Abstract
The authors conducted a field survey in the affected area of the 2018 Sulawesi Earthquake, mainly focusing on the damage occurred to the Teluk Palu Bridge in Palu City. It was found that the area around the bridge received approximately 200 gal acceleration and 3 to 6 m tsunami height. From the traces of the tsunami, we estimated that the tsunami reached up to the girder but not up to the arch rib of the bridge. The arch ribs sustained buckling and displaced 2 to 5 m into the water. The main cause of bridge collapse was the earthquake force as local eyewitnesses said the bridge collapsed immediately after the earthquake and before the arrival of the tsunami. In terms of earthquake-resistant design, the following three problems were identified regarding this arch bridge: resisting capacity of the arch rib, resisting capacity of the bearing system, and design concept about the seating length at the pier.
Highlights
A large earthquake with a magnitude of 7.5 Mw occurred near Palu City in Sulawesi Island, Indonesia on September 28, 2018
Buckling occurred to the intermediate member between the arch rib base and the lateral beam located on the east side pier of the east span
In the case of the west span, buckling occurred to the intermediate member between the arch rib base and the lateral beam located on the middle pier and to the second lateral beam from the west side pier
Summary
A large earthquake with a magnitude of 7.5 Mw occurred near Palu City in Sulawesi Island, Indonesia on September 28, 2018. Due to the earthquake and the ensuing tsunami, a large number of buildings and structures, including a mosque, hospitals, and schools, were severely damaged. The area’s symbolic Teluk Palu Bridge, which is a simple two-span steel arch bridge, collapsed. The authors conducted a damage survey around Palu City for four days from November 16 to 20. We will present the results of the survey and the follow-up study, mainly focusing on the observed damage and the cause of collapse of the bridge
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