STRUCTURAL (PHYSICAL-TECHNICAL) VULNERABILITY OF LOW-INCOME HOUSING IN THE FACE OF SUBSIDENCE IN URBAN AREAS: CASE STUDY OF THE ERMITA ZARAGOZA NEIGHBORHOOD, IZTAPALAPA DISTRICT, MEXICO CITY, MEXICO

This article is based on a case study in the Iztapalapa municipality in Mexico City. The purpose of the research was to analyze the structural vulnerability of housing of social interest in order to identify the susceptibility to the impact caused by the gradual subsidence of the soil, and the occurrence of earthquakes that are frequent in the city. A mixed approach was applied based on the use of geographic information systems, the description of subsidence zones and the identification of original housing typologies by means of cartographic techniques. Besides, the evaluation of structural vulnerability was documented, as well as the knowledge that the inhabitants have about their dwellings at the moment of occupation. The results focused on two aspects, the first was a representative sample of dwellings directly affected by the subsidence or cracking caused by the desiccation of the subsoil due to the development of subsidence. The second aspect identified the factors that determine structural vulnerability based on the three-dimensional modelling of the housing and its current state, with the aim of identifying the level of structural vulnerability. It was determined that a house may present three levels of structural vulnerability; high, medium and low, and based on indicators of structure, maintenance and accumulated damage in the dwelling, it was possible to assess the dwellings that present a greater susceptibility to being vulnerable. This leads us to generate intervention strategies to reduce damage presented by the structural elements of housing and formulate prevention strategies for the inhabitants to mitigate damage.