Abstract
On 4 December 2007, a 3 Mm3 debris avalanche entered Chehalis Lake, British Columbia, Canada. The resulting tsunami caused extensive shoreline damage as far away as the outlet (7.5 km) and far down lower Chehalis River (>15 km). We documented impacts of the tsunami through a multifaceted investigation that included field surveys and collection and analysis of SONAR data, LiDAR data and high-resolution orthophotographs. Geomorphic impacts included a wide range of erosional and depositional features, many of which provide information on wave energy, direction, run-up and inundation along much of the lakeshore. Our characterization of the geomorphic impacts of the Chehalis Lake event advances understanding of landslide-generated tsunami in several ways: it aids identification of events elsewhere by providing insight into their geomorphic signature; it provides an opportunity to verify hydrodynamic numerical models; and it improves regional understanding of hazard and risk.
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Acknowledgments
Jones Construction Ltd. provided site access and logistical support during fieldwork and the SONAR survey. Terra Remote Sensing (Sidney, BC) performed LiDAR, aerial photograph and SONAR surveys under contract to BC Hydro. Dave Naud and Len Leroux (BC Ministry of Forests and Range) facilitated site access and provided details of surveys conducted directly after the event. Mike Smith (BC Ministry of Forests and Range) provided pre-event orthphotograph tiles. Johnny Darrell, Alan Walsh and Jeremy Last provided pre-event images of the shoreline and campgrounds. Courtenay Brown, Denny Capps, Gabriel Hensold, Mark Nelson and Peter Schön (Simon Fraser University) assisted with fieldwork.
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Roberts, N.J. et al. (2013). Impacts of the 2007 Landslide-Generated Tsunami in Chehalis Lake, Canada. In: Margottini, C., Canuti, P., Sassa, K. (eds) Landslide Science and Practice. Springer, Berlin, Heidelberg. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-642-31319-6_19
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-642-31319-6_19
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