Damages, Human Behaviour and Recovery of Urban Residents in the 2005 West off Fukuoka Earthquake

The 2005 west off Fukuoka earthquake with Mjma 7.0 occurred in the vicinity of Fukuoka city with 1.4 million populations, which had been regarded as rather seismically inactive in Japan. The strong motion records by K-net indicated PGV of 64 cm/s in Fukuoka city and some condominium buildings sustained extensive non-structural damages. In this study, we conducted a questionnaire survey for residents of 8 condominium buildings located in the downtown area of Fukuoka city after the earthquake. The results indicate that damaged nonstructural walls and distorted doors disrupted evacuation route for many occupants, and furniture and content damage on upper floors became severer resulting in higher rates of human casualty. Earthquake preparedness for indoor safety was raised after the earthquake, though further safety measures can be advised. In the phase of post-earthquake emergency and restoration period, residents' management organizations play important roles, so that neighborhood activities to promote communication networks are important in urban environment with aging population.