Interdependencies in Seismic Risk Assessment of Seaport Systems: Case Study at Largest Commercial Port in Italy

Abstract

Seaports play an essential role in the policies of sustainable mobility as critical links allowing the transfer of goods and passengers, thereby helping to increase the functionality and efficiency of the general system of transportation of a country. Furthermore, seaports represent priority entry points into an area affected by an earthquake and, thus, play a crucial role in rescue operations. Poor performance was exhibited by seaports in past and recent earthquakes, particularly for wharf structures, which suffered severe damage because of ground shaking and soil liquefaction. Seaports represent a multicomponent system in which each element has its own feature and vulnerability. Under earthquake loading, various facilities can be damaged—from wharves with their supporting systems to cranes and other utilities. A potential disruption of one element may trigger a domino (or cascade) effect that influences the performance of the entire system. This paper focuses on the influence of interdependencies among components in the seismic risk assessment of a seaport system. A methodology has been devised to assess the seismic risk of a port viewed as a multicomponent system and applied to the port of Gioia Tauro, the largest terminal for transshipment in Italy and one of the most important hubs for container traffic in the Mediterranean Sea. The Gioia Tauro seaport is in Calabria, which is the region in Italy characterized by the highest seismic hazard. This paper compares the results obtained in the assessment of the seismic vulnerability of the seaport, considering and neglecting the interdependencies among its components.