Geotechnical disasters on the waterfront

Abstract

The Hyogoken-Nambu earthquake hit Kansai area in the pre-dawn hours on January 17 1995. One of the worst affected areas was Kobe and its vicinity. Large scale damage brought on by the severity of the earthquake were observed due to soil failure, structural failure etc. Failure patterns have been classified especially for revetments, quaywalls and petroleum storage tanks. Emergency restoration was undertaken to bring back various facilities to normal operations. Some typical which have been restored sections are discussed in this paper. These restored sections may provide information on various aspects of countermeasures that can be taken in waterfront areas.