Performance of coastal structures in the March 2011 tsunami, Japan

摘要

On 11 March 2011, a Magnitude 9.0 earthquake off the coast of Sendai, Japan, produced a tsunami that inundated over 750 kilometers of the northeastern coast of Japan. The American Society of Civil Engineers responded by sending seven teams of engineers to investigate the earthquake, tsunami and nuclear power plant. The Coasts, Oceans, Ports and Rivers Institute of ASCE (COPRI), in conjunction with ASCE, sent a Coastal Structures Team to investigate the performance of structures used for coastal protection. The COPRI team joined with colleagues from the Japan Port and Airport Research Institute and Kyushu Koritstu University. Team members were Lesley Ewing, P.E., D.CE, M.ASCE, of the California Coastal Commission; Bryan Jones, P.E., M.ASCE, of Ocean and Coastal Consultants (a COWI Company); James Marino, P.E., D.CE, M.ASCE, of Taylor Engineering; Ron Noble, P.E., D.CE, D.PE, F.ASCE, of Noble Consultants; Dr. Catherine Petroff, P.E., M. ASCE, of LP4 Associates and the University of Washington.; Dr. Shigeo Takahashi, Dr. Yoji Tanaka, Yoshitaka Matsuzaki and Kojiro Suzuki, all from the Japan Port and Airport Research Institute (PARI); and Dr. Haruyuki Kojima of Kyushu Kyoristu University. This photo summary shows some of the areas investigated by the Coastal Structures team.