Google have now released an even higher resolution set of satellite images of Port-au-Prince, this time collected using the IKONOS instrument. These images have an extraordinary level of resolution - about 15 cm - meaning that the images are spectacular. This allows us to get a better understanding of the liquefaction damage at the port, the subject of my
earlier post. So, this is a close up of the damage to the main container wharf, with the crane in the water:
It is pretty clear from this that the dock support has failed and the deck has slipped into the water, taking the crane with it. That will not be at all easy to clear. Further along the wharf the scale of the liquefaction damage is pretty clear:
Perhaps the most surprising thing is the lack of effort going into re-opening the port. This is a good illustration of just how difficult it has been to get the aid operation underway in Haiti.
There is a significant number of landslides where the USGS marked the epicenter, but sometimes it's hard to say how old they are. Most of them show no vegetation, but some do. They are spread across the entire valley, especially along the steep hill flanks.
ReplyDeleteIn that region there are some strange linear structures (cracks or gullies?) that might be due to erosion, but they concentrate on an area close to the epicenter. Their orientation is mainly WSW-ENE.
First one: 18°27'51.55"N- 72°25'26.51"W
Second: 18°27'18.86"N- 72°27'0.56"W
Third: 18°27'21.09"N- 72°27'41.07"W
What do you think? Are they primary ruptures?
Okay, stupid question. I just realized that the structures are visible on the older imagery as well...
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