Photo credits:
PWJ, The Mainichi Newspapers,
Japan International Cooperation Agency

Special appreciation to volunteer translators:
Noriko Inaba, Natsuko Tokai, Mike Nix

Islamic Republic of Iran

A massive earthquake struck Bam, a city located in southeastern Iran, on December 26 2003. On the day of the quake, Peace Winds Japan (PWJ) decided to provide assistance and immediately sent its support team to Iran. In FY2004, emergency relief continued for the first part of the year, but after that PWJ's activities were focused on the reconstruction of buildings and the diffusion of earthquake -resistant construction techniques.

In order to create an environment for children's education, seven temporary school buildings were built using 38 containers. For each of the school buildings, these containers were arranged to create a courtyard with one end open, taking into account the local climate. The yard is covered by a roof, so that it can be used as a multi-purpose space. This space, which is shielded from strong direct sunlight, serves not only as a children's playground but also as a test room and a school staff room.

Approximately 40,000 people are said to have lost their lives due to the quake, and 90% of the region's residents have lost their homes. One of the causes of this damage was the fragile structure of the buildings. PWJ, in collaboration with the Housing Foundation of the Islamic Republic of Iran, held a workshop, aimed at local engineers, to disseminate earthquake-safer design. A technique presented at this workshop combined the existing gmasonry structureh with the earthquake-safer method. This method was developed on the basis of PWJ's experience in earthquake-safer design in India and Afghanistan, as well as by taking account of the local climate, culture, and the need for easy maintenance. This was the first attempt after the disaster to disseminate earthquake-safer design, and it attracted over 200 participants, including engineers, government officials, and members of business enterprises and NGOs. A
model house for demonstrating the earthquake-safer technique was built during the workshop in cooperation with an NGO from India.

Following this event, PWJ constructed the model house at the exhibition site of the Housing Foundation upon their request. Approximately 20 model houses selected by the Foundation are exhibited at the site, and residents can receive loans to build their own homes if they choose one of these models. Many residents have shown a strong interest in PWJ's model house which incorporates local traditions and customs. In November, a shaking table test was performed at this site with the cooperation of an NGO from Kobe, using a one-tenth scale model. Additionally, PWJ initiated the reconstruction of school buildings with a strengthened earthquake-safer structure using ecompressed earth blocksf, based on a request from the Ministry of Education. The blocks are produced by a machine imported from India, using local earth, sand and cement. PWJ will continue its efforts to help earthquake-safer design take root in the region, so the city of Bam can protect itself against future earthquakes.