Typical major damage to buildings with many unreinforced shear walls. Note "X-cracking". Unreinforced hollow or solid brick masonry infill, extensively used in Iranian buildings, performed poorly during this earthquake. In Rasht, sixty kilometers from the epicenter, the buildings incurred widespread damage due to such unreinforced masonry sheer walls. However, two thick solid unreinforced masonry walls were placed at the opposite ends of some mid-rise buildings in Rasht. These walls acted as shear-resisting elements and appeared to have improved the overall performance of the buildings.

Image Credit: M. Mehrain. Dames and Moore