W. Gene Corley
Encyclopedia
Dr. W. Gene Corley, P.E. is an American structural engineer
and "preeminent expert on building collapse investigations and building codes." Corley has been the Senior Vice President of CTLGroup
since 1987, where he leads structural engineering projects, including numerous evaluations of buildings and structures damaged by earthquake, explosions, and from terrorist
attacks. He led the investigation of structural performance of the Murrah Building following the Oklahoma City bombing
in 1995, and the World Trade Center Building Performance Study in 2001-2002 following the September 11, 2001 attacks
.
, earning a B.S. in Civil Engineering in 1958, and a Ph.D. in Structural Engineering in 1961. He is a licensed as a Structural Engineer in Illinois
. He is also a Registered Civil Engineer and Registered Professional Engineer in numerous other states. He is a frequent seminar speaker at his alma mater on topics ranging from structural failure investigations to professional licensure.
Since 1987, Corley has been the Senior Vice President of CTLGroup
where he leads structural engineering projects and investigations of structural failure.
in Oklahoma City
, following the bombing
there in 1995. The BPAT was established three weeks after the bombing, which involved the American Society of Civil Engineers, as well as representatives from the Federal Emergency Management Agency
(FEMA), the United States Army Corps of Engineers
, the General Services Administration
, and the National Institute of Standards and Technology
. They found that the Murrah Building could have performed much better, if it had been constructed to standards used in earthquake-prone areas, with special reinforcing of key columns. The way the building was designed made it vulnerable to "a chain reaction of successive failures." Nonetheless, they pointed out that the Murrah Building met all government requirements that were in place, at the time the building was constructed in 1974.
Corley explained about the design of the Murrah Building, "if a critical element fails, it may start a chain reaction of successive failures that collapses the whole building. "A majority of the fatalities were caused not by the force of the bomb blast itself, but by the progressive collapse of the building's floors which depended on the support of a few key columns that the bomb destroyed."
Findings and recommendations from the BPAT investigation were released in a report in November 1995. The findings led to revised security, building design, and blast protection requirements for new federal government
buildings.
Building Performance Study, following the September 11, 2001 attacks
. This preliminary investigation was initially organized by the Structural Engineers Institute (SEI) of the American Society of Civil Engineers
, with the American Institute of Steel Construction
, the American Concrete Institute
, the National Fire Protection Association
, and the Society of Fire Protection Engineers
also involved. ASCE also invited FEMA to join the investigation, which later became a joint ASCE-FEMA effort. The investigative team released its report on the collapse of the World Trade Center
in May 2002. The National Institute of Standards and Technology
(NIST) followed up with a multi-year investigation into the collapse of the World Trade Center and 7 World Trade Center
, as mandated by the 2002 National Construction Safety Team Act, which resulted recommendations for improving structural fire protection, life safety, and engineering practice.
, damage to the Los Angeles Civic Center and other buildings, following the 1994 Northridge earthquake
, damage to the Humberto Vidal Building
in San Juan, Puerto Rico
following a gas explosion, and damage investigation to structures following tornado
es in Kansas
and Oklahoma
. Corley also investigated the collapse of a ten story parking garage under construction at the Tropicana Casino Resort
in Atlantic City
, which occurred on October 30, 2003.
Structural engineering
Structural engineering is a field of engineering dealing with the analysis and design of structures that support or resist loads. Structural engineering is usually considered a specialty within civil engineering, but it can also be studied in its own right....
and "preeminent expert on building collapse investigations and building codes." Corley has been the Senior Vice President of CTLGroup
CTLGroup
CTLGroup is an engineering, testing, and consulting firm that began in 1916 as the research and development laboratory for the Portland Cement Association , which was formed to develop the use of portland cement in construction.-Background:...
since 1987, where he leads structural engineering projects, including numerous evaluations of buildings and structures damaged by earthquake, explosions, and from terrorist
Terrorism
Terrorism is the systematic use of terror, especially as a means of coercion. In the international community, however, terrorism has no universally agreed, legally binding, criminal law definition...
attacks. He led the investigation of structural performance of the Murrah Building following the Oklahoma City bombing
Oklahoma City bombing
The Oklahoma City bombing was a terrorist bomb attack on the Alfred P. Murrah Federal Building in downtown Oklahoma City on April 19, 1995. It was the most destructive act of terrorism on American soil until the September 11, 2001 attacks. The Oklahoma blast claimed 168 lives, including 19...
in 1995, and the World Trade Center Building Performance Study in 2001-2002 following the September 11, 2001 attacks
September 11, 2001 attacks
The September 11 attacks The September 11 attacks The September 11 attacks (also referred to as September 11, September 11th or 9/119/11 is pronounced "nine eleven". The slash is not part of the pronunciation...
.
Background
Corley was educated at the University of Illinois at Urbana-ChampaignUniversity of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign
The University of Illinois at Urbana–Champaign is a large public research-intensive university in the state of Illinois, United States. It is the flagship campus of the University of Illinois system...
, earning a B.S. in Civil Engineering in 1958, and a Ph.D. in Structural Engineering in 1961. He is a licensed as a Structural Engineer in Illinois
Illinois
Illinois is the fifth-most populous state of the United States of America, and is often noted for being a microcosm of the entire country. With Chicago in the northeast, small industrial cities and great agricultural productivity in central and northern Illinois, and natural resources like coal,...
. He is also a Registered Civil Engineer and Registered Professional Engineer in numerous other states. He is a frequent seminar speaker at his alma mater on topics ranging from structural failure investigations to professional licensure.
Since 1987, Corley has been the Senior Vice President of CTLGroup
CTLGroup
CTLGroup is an engineering, testing, and consulting firm that began in 1916 as the research and development laboratory for the Portland Cement Association , which was formed to develop the use of portland cement in construction.-Background:...
where he leads structural engineering projects and investigations of structural failure.
Oklahoma City bombing
Corley led the Building Performance Assessment Team (BPAT), which conducted an investigation of the structural performance of the Alfred P. Murrah Federal BuildingAlfred P. Murrah Federal Building
The Alfred P. Murrah Federal Building was a United States Federal Government complex located at 200 N.W. 5th Street in downtown Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, United States. The building was the target of the Oklahoma City bombing on April 19, 1995, which killed 168 people, including 19 children...
in Oklahoma City
Oklahoma city
Oklahoma City is the capital and largest city of the U.S. state of Oklahoma.Oklahoma City may also refer to:*Oklahoma City metropolitan area*Downtown Oklahoma City*Uptown Oklahoma City*Oklahoma City bombing*Oklahoma City National Memorial...
, following the bombing
Oklahoma City bombing
The Oklahoma City bombing was a terrorist bomb attack on the Alfred P. Murrah Federal Building in downtown Oklahoma City on April 19, 1995. It was the most destructive act of terrorism on American soil until the September 11, 2001 attacks. The Oklahoma blast claimed 168 lives, including 19...
there in 1995. The BPAT was established three weeks after the bombing, which involved the American Society of Civil Engineers, as well as representatives from the Federal Emergency Management Agency
Federal Emergency Management Agency
The Federal Emergency Management Agency is an agency of the United States Department of Homeland Security, initially created by Presidential Reorganization Plan No. 1 of 1978 and implemented by two Executive Orders...
(FEMA), the United States Army Corps of Engineers
United States Army Corps of Engineers
The United States Army Corps of Engineers is a federal agency and a major Army command made up of some 38,000 civilian and military personnel, making it the world's largest public engineering, design and construction management agency...
, the General Services Administration
General Services Administration
The General Services Administration is an independent agency of the United States government, established in 1949 to help manage and support the basic functioning of federal agencies. The GSA supplies products and communications for U.S...
, and the National Institute of Standards and Technology
National Institute of Standards and Technology
The National Institute of Standards and Technology , known between 1901 and 1988 as the National Bureau of Standards , is a measurement standards laboratory, otherwise known as a National Metrological Institute , which is a non-regulatory agency of the United States Department of Commerce...
. They found that the Murrah Building could have performed much better, if it had been constructed to standards used in earthquake-prone areas, with special reinforcing of key columns. The way the building was designed made it vulnerable to "a chain reaction of successive failures." Nonetheless, they pointed out that the Murrah Building met all government requirements that were in place, at the time the building was constructed in 1974.
Corley explained about the design of the Murrah Building, "if a critical element fails, it may start a chain reaction of successive failures that collapses the whole building. "A majority of the fatalities were caused not by the force of the bomb blast itself, but by the progressive collapse of the building's floors which depended on the support of a few key columns that the bomb destroyed."
Findings and recommendations from the BPAT investigation were released in a report in November 1995. The findings led to revised security, building design, and blast protection requirements for new federal government
Federal government of the United States
The federal government of the United States is the national government of the constitutional republic of fifty states that is the United States of America. The federal government comprises three distinct branches of government: a legislative, an executive and a judiciary. These branches and...
buildings.
World Trade Center collapse investigation
Corley served as the lead investigator on the FEMA World Trade CenterWorld Trade Center
The original World Trade Center was a complex with seven buildings featuring landmark twin towers in Lower Manhattan, New York City, United States. The complex opened on April 4, 1973, and was destroyed in 2001 during the September 11 attacks. The site is currently being rebuilt with five new...
Building Performance Study, following the September 11, 2001 attacks
September 11, 2001 attacks
The September 11 attacks The September 11 attacks The September 11 attacks (also referred to as September 11, September 11th or 9/119/11 is pronounced "nine eleven". The slash is not part of the pronunciation...
. This preliminary investigation was initially organized by the Structural Engineers Institute (SEI) of the American Society of Civil Engineers
American Society of Civil Engineers
The American Society of Civil Engineers is a professional body founded in 1852 to represent members of the civil engineering profession worldwide. It is the oldest national engineering society in the United States. ASCE's vision is to have engineers positioned as global leaders who strive toward...
, with the American Institute of Steel Construction
American Institute of Steel Construction
The American Institute of Steel Construction, often abbreviated AISC, is a not-for-profit technical institute and trade association for the use of structural steel in the construction industry of the United States. It is headquartered in Chicago, IL. Their mission is to make structural steel the...
, the American Concrete Institute
American Concrete Institute
The American Concrete Institute is a non-profit technical society and standard developing organization . ACI was founded in 1904 and its headquarters are currently located in Farmington Hills, Michigan, USA.- ACI History :1904-1929:...
, the National Fire Protection Association
National Fire Protection Association
The National Fire Protection Association is a United States trade association that creates and maintains private, copywrited, standards and codes for usage and adoption by local governments...
, and the Society of Fire Protection Engineers
Society of Fire Protection Engineers
The Society of Fire Protection Engineers is a professional society for fire protection engineering established in 1950. SFPE publishes the Journal of Fire Protection Engineering, published on behalf of the society by SAGE Publications and Fire Protection Engineering magazine is published...
also involved. ASCE also invited FEMA to join the investigation, which later became a joint ASCE-FEMA effort. The investigative team released its report on the collapse of the World Trade Center
Collapse of the World Trade Center
The twin towers of the World Trade Center collapsed on September 11, 2001, as a result of al-Qaeda's September 11 attacks, in which terrorists affiliated with al-Qaeda hijacked four commercial passenger jet airliners, flying one into the North Tower and another into the South Tower...
in May 2002. The National Institute of Standards and Technology
National Institute of Standards and Technology
The National Institute of Standards and Technology , known between 1901 and 1988 as the National Bureau of Standards , is a measurement standards laboratory, otherwise known as a National Metrological Institute , which is a non-regulatory agency of the United States Department of Commerce...
(NIST) followed up with a multi-year investigation into the collapse of the World Trade Center and 7 World Trade Center
7 World Trade Center
7 World Trade Center is a building in New York City located across from the World Trade Center site in Lower Manhattan. It is the second building to bear that name and address in that location. The original structure was completed in 1987 and was destroyed in the September 11 attacks...
, as mandated by the 2002 National Construction Safety Team Act, which resulted recommendations for improving structural fire protection, life safety, and engineering practice.
Other projects
Other projects he has led include an investigation into the April 1982 collapse of a highway ramp under construction, which killed 13 workers, in East Chicago, IndianaEast Chicago, Indiana
East Chicago is a city in Lake County, Indiana. The population was 29,698 at the 2010 census.-Geography:East Chicago is located at ....
, damage to the Los Angeles Civic Center and other buildings, following the 1994 Northridge earthquake
Northridge earthquake
The Northridge earthquake was a massive earthquake that occurred on January 17, 1994, at 04:31 Pacific Standard Time in Reseda, a neighborhood in the city of Los Angeles, California, lasting for about 10–20 seconds...
, damage to the Humberto Vidal Building
Humberto Vidal Explosion
The Humberto Vidal Explosion was a gas explosion that occurred on November 21, 1996 at the Humberto Vidal shoe store located in Río Piedras, Puerto Rico. The explosion killed 33 and wounded more than 80 others when the building collapsed...
in San Juan, Puerto Rico
San Juan, Puerto Rico
San Juan , officially Municipio de la Ciudad Capital San Juan Bautista , is the capital and most populous municipality in Puerto Rico, an unincorporated territory of the United States. As of the 2010 census, it had a population of 395,326 making it the 46th-largest city under the jurisdiction of...
following a gas explosion, and damage investigation to structures following tornado
Tornado
A tornado is a violent, dangerous, rotating column of air that is in contact with both the surface of the earth and a cumulonimbus cloud or, in rare cases, the base of a cumulus cloud. They are often referred to as a twister or a cyclone, although the word cyclone is used in meteorology in a wider...
es in Kansas
Kansas
Kansas is a US state located in the Midwestern United States. It is named after the Kansas River which flows through it, which in turn was named after the Kansa Native American tribe, which inhabited the area. The tribe's name is often said to mean "people of the wind" or "people of the south...
and Oklahoma
Oklahoma
Oklahoma is a state located in the South Central region of the United States of America. With an estimated 3,751,351 residents as of the 2010 census and a land area of 68,667 square miles , Oklahoma is the 28th most populous and 20th-largest state...
. Corley also investigated the collapse of a ten story parking garage under construction at the Tropicana Casino Resort
Tropicana Casino Resort Atlantic City
The Tropicana Casino & Resort Atlantic City is a luxury hotel, casino, and spa resort located on Brighton Avenue and the Boardwalk in Atlantic City, New Jersey. It is owned by Tropicana Entertainment and is one of the largest hotels in New Jersey with just over 2,000 rooms...
in Atlantic City
Atlantic City, New Jersey
Atlantic City is a city in Atlantic County, New Jersey, United States, and a nationally renowned resort city for gambling, shopping and fine dining. The city also served as the inspiration for the American version of the board game Monopoly. Atlantic City is located on Absecon Island on the coast...
, which occurred on October 30, 2003.
External links
- CTLGroup - Corley biography