M 8.2 Quake in Indonesia

[dgillette]

Big H (assuming you have your internet access) - What do you know about it so far, especially structure and ground perfomance (beyond what Reuters has)? Any Jaguars, etc. crushed by slope instability?

I'm especially curious about any dams that might have been affected. Do you have contacts who would know?

Thanks,
DRG

 

[BigH]

DRG: The news was new to me last night when I heard about it. As you know, I am over on Sulawesi - that funny shaped island east of Borneo. We get a lot of tremors - once I heard our house actually "rattle" - we are on steel stilts. Anyway, we were at a "dinner party" that was the last meal before the muslims start their month of fasting. I think it hit about 1830 hr Jakarta time - and we didn't even feel it where we were. All I know is what I heard on CNN - gather there was about a 9 ft high tsunami that hit Padang - a place I once worked - at the port of Teluk Bayur. Heard that a building in Jakarta collapsed (unsubstantiated). I will contact a friend of mine and see what he knows. I'll keep you posted.

 

[dgillette]

Thanks. Actually, I didn't know where in Indonesia you are. I'll have to stroll over to the desk of a coworker from Jogjakarta and look at her big map.

Reuters this morning is reporting "at least 8" fatalities (those known so far - some still trapped), and had pictures of a fairly large structure that collapsed in Padang. Couldn't tell from the pictures how big. They also said it had been downgraded to 8.0 with more stations reporting. (Still a whopper.)

In Taiwan earthquakes (and elsewhere) the so-called "soft first story" houses had a lot of problems. This is where the upper floor has block or concrete walls (effectively shear walls) on four sides, but the lower floor is open on one or two sides to accomodate a shop or a garage. I've seen similar construction in mainland China and S. Korea. That type of construction seen in Indonesia also?

 

[BigH]

dgillette - our site coordinates are 2deg 34' S, 121deg 23'E. I used to work in Padang - nice city and well known for their "food" - which is very popular even here in Sulawesi. Sumatatra is the huge island at the far left of the Indonesian archipelago - so we are quite far. Our dam project is pretty near the coast but it is on the inside of the big "bay' in Sulawesi so I doubt we would have a chance for any tsunami there. I see the main threats of stuff on the southern coasts of Indonesia and on the northern coasts of the upper islands. Too narrow water ways for the others. Of couse, my daughter is going to school on the south side of Bali - mmmmmm. We had a big one last night to the north of Sulawesi (8, I think) - but again, I felt no tremors. Bengkulu on Sumatra had the big hits I think, too, besides Padang. What I am getting is BBC and CNN; my lab manager says that he has heard nothing on the Indonesian news about any dams being damaged.