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Tsunami intensity scale based on wave amplitude and current applied to the French Riviera: the case study of local seismicity

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Abstract

The French–Italian Riviera faces several geophysical hazards, including recurrent earthquakes and underwater landslides that can be tsunamigenic. The stakes are high since this is a densely populated and touristic area. Several studies have already been carried out, in particular to map tsunami hazard resulting from the near-field seismicity of the North Ligurian Faults System, which is located a short distance off the coast. In our most recent study, runup maps were developed together with local analyses of tsunami-induced current fields. However, no conclusions were drawn, based on these results, as of the associated tsunami risk along the coast. Here, to this effect, we apply a recently proposed tsunami intensity scale to the simulation results obtained in our previous work (maximum values of tsunami depths and currents). This intensity scale (7 levels) is mapped over the entire coastal area, and its site-specific values are discussed. The scale allows quantifying the potential damage inland and at sea, based on a standard coastal vulnerability that has been assessed through different records. It thus represents a useful tool to help improving our preparedness to tsunami hazard.

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source elevation computed using Okada’s (1985) method for rupture scenarios: S1887 (a); SHyp (b); and STot (c) (Fig. 2; Table 2). Positive elevation of the sea level corresponds to seafloor uplift and negative elevation (i.e., depression) to subsidence. The black curves represent the nodal points (zero-elevation)

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Acknowledgements

L. Boschetti, M. Ioualalen and J.-X. Dessa acknowledge support from: (1) the European Commission under the project “Assessment, STrategy And Risk Reduction for Tsunamis in Europe,” ASTARTE (Grant No. 603839) and (2) the French government, through the UCA-JEDI Investments in the Future project managed by the National Research Agency (ANR) with the reference number ANR-15-IDEX-01. F. Nemati and S. Grilli acknowledge support for this work from the US National Science Foundation Grant CMMI-15-35568. Finally, the authors acknowledge with appreciation one anonymous reviewer who helped improve the first draft of the manuscript.

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  1. Observatoire de la Côte d’Azur, CNRS, IRD, Géoazur, Université Côte d’Azur, Campus Azur, 250 rue Albert Einstein, CS 10269, 06905, Sophia Antipolis Cedex, France

    Laurie Boschetti, Mansour Ioualalen, Jean-Xavier Dessa & Christophe Larroque

  2. Department of Ocean Engineering, Graduate School of Oceanography, University of Rhode Island, Sheets Building 215, Narragansett, RI, 02882, USA

    Fatemeh Nemati & Stephan Grilli

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  1. Laurie Boschetti
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Correspondence to Mansour Ioualalen.

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Boschetti, L., Ioualalen, M., Nemati, F. et al. Tsunami intensity scale based on wave amplitude and current applied to the French Riviera: the case study of local seismicity. Nat Hazards 102, 219–248 (2020). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11069-020-03921-0

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