Run-up and Inundation Pattern Developed During the Indian Ocean Tsunami of December 26, 2004 Along the Coast of Tamilnadu (India)

The tsunami run-up, inundation and damage pattern observed along the coast of Tamilnadu (India) during the deadliest Indian Ocean tsunami of December 26, 2004 is documented in this paper. The tsunami caused severe damage and claimed many victims in the coastal areas of eleven countries, bordering the Indian Ocean. Along the coast of Indian mainland, the damage was caused by the tsunami only. Largest tsunami run-up and inundation was observed along the coast of Nagapattinam district and was about 10–12 m and 3.0 km, respectively. The measured inundation data were strongly scattered in direct relationship to the morphology of the seashore and the tsunami run-up. Lowest tsunami run-up and inundation was measured along the coast of Thanjavur, Puddukkotai and Ramnathpuram districts of Tamilnadu in the Palk Strait. The presence of shadow of Sri Lanka, the interferences of direct/receded waves with the reflected waves from Sri Lanka and Maldive Islands and variation in the width of continental shelf were the main cause of large variation in tsunami run-up along the coast of Tamilnadu.     

Impact of the 2004 Indian Ocean tsunami along the Tamil Nadu coastline: field survey review and numerical simulations

The 2004 Indian Ocean tsunami had a significant impact on the Tamil Nadu coast in India. In this paper, a range of field survey data collected by different survey teams available in literature have been analyzed and compiled to serve as a basis for validation of numerical tsunami simulations. The individual field surveys reveal a significant scatter in the run-up data between the different teams, which point out that the uncertainty in these data must be taken into account when using them for validation. The inundation of the 2004 Indian Ocean tsunami is simulated for the coastlines of Chennai and Nagapattinam based on high-resolution topography. Different spatially uniform Manning friction as well as heterogeneous friction maps is used. Overall, the simulation results showed a good agreement with the field observations, but there are also some observed spatial variability in the goodness of the fit between the data and simulations. In some areas, clear discrepancies are found. The results obtained using detailed land use maps including spatially variable friction are not significantly more accurate than those employing spatially constant values. For most areas, parameters indicating relatively low friction provided best match with the observations. This may also suggest that the inundation is often strongly governed by local variations in topography.     

Classifying inundation limits in SE coast of India: application of GIS

A study on the possible inundation limit in SE coast of India was carried out using various physical, geological and satellite imageries. The coastal inundation hazard map was prepared for this particular region as it was affected by many cyclones, flooding, storm surge and tsunami waves during the last six decades. The results were generated using various satellite data (IRS-P6 LISS3; LANDSAT ETM; LANDSAT-5 ETM; LANDSAT MSS) and digital elevation models (ASTER GLOBAL DEM), and a coastal vulnerability index was generated for the entire coastal stretch of Nagapattinam region in SE coast of India. The coastal area which will be submerged totally due to a 1–5 m rise in water level due to any major natural disaster (tsunami or cyclone) indicates that 56–320 km² will be submerged in this particular region. The results suggest that nearly 7 towns and 69 villages with 667,477 people will be affected and indicate that proper planning needs to be done for future development.     

Coastal vulnerability assessment for Chennai, east coast of India using geospatial techniques

The study area is 56-km coastal zone of Chennai district of the Tamil Nadu state, southeast coast of India. The coastline, which includes tourist resorts, ports, hotels, fishing villages, and towns, has experienced threats from many disasters such as storms, cyclones, floods, tsunami, and erosion. This was one of the worst affected area during 2004 Indian Ocean tsunami and during 2008 Nisha cyclone. The present study aims to develop a Coastal Vulnerability Index for the Chennai coast using eight relative risk variables to know the high and low vulnerable areas, areas of inundation due to future SLR, and land loss due to coastal erosion. Both conventional and remotely sensed data were used and analyzed with the aid of the remote sensing and geographic information system tools. Zones of vulnerability to coastal natural hazards of different magnitude (high, medium, and low) are identified and shown on a map. Coastal regional elevation, near-shore bathymetry, and socio-economic conditions have been considered as additional important variables. This study revealed that 11.01?km of the coastline has low vulnerability, 16.66?km has medium vulnerability, and 27.79?km is highly vulnerable in the study area, showing the majority of coastline is prone to erosion. The map prepared for the Chennai coast can be used by the state and district administration involved in the disaster mitigation and management plan and also as a tool in planning a new facility and for insurance purpose.     

A 3-tier tsunami vulnerability assessment technique for the north-west coast of Peninsular Malaysia

The 2004 tsunami that struck the Sumatra coast gave a warning sign to Malaysia that it is no longer regarded as safe from a future tsunami attack. Since the event, the Malaysian Government has formulated its plan of action by developing an integrated tsunami vulnerability assessment technique to determine the vulnerability levels of each sector along the 520-km-long coastline of the north-west coast of Peninsular Malaysia. The scope of assessment is focused on the vulnerability of the physical characteristics of the coastal area, and the vulnerability of the built environment in the area that includes building structures and infrastructures. The assessment was conducted in three distinct stages which stretched across from a macro-scale assessment to several local-scale and finally a micro-scale assessment. On a macro-scale assessment, Tsunami Impact Classification Maps were constructed based on the results of the tsunami propagation modelling of the various tsunami source scenarios. At this stage, highly impacted areas were selected for an assessment of the local hazards in the form of local flood maps based on the inundation modelling output. Tsunami heights and flood depths obtained from these maps were then used to produce the Tsunami Physical Vulnerability Index (PVI) maps. These maps recognize sectors within the selected areas that are highly vulnerable to a maximum tsunami run-up and flood event. The final stage is the development of the Structural Vulnerability Index (SVI) maps, which may qualitatively and quantitatively capture the physical and economic resources that are in the tsunami inundation zone during the worst-case scenario event. The results of the assessment in the form of GIS-based Tsunami-prone Vulnerability Index (PVI and SVI) maps are able to differentiate between the various levels of vulnerability, based on the tsunami height and inundation, the various levels of impact severity towards existing building structures, property and land use, and also indicate the resources and human settlements within the study area. Most importantly, the maps could help planners to establish a zoning scheme for potential coastline development based on its sensitivity to tsunami. As a result, some recommendations on evacuation routes and tsunami shelters in the potentially affected areas were also proposed to the Government as a tool for relief agencies to plan for safe evacuation.     

Numerical simulation and field survey of inundation due to 2004 Indian Ocean tsunami in Trincomalee,Sri Lanka

This paper outlines the field measurements and numerical modelling carried out to develop a high-resolution tsunami inundation map, as a case study, for the city of Trincomalee on the east coast of Sri Lanka, which was devastated by the 2004 tsunami. We employ the deterministic approach together with numerical simulations based on the probable worst-case scenario to derive the inundation map. Linear and non-linear versions of shallow-water equations have been utilized to simulate tsunami propagation and onshore inundation, respectively. The field data considered in the present paper comprise the extent of inundation, the tsunami heights and the arrival times whilst the model results include the spatial distribution of the flow depth, the peak current speeds and the momentum flux. The computed extent of onshore inundation reproduces the observed overall pattern of inundation in most areas barring the south-eastern part of the city. Further, the model simulations suggest maximum flow depths up to about 2 m in most areas of the city whilst patches of flow depths exceeding 2 m can be seen in a narrow strip along the coastline. The computed current speeds also exceed 3 m/s at some locations adjacent to the shoreline.     

Building damage characteristics based on surveyed data and fragility curves of the 2011 Great East Japan tsunami

A large amount of buildings was damaged or destroyed by the 2011 Great East Japan tsunami. Numerous field surveys were conducted in order to collect the tsunami inundation extents and building damage data in the affected areas. Therefore, this event provides us with one of the most complete data set among tsunami events in history. In this study, fragility functions are derived using data provided by the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transportation of Japan, with more than 250,000 structures surveyed. The set of data has details on damage level, structural material, number of stories per building and location (town). This information is crucial to the understanding of the causes of building damage, as differences in structural characteristics and building location can be taken into account in the damage probability analysis. Using least squares regression, different sets of fragility curves are derived to demonstrate the influence of structural material, number of stories and coastal topography on building damage levels. The results show a better resistant performance of reinforced concrete and steel buildings over wood or masonry buildings. Also, buildings taller than two stories were confirmed to be much stronger than the buildings of one or two stories. The damage characteristic due to the coastal topography based on limited number of data in town locations is also shortly discussed here. At the same tsunami inundation depth, buildings along the Sanriku ria coast were much greater damaged than buildings from the plain coast in Sendai. The difference in damage states can be explained by the faster flow velocities in the ria coast at the same inundation depth. These findings are key to support better future building damage assessments, land use management and disaster planning.     

Earthquake risk assessment for the building inventory of Muscat,Sultanate of Oman

Little Andaman, the fourth largest island in the Andaman group of islands of India, was severely affected by the December 26, 2004, Indian Ocean tsunami generated by massive earthquake of moment magnitude 9.3 Mw which devastated the Andaman and Nicobar group of islands causing heavy damage to life and property. Due to hostile terrain conditions not much information was available on the extent of inundation and run-up along the island except for Hut Bay region. In order to study the vulnerability of the island to tsunami hazard, the inundation in the island due to the 2004 tsunami was studied using TUNAMI N2 numerical model and ENVISAT ASAR datasets. The extent of inundation derived from the SAR imagery was compared using the RTK-GPS field survey points collected in the Hut Bay regions immediately after the 2004 tsunami. The extent of inundation obtained from SAR images for the entire island was compared with inundation obtained from model. It was observed that the inundation obtained from the model matched well with inundation extent from SAR imagery for nearshore regions, while for low-lying areas and creeks large deviations were observed. In the absence of field datasets, the inundation derived from SAR imagery would be effective in providing ground data to validate the numerical models which can then be run for multiple scenarios for disaster mitigation and planning operation in areas that have hostile terrain conditions.     

Tsunami vulnerability assessment in urban areas using numerical model and GIS

Natural disasters can neither be predicted nor prevented. Urban areas with a high population density coupled with the construction of man-made structures are subjected to greater levels of risk to life and property in the event of natural hazards. One of the major and densely populated urban areas in the east coast of India is the city of Chennai (Madras), which was severely affected by the 2004 Tsunami, and mitigation efforts were severely dampened due to the non-availability of data on the vulnerability on the Chennai coast to tsunami hazard. Chennai is prone to coastal hazards and hence has hazard maps on its earth-quake prone areas, cyclone prone areas and flood prone areas but no information on areas vulnerable to tsunamis. Hence, mapping has to be done of the areas where the tsunami of December 2004 had directly hit and flooded the coastal areas in Chennai in order to develop tsunami vulnerability map for coastal Chennai. The objective of this study is to develop a GIS-based tsunami vulnerability map for Chennai by using a numerical model of tsunami propagation together with documented observations and field measurements of the evidence left behind by the tsunami in December 2004. World-renowned and the second-longest tourist beach in the world “Marina” present in this region witnessed maximum death toll due to its flat topography, resulting in an inundation of about 300 m landward with high flow velocity of the order of 2 m/s.     

Simulation of the Arabian Sea Tsunami propagation generated due to 1945 Makran Earthquake and its effect on western parts of Gujarat (India)

The 1945 Tsunami generated due to Makran Earthquake in the Arabian Sea was the most devastating tsunami in the history of the Arabian Sea and caused severe damage to property and loss of life. It occurred on 28th November 1945, 21:56 UTC (03:26 IST) with a magnitude of 8.0 (M _w), originating off the Makran Coast of Pakistan in the Arabian Sea. It has impacted as far as Mumbai in India and was noticed up to Karvar Coast, Karnataka. More than 4,000 people were killed as a result of the earthquake and the tsunami. In this paper an attempt is made for a numerical simulation of the tsunami generation from the source, its propagation into the Arabian Sea and its effect on the western coast of India through the use of a numerical model, referred to as Tunami-N2. The present simulation is carried out for a duration of 300 min. It is observed from the results that the simulated arrival time of tsunami waves at the western coast of India is in good agreement with the available data sources. The paper also presents run-up elevation maps prepared using Shuttle Radar Topographic Mission (SRTM) data, showing the possible area of inundation due to various wave heights along different parts of the Gujarat Coast. Thus, these results will be useful in planning the protection measures against inundation due to tsunami and in the implementation of a warning system.     

Probabilistic tsunami hazard assessment along Oman coast from submarine earthquakes in the Makran subduction zone

The Sultanate of Oman is among the Indian Ocean countries that were subjected to at least two confirmed tsunamis during the twentieth and twenty-first centuries: the 1945 tsunami due to an earthquake in the Makran subduction zone in the Sea of Oman (near-regional field tsunami) and the Indian Ocean tsunami in 2004, caused by an earthquake from the Andaman Sumatra subduction zone (far - field tsunami). In this paper, we present a probabilistic tsunami hazard assessment for the entire coast of Oman from tectonic sources generated along the Makran subduction zone. The tsunami hazard is assessed taking into account the contribution of small- and large-event magnitudes. Results of the earthquake recurrence rate studies and the tsunami numerical modeling for different magnitudes were used through a logic-tree to estimate the tsunami hazard probabilities. We derive probability hazard exceedance maps for the Omani coast considering the exposure times of 100, 250, 500, and 1000 years. The hazard maps consist of computing the likelihood that tsunami waves exceed a specific amplitude. We find that the probability that a maximum wave amplitude exceeds 1 m somewhere along the coast of Oman reaches, respectively, 0.7 and 0.85 for 100 and 250 exposure times, and it is up to 1 for 500 and 1000 years of exposure times. These probability values decrease significantly toward the southern coast of Oman where the tsunami impact, from the earthquakes generated at Makran subduction zone, is low.     

The assessment of health impact caused by energy use in urban areas of China: an intake fraction–based analysis

The Indian Ocean Tsunami of December 2004 caused inundation of seawater along the Northern coast of Tamil Nadu, India, resulting in loss of 8,000 people with extensive damage to properties. The paper describes the inundation of seawater in two northern districts, namely Kancheepuram and Villupuram districts, which showed distinct patterns of inundation of seawater and run-up levels due to variations in geomorphic features. TUNAMI N2 model was used to predict the seawater inundation for earthquakes occurred in 1881 at Car Nicobar, Sumatra 2004 and a worst-case scenario. The coastal areas with beaches having gentle slope showed more inundation compared with coastal areas having varied slope and habited by sand dunes and coastal vegetation. Appreciable inundation of seawater with tsunami simulated for 1881 Car Nicobar indicated that proximity to the source plays a major role besides earthquake parameters in causing inundation. The worst-case scenario generated from subduction zone of Car Nicobar using Sumatra 2004 earthquake parameters revealed extreme vulnerability of coasts of both the districts to giant tsunamis.     

Modeling of inundation dynamics on Banda Aceh,Indonesia during the great Sumatra tsunamis December 26, 2004

The tsunami inundation flows on Banda Aceh, Indonesia reached 5 km inland during the December 26, 2004, event and devastated most of the houses, buildings, and infrastructure along the coast and killed more than 167,000 people. The overland flows from the northwest coast and the west coast collided at Lampisang village approximately 3.7 km from Ulee Lheue (northwest coast) and 6.8 km from Lhok Nga (west coast) as reported by survivors. Inundation modeling based on the nonlinear shallow-water wave equations reproduces the inundation pattern and demonstrates a colliding of the overland flows. The model suggests that wave characteristics on the northwest coast of Banda Aceh were different from those on the waves that impacted upon the west coast. The areas, which experienced higher inundation levels, did not always experience greatest overland flow speeds, and the damage areas mostly coincide with the flow speed distribution rather than the runup and inundation depth.     

Flood monitoring, mapping and assessing capabilities using RADARSAT remote sensing, GIS and ground data for Bangladesh

Remote sensing is the most practical method available to managers of flood-prone areas for quantifying and mapping flood impacts. This study explored large inundation areas in the Maghna River Basin, around the northeastern Bangladesh, as determined from passive sensor LANDSAT data and the cloud-penetrating capabilities of the active sensors of the remote imaging microwave RADARSAT. This study also used passive sensor LANDSAT wet and dry images for the year 2000. Spatial resolution was 30 m by 30 m for comparisons of the inundation area with RADARSAT images. RADARSAT images with spatial resolution of 50 m by 50 m were used for frequency analysis of floods from 2000 to 2004. Time series images for 2004 were also used. RADARSAT remote sensing data, GIS data, and ground data were used for the purpose of flood monitoring, mapping and assessing. A supervised classification technique was used for this processing. They were processed for creating a maximum water extent map and for estimating inundation areas. The results of this study indicated that the maximum extent of the inundation area as estimated using RADARSAT satellite imaging was about 29, 900.72 km² in 2004, which corresponded well with the heavy rainfall around northeast region, as seen at the Bhairab Bazar station and with the highest water level of the Ganges–Brahmaputra–Meghna (GBM) Rivers. A composite of 5 years of RADARSAT inundation maps from 2000 to 2004, GIS data, and damage data, was used to create unique flood hazard maps. Using the damage data for 2004 and the GIS data, a set of damage maps was also created. These maps are expected to be useful for future planning and flood disaster management. Thus, it has been demonstrated that RADARSAT imaging data acquired over the Bangladesh have the ability to precisely assess and clarify inundation areas allowing for successful flood monitoring, mapping and disaster management.     

Geological and Historical Investigation of the 1650 Mt. Columbo (Thera Island) Eruption and Tsunami, Aegean Sea, Greece

This paper reviews geological andhistorical evidence for the eruption and tsunamireported to have occurred in 1650 in the areaof Mt. Columbo, Thera Island, Greece. The tsunami isbelieved to have been generated as a consequence ofthe eruption of Mt. Columbo 6.5 km NE of Thera Island.Historical documents state that the tsunami flooded upto 2 miles inland and destroyed many engineeredstructures. We present lithostratigraphic evidencefrom one abandoned trench and two trench excavationsclose to sea level in the villages of Kamari andPerissa respectively, which lie well within thereported inundation zone of the tsunami. The resultspresented show that no marine- (tsunami) depositedsediments are preserved at these locations.Alternative hypotheses of discontinuous sedimentdeposition and over estimation of the event magnitudeare considered to explain the observations presentedhere. The data may have important implications for thedevelopment of hazard zone maps, risk assessment,vulnerability reduction and for emergency managementofficials.     

一种新的遥感蚀变信息编图方法

利用遥感蚀变信息进行成矿预测已经得到普遍应用, 但是并没有系统的编图方法, 提出遥感蚀变信息等密度制图法以进行改进.它借鉴了地球化学场的编图思路, 通过统计单位面积内各蚀变信息所占的面积百分比, 进而生成面密度等值线图.利用该方法并结合线、环构造信息在内蒙古东乌旗地区圈定了8个成矿远景区.这种新的编图方法, 既能有效增强多种蚀变同时出现时小面积蚀变信息, 又能更直观的表达蚀变信息的总体空间分布特征和浓集中心, 对圈定成矿远景区和优选野外验证点十分有利.      

Geomorphological zoning for flood inundation using satellite data

The authors investigated geomorphological features on the central plain of Thailand utilizing satellite remote sensing data and made geomorphological land classification map showing flood-stricken area. Land classification maps showing flood-striken area tell us former flood inundation area, such as inundation depth, inundation width, flood flow course and flood direction, as well as estimating of the features of flooding. Thus map is useful for planning of flood control works.We classified land form units in the central plain of Thailand as following; delta, tidal flat, lagoon, mud spit, back marsh, natural levee, fan and former river course and so on. After that, the principal component analysis is applied to Landsat TM data and gives good results for photo interpretation of land form units and we transfer geomorphological land classification map to make zoning map of flood risk for the purpose of evaluating the flood damages.     

海啸灾害后印度尼西亚班达阿齐市的土地覆盖变化与海岸带区域规划

2004年12月26日,由于欧亚板块的碰撞,40年以来最大的地震灾害发生在印度洋。地震诱发的海啸影响到Nangroe Aceh Darussalam省的许多城市,包括省会城市班达阿齐。在这地区共有超过12万人死亡,100万人无家可归。基于遥感数据的分析表明,有12万亩的土地受到了灾害。在班达阿齐市,鱼塘、住宅用地和保护区的变化是这一地区最显著的土地利用/覆盖变化,受灾前后这些用地类型的面积相应的变化了61.5%、57.8% 和77.6%。目前,印度尼西亚中央政府正在计划一个新的海岸带土地利用规划,在原来密集的海岸带建立一个缓冲区（约距海岸带2 km）。政府已经要求许多海岸带的社区代表与非政府组织参与到决策的过程中。 为了选择并采取最佳的土地利用方式,海啸灾害后的海岸带规划应该包括一些重要的基本要素。本研究主要关注作为该省社会经济活动中心的班达阿齐市。检测了由于海啸灾害造成的土地利用/覆盖变化（包括物理破坏）,特别是农业用地和居住区用地的变化,并且分析了受灾村落的不同类型及灾害对社会经济活动造成的影响。此外,还为政府以及当地居民在灾后的规划中选择更为可持续的空间布局方案提出了建议。     

Landslide susceptibility mapping using analytic hierarchy process and information value methods along a highway road section in Constantine,Algeria

This research work deals with the landslide susceptibility assessment using Analytic hierarchy process (AHP) and information value (IV) methods along a highway road section in Constantine region, NE Algeria. The landslide inventory map which has a total of 29 single landslide locations was created based on historical information, aerial photo interpretation, remote sensing images, and extensive field surveys. The different landslide influencing geoenvironmental factors considered for this study are lithology, slope gradient, slope aspect, distance from faults, land use, distance from streams, and geotechnical parameters. A thematic layer map is generated for every geoenvironmental factor using Geographic Information System (GIS); the lithological units and the distance from faults maps were extracted from the geological database of the region. The slope gradient, slope aspect, and distance from streams were calculated from the Digital Elevation Model (DEM). Contemporary land use map was derived from satellite images and field study. Concerning the geotechnical parameters maps, they were determined making use of the geotechnical data from laboratory tests. The analysis of the relationships between the landslide-related factors and the landslide events was then carried out in GIS environment. The AUC plot showed that the susceptibility maps had a success rate of 77 and 66% for IV and AHP models, respectively. For that purpose, the IV model is better in predicting the occurrence of landslides than AHP one. Therefore, the information value method could be used as a landslide susceptibility mapping zonation method along other sections of the A1 highway.