summary

The Expert Panel Report on the PGC, Forsyth Barr and Hotel Grand Chancellor buildings has been released 30 September 2011. The Department also released a report which outlines its response to the findings.

The main findings are as follows:

Strong ground shaking and exceptionally high vertical accelerations were among the principal reasons that Christchurch’s PGC, Forsyth Barr and Hotel Grand Chancellor buildings failed in the aftershock of 22 February 2011.

At the time the PGC, Forsyth Barr and Hotel Grand Chancellor buildings were built, design requirements were not as rigorous as they are now.

In the case of the PGC building, where there was tragic loss of life, the shaking was much more intense than the building was designed for in 1963 and the building lacked resilience and the ability to move and respond without losing strength.

The following reports are available to download from the Department of Building and Housing website:

Expert Panel Report [PDF 1.90 MB, 66 pages]

Forsyth Barr Building Stairs Site Examination and Materials Test [PDF 4.53 MB, 51 pages]

Pyne Gould Corporation Building: Site Examination and Materials Tests [PDF4.28 MB, 46 pages]

Technical Investigation into the Structural Performance of Buildings in Christchurch [PDF 317 KB, 10 pages]

Report on the Structural Performance of the Hotel Grand Chancellor [PDF 15.4 MB, 87 pages]

Investigation into the Collapse of the Pyne Gould Corporation Building [PDF 2.4 MB, 51 pages]

Pyne Gould Corporation Building Appendices [PDF 10.7 MB, 128 pages]

Investigation into the Collapse of the Forsyth Barr Building Stairs [PDF 2.8 MB, 52 pages]

Forsyth Barr Building Stairs Appendices [PDF 12.6 MB, 169 pages]

About this document

    Record ID Attachment Author(s) Subject(s) Building(s) Action
    BUI.VAR.0050
    • Department of Building and Housing
    • Building Failure
    • Buildings - Representative Sample
    • Cambridge 233
    • Cashel 161
    • Colombo 764

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