PRDW has carried out several studies with different levels of detail leading to the characterization of flooding hazard zones for both inhabited and urban areas.

In recent years the public awareness of tsunami risk has risen as consequence of a series of disastrous tsunami events which has caused both material losses and human casualties. The major examples are the 2004 Indian Ocean and the 2011 Tohoku tsunamis.

Chile, as a seismically active country adjacent to the so-called “ring of fire” of the Pacific Ocean, has a long history of tsunami events generated both locally and in remote locations. The last major event occurred in February 2010.

PRDW has the seismic design capability to incorporate the anticpated effects of tsunami impact on the design of coastal structures.

The tsunami studies cover a wide range of areas: plate tectonic and seismic engineering, risk assessment and management, numerical modelling of hydrodynamic processes and structural engineering. The scope and depth of a particular study is tailored according to client needs and the specific details of the project.

The overall objective of a tsunami study is to provide the client with the background to take risk decisions for:

• A controlled exposure of the project to tsunami impact or flooding
• Avoid potential life losses and economic damage
• Improve the design of the project facilities in order to avoid flooding or to withstand the impact

* Disclaimer: the images presented here are only references and are not meant to measure any kind of tsunami risk to any location.