For a twelve-meter-tall unreinforced masonry building, the approximate collapse zone distance is how many meters?

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Multiple Choice

For a twelve-meter-tall unreinforced masonry building, the approximate collapse zone distance is how many meters?

Explanation:
Collapse zone distance is the safe perimeter around a building that accounts for potential debris travel if the structure fails. For unreinforced masonry, failures can be sudden and produce debris that travels several times the building’s height, so the rule of thumb used is about three times the height. With a twelve-meter-tall URM building, that gives roughly 36 meters. The other options correspond to smaller or larger multiples (2x, 4x, or 5x) and don’t align with the typical URM guidance for estimating a collapse zone.

Collapse zone distance is the safe perimeter around a building that accounts for potential debris travel if the structure fails. For unreinforced masonry, failures can be sudden and produce debris that travels several times the building’s height, so the rule of thumb used is about three times the height. With a twelve-meter-tall URM building, that gives roughly 36 meters. The other options correspond to smaller or larger multiples (2x, 4x, or 5x) and don’t align with the typical URM guidance for estimating a collapse zone.

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