Tsunami damage assessment: a case study in Car Nicobar Island, India

The present studies deal with the tsunami damage assessment of the 26 December 2004 tsunami that occurred as a result of an Indonesian earthquake (Mw9.3) on Car Nicobar Island. Remote Sensing and GIS techniques are used to identify and assess the damage caused by the tsunami. The IRS 1D LISS III (Pre) and IRS P-6 (Post) satellite data are used in analysing the tsunami height, run-up elevation, water-flow direction, inundation distance, sand deposition, coastal response, subsidence and erosion hazards, and overall assessment of damage. In order to confirm the results of the analysis, an extensive field survey was conducted on the island. The analysis reveals that the tsunami height was 0.7-15m on the beaches. The run-up level was 2-19m with an inundation distance of 295.87-1202.57m from the shoreline. The sand deposits at Aukchung and Arong beaches were 2.5m and 1.0 m, respectively. The coastal subsidence at Malacca beach was 0.75-1.12m, with significant coastal modification at various places.