Quote:
Originally Posted by highsea
The collapses were progressive failures. As the upper floors collapsed, they landed on the floors below, overstressing the structure below. Once it began, there was no stopping it. Compression causes a lot of debris to be ejected, but the structure itself comes straight down.
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The "pancaking" effect. A hospital in Mexico City came down like this after a strong earthquake (forgot the year). It collapsed entirely within its own foot print. It looked almost like a controlled demolition.