Damage and Restoration of Electric Power System due to the 2011 Earthquake off the Pacific Coast of Tōhoku - Effects of a Damage Estimation System for Electric Power Distribution Equipment (RAMPEr)-

Abstract

When a large scale earthquake occurs, since a huge number of electric power distribution equipment has been installed in many electric power supply areas, many electric power distribution equipment, such as poles, wires, transformers and service lines, are simultaneously damaged. During the emergency restoration work after an earthquake occurrence, it is usually difficult to quickly collect the damage information. Therefore, my research team developed a seismic damage estimation system, called RAMPEr, with an actual electric power company. RAMPEr was applied to the Miyagi area damaged by the 2011 earthquake off the Pacific coast of Tōhoku (the 311 earthquake) and supported the actual emergency restoration work. This paper presents the damage and emergency restoration process for the damaged electric power distribution system due to the 311 earthquake and illustrates the operation process of RAMPEr to clarify the effectiveness of the damage estimation technologies for the emergency restoration work.