New GEER report on the 2014 Iquique, Chile Earthquake

A new GEER report was recently released on the geotechnical aspects of the April 1, 2014 M8.2 Iquique, Chile earthquake and the subsequent M7.6 earthquake on April 3. 

The two strong quakes occurred on a large subduction zone fault and caused major implications as PGAs of up to 0.6g were recorded. Among the earthquake induced damage, was liquefaction and lateral spreading that caused significant damage to the port facilities in Iquique, with the exception of the retrofitted part of the quay wall, which continued to be functional with minimal disruption right after the earthquake. Lateral movements exceeded 2m with 1.1m of settlement. The seismic motions further triggered landslides and retaining wall failures including a MSE wall. In many cases, ground response was found to contribute to the damage extent. 

The team of earthquake professionals, sponsored by the National Science Foundation, visited the affected areas and cooperated with Chilean investigators to document geotechnical effects and assess seismic performance.

Click here to access and download the GEER report!