The “5·12” Wenchuan Earthquake presents two challenges—reconstruction of the devastated areas and building adequate seismic resistance into the rest of China. The stages in recovery include structural condition assessment, identification of seismic weaknesses, appreciation of the variable seismicity of PR China, the development of a seismic performance index to aid the decision to relocate, rebuild or retrofit, development and application of the principles of retrofitting which recycles rubble and waste from Wenchuan “5·12”, with an emphasis on integrating masonry construction into seismic resistance. The recovery and resilience achieved through structural engineering must be integrated into a broader community involvement in disaster risk reduction.
