Ron Eguchi was a Special Lecturer for the Friedman Family Visiting Professionals Program through the EERI Student Chapter at Iowa University

12 May 2026

Ron Eguchi was a Special Lecturer for the Friedman Family Visiting Professionals Program through the EERI Student Chapter at Iowa University. The lecture was held on April 30^th, 2026, at the Ames, Iowa campus. Ron spoke on the Seismic Risk Evaluation of Water Supply Systems.

A seismically resilient water lifeline system is critical for ensuring effective post-event response and rapid community recovery after disastrous earthquakes. To design, construct, and maintain seismically resilient water systems, it is crucial that the potential damage of a pipeline system be quantified in future earthquakes. Mitigation strategies to address known vulnerabilities are essential in ensuring that system performance goals and criteria can be achieved with available resources.

Ron’s lecture explored how Los Angeles is using simulation analysis to strengthen its transmission water network against future earthquakes. Ron discussed a study that uses large-scale earthquake simulations, seismic hazard models, pipeline fragility data, and lessons from the 1971 San Fernando and 1994 Northridge earthquakes to estimate the potential pipeline damage, repair costs, and recovery times. This study was performed as part of a long-term program administered by the City of Los Angeles Department of Water and Power to quantify and ultimately enhance the seismic resilience of all city trunklines and distribution pipelines.

Ron has been a Special Lecturer for the Friedman Family Visiting Professionals Program since 2003 and is a former EERI Distinguished Lecturer. He has over 40 years of risk analysis experience and has published over 300 works on the seismic risk of utility lifelines and on remote sensing technology in disaster response.