Geotechnical Consequences and Failures in Puerto Rico Due to Hurricane Maria

At landfall in Yabucoa, Puerto Rico, on September 20, 2017, the National Hurricane Center classified Hurricane Maria as a strong Category 4 hurricane on the Saffir-Simpson hurricane wind scale. This paper summarizes the geotechnical impacts and consequences from Maria, documented by the Geotechnical Extreme Events Reconnaissance (GEER) team sent to the island in its aftermath. The intense rainfall and strong winds associated with Maria directly or indirectly resulted in over 3,000 fatalities, severe infrastructure loss, over 40,000 landslides, and considerable coastal erosion in Puerto Rico. Hurricane Irma preceded Hurricane Maria by two weeks and this paper addresses the importance of antecedent rainfall and geomorphology on the magnitude of damage. Geotechnical impacts described in the paper include coastal erosion events, bridge abutment scour, the impact of debris flows on the island’s highway system, and foundation failures. The geotechnical failures presented in this article provide insight on the likely modes of failure when major hurricanes affect slopes that have been pre-soaked and are thus especially vulnerable to geotechnical failures. Since global warming will likely increase the intensity and frequency of extreme events like Hurricane Maria, understanding the impacts and aftermath of Maria in Puerto Rico should assist the engineering community in addressing geotechnical vulnerabilities, as well as improve design and construction practices, to improve resiliency.

• Record URL:
  https://doi.org/10.1061/9780784482797.017
• Availability:
  • Find a library where document is available. Order URL: http://worldcat.org/isbn/9780784482797
• Supplemental Notes:
  • © 2020 American Society of Civil Engineers.
• Corporate Authors:

  American Society of Civil Engineers

  1801 Alexander Bell Drive
  Reston, VA  United States  20191-4400
• Authors:
  • Silva-Tulla, Francisco
  • Pando, Miguel A
  • Pradel, Daniel
  • Park, Youngjin
  • Kayen, Robert
• Conference:
  • Geo-Congress 2020
  • Location: Minneapolis Minnesota, United States
  • Date: 2020-2-25 to 2020-2-28
• Publication Date: 2020-2

Language

• English

Media Info

• Media Type: Web
• Pagination: pp 173-185
• Monograph Title: Geo-Congress 2020: Engineering, Monitoring, and Management of Geotechnical Infrastructure

Subject/Index Terms

• TRT Terms: Debris flows; Erosion; Geotechnical engineering; Hurricanes; Scour; Slope failure
• Identifier Terms: Hurricane Maria, 2017
• Geographic Terms: Puerto Rico
• Subject Areas: Geotechnology; Maintenance and Preservation; Security and Emergencies; Transportation (General);

Filing Info

• Accession Number: 01732296
• Record Type: Publication
• ISBN: 9780784482797
• Files: TRIS, ASCE
• Created Date: Feb 28 2020 10:11AM