Rapid detection of collapsed built-up structures using postevent VHR in earthquake-affected areas

Rapid detection of collapsed built-up structures is crucial for disaster mitigation in earthquake-affected areas. This paper proposes a method on detecting collapsed built-up structures using only post-event images. Its essence is to track and detect debris of collapsed built-up structures using features obtained through the derivative morphological profile. Experiments are carried out on images of the 2008 Wenchuan earthquake. Results show that the method can extract the debris of collapsed built-up structures in an effective and efficient way and is useful for rapid damage assessment.