Dr. W. Gene Corley, P.E. is a structural engineer who is a "preeminent expert on building collapse investigations and building codes."[1]
W. Gene Corley was educated at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, earning a B.S. in Civil Engineering in 1958, and a Ph.D. in Structural Engineering in 1961. He is a licensed as a Structural Engineer in Illinois. He is also a Registered Civil Engineer and Registered Professional Engineer in numerous other states.[1]
Corley has been the Vice President of CTL, since 1987, where he leads structural engineering projects, including numerous evaluations of buildings and structures damaged by earthquake, explosions, and from terrorist attacks. He led the investigation of structural performance of the Murrah Building following the Oklahoma City bombing in 1995, and the World Trade Center Building Performance Study in 2001-2002 following the September 11, 2001 attacks.
Other projects he has led include an investigated the April 1982 collapse of a highway ramp under construction, which killed 13 workers, in East Chicago, Indiana,[2] damage to the Los Angeles Civic Center and other buildings, following the 1994 Northridge earthquake, damage to the Humberto Vidal Building in San Juan, Puerto Rico following an gas explosion, and damage investigation to structures following tornadoes in Kansas and Oklahoma.[3] Corley also investigated the collapse of a ten story parking garage under construction at the Tropicana Resort & Casino in Las Vegas, which occurred on October 30, 2003[4]
Corley led the investigation of the structural performance of the Alfred P. Murrah Federal Building in Oklahoma City, following the bombing there in 1995.
Corley served as the lead investigator on the FEMA World Trade Center Building Performance Study, following the September 11, 2001 attacks. This preliminary investigation, conducted jointly between FEMA and the Structural Engineers Institute (SEI) of the American Society of Civil Engineers, released its report on the collapse of the World Trade Center in May 2002.