Macroseismology: the lessons learnt from the 1997/98 Colfiorito seismic sequence

Abstract

The seismic sequence of the Umbria-Marche Apennines was a dramatic moment for the
population involved; at the same time, it provided a unique occasion for the Italian scientific
community and for the national civil protection to assess their respective abilities in
understanding and managing the event.
Furthermore, macroseismology (including historical seismology) has knowingly confronted
important methodological problems, such as the procedures for assigning macroseismic
intensity, the use of the macroseismic scale, the impossibility of distinguishing the effects of
earthquakes following closely in both space and time, within such a complex sequence.
Starting from the analysis of the problems that were faced after the 1997/98 Umbria-
Marche earthquakes, as during the following seismic crises over the last 10 years, we
propose some considerations on the lessons we have learnt from that seismic
sequence.