Abstract
A very large earthquake with a magnitude of 8.7 occurred nearby Nias Island of Indonesia on March 28, 2005. Strong ground motions induced heavily casualties and damages to infrastructures such as roads and bridges, and buildings. Permanent ground movements such as settlement and lateral spreading, and associated structural damage due to liquefaction were widely observed in various locations along the coastal area and reclaimed ground. Many bridges were damaged by strong ground motion and permanent movement of abutments as a result of lateral spreading of liquefied ground. Many buildings were heavily damaged due to partial settlement, inclination and uplift of ground floor in the reclaimed area in the coastal region of Gunung Sitoli. The Swedish Weight Sounding Test were introduced and conducted by local enginners in Nias Island in order to initiate recovery and reconstruction work.
