Earthquake Induced Failure of Fujinuma Dam

Fujinuma Dam failed due to The 2011 off the Pacific coast of Tohoku Earthquake and large mount of released water reached the downstream community causing a loss of seven lives and one missing. In order to identify the cause of the failure of Fujinuma Dam the geotechnical properties of embankment were grasped by investigations of the remnant embankment and the construction and repair works were evaluated. The stability of the embankment before the earthquake was also examined. Even though any abnormality had not been detected by regular inspection, the possibility of incurring failure still exists if and when it is exposed to strong and long duration earthquake motion such as that of The 2011 Tohoku Earthquake, depending upon its construction material and degree of compaction.