Placards and Evaluation Forms
ATC-20 Placards
ATC-45 Placards
FEMA 154 (Second Edition) Data Collection Forms
FEMA P-154 (Third Edition) Data Collection Forms
ATC-20 Building Safety Evaluation Forms and Placards
In 1989, with funding from the California Office of Emergency Services, California Office of Statewide Health Planning and Development, and the Federal Emergency Management Agency, the Applied Technology Council (ATC) published the ATC-20 Procedures for Postearthquake Safety Evaluation of Buildings, and companion ATC-20-1 Field Manual: Postearthquake Safety Evaluation of Buildings, Second Edition (revised in early 2005). Written specifically for volunteer structural engineers and building inspectors, these reports include rapid and detailed evaluation procedures for evaluating earthquake-damaged buildings and posting them as INSPECTED (apparently safe, green placard), LIMITED ENTRY (yellow placard), or UNSAFE (red placard). In 1995, with funding from the National Science Foundation and the U. S. Geological Survey, ATC published the ATC-20-2 report, Addendum to the ATC-20 Postearthquake Building Safety Evaluation Procedures, which contains updates to the ATC-20 procedures, including a revised Rapid Evaluation Safety Assessment Form, a revised Detailed Evaluation Safety Assessment Form, and revised red, yellow (RESTRICTED USE) and green placards. In 1997, ATC published the ATC-20-3 report, Case Studies in Rapid Postearthquake Safety Evaluation of Buildings, which contains 53 in-depth case studies illustrated with photos and describing how buildings are inspected and evaluated for safety. The ATC-20-3 report has been designed as an instructional guide for rapid evaluation.
Available here are the revised versions of the ATC-20 Rapid and Detailed Evaluation safety assessment forms, the revised posting placards, and Appendix A: Guidance for Owners and Occupants of Damaged Buildings. The forms and placards have been made available here, primarily to facilitate their rapid dissemination in any emergency, but also for instructional purposes. Turkish language versions are also available.
ATC 20-2 Rapid Evaluation Safety Assessment Form (revised, 2005)
ATC 20-2 Detailed Evaluation Safety Assessment Form (revised, 2005)
ATC-20 Fixed Equipment Checklist
ATC 20-2 Revised green INSPECTED placard
ATC 20-2 Revised yellow RESTRICTED USE placard
ATC 20-2 Revised yellow RESTRICTED USE placard with preprinted instructions
ATC 20-2 Revised red UNSAFE placard
ATC 20-2 Appendix A: Guidelines for Owners and Occupants of Damaged Buildings
Turkish Language Versions of Placards
ATC 20-2 Revised green INSPECTED placard
ATC 20-2 Revised yellow RESTRICTED USE placard
ATC 20-2 Revised yellow RESTRICTED USE placard with preprinted instructions
ATC 20-2 Revised red UNSAFE placard
click here to download Adobe Reader
The Applied Technology Council (ATC) is pleased to announce the immediate availability of the ATC-45 Field Manual: Safety Evaluation of Buildings after Windstorms and Floods. Funded by the Applied Technology Council, the ATC Endowment Fund, and the Institute for Business and Home Safety, this 132-page report provides guidelines and procedures for conducting postwindstorm and postflood building safety evaluations. The purpose of these evaluations is to determine whether damaged or potentially damaged buildings are safe for use, or if entry should be restricted or prohibited.
The ATC-45 Field Manual is intended to be used by building officials, building inspectors, engineers, and others involved in postdisaster safety evaluation of building types commonly found in the United States. The Field Manual explains three different building safety evaluation procedures. Two of the procedures (Rapid Evaluation and Detailed Evaluation) are discussed in detail. For each of these procedures, the document provides guidance on where to look for damage.
The Field Manual gives advice on evaluating structural, geotechnical, and nonstructural risks, and advice on how to rate the safety significance of certain types of damage. In addition, the Manual covers related topics of interest to safety personnel, including (a) how to deal with owners and occupants of damaged buildings, and (b) field safety issues. Evaluation forms and posting placards, represented in the document in small-scale size, can be downloaded free of charge below.
The Field Manual is patterned after the concepts developed in two earlier ATC projects: (1) the ATC-20 project, whereby ATC developed the well known and widely used ATC-20 report, Procedures for Postearthquake Safety Evaluation of Buildings; companion ATC-20-1 Field Manual, and ATC-20-2 Addendum, which contains updated evaluation forms and placards; and (2) the ATC-26 project, whereby ATC developed several sets of procedures for postdisaster safety evaluation of U. S. Postal Service (USPS) facilities, including procedures for safety evaluation of USPS facilities after windstorms and floods.
The ATC-45 Field Manual has been printed in an easy-to-use, pocket-sized format. The document can be obtained from the Applied Technology Council, 201 Redwood Shores Parkway, Suite 240, Redwood City, California 94065 (phone, 650-595-1542; fax, 650-593-2320; e-mail, This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.). Price: $27.00 per copy (plus shipping and sales tax where applicable).
ATC-45 may also be ordered in the Applied Technology Council Online Store.
The following are available for immediate download in PDF format:
ATC-45 Rapid Evaluation Safety Assessment Form
ATC-45 Detailed Evaluation Safety Assessment Form
ATC-45 Fixed Equipment Checklist
ATC-45 UNSAFE Posting Placard (print on red cardstock)
ATC-45 RESTRICTED USE Posting Placard (print on yellow cardstock)
Alternate ATC-45 RESTRICTED USE Posting Placard with preprinted instructions (print on yellow cardstock)
ATC-45 INSPECTED Posting Placard (print on green cardstock)
ATC-45 Appendix E: Guidelines for Owners and Occupants of Damaged Buildings
click here to download Adobe Reader