Geophysical and engineering analysis of different earthquake damage in Pescara del Tronto and Vezzano (Arquata del Tronto Municipality) following the 24th August 2016 central Italy earthquake

After the ML = 6.0 earthquake which occurred on 24th August 2016 in central Italy, some unexpected variability in the damage distribution were identified in many villages located around the epicentral area. In particular, despite a distance of only about 1300 m, the villages of Pescara del Tronto and Vezzano (both districts in the Arquata del Tronto municipality) had a different damage assessment. Pescara del Tronto suffered heavy damage, with many collapsed masonry buildings and 48 fatalities, whereas Vezzano suffered negligible to slight damage to a few buildings. This paper provides vulnerability and damage assessment in order to detect potential significant differences in the building vulnerability and damage level. Geophysical prospectings were performed to assess whether site effects could have increased the damage in Pescara del Tronto compared to Vezzano.