Coastal Solutions

On arrival in Western Samoa we were struck by both the marked landscape and cultural differences between Western and American Samoa. An independent country with a population of 170,000, Western Samoa has a more urban and touristic feel than its American counterpart. The mountains of Upolu, the most populated of the Western Samoan islands, are less constraining than those in American Samoa (Tutuila). This afforded the opportunity for communities to relocate and spread into higher ground in response to the devastating cyclones of 1990 and 1991. Thus, residential villages along the Upolu coast were, in general, more dispersed, and many had residences spread through upland as well as coastal areas.

During this first day in Western Samoa, we met with another ASCE member, Bill Gordon, and his business partner Tom Tinai of Tinai, Gordon, and Associates LTD, based in the urban center Apia. Bill and Tom shared their local knowledge on coastal, transportation and residential construction and then we talked about structural performance during the tsunami.

Of particular note, they told us about Bailey bridge, built originally for a stream crossing on the north coast and recently relocated to Salani. While sustaining some abutment toe-protection damage, the bridge maintained its structural and functional integrity during the tsunami, even though the tsunami waves reached the bridge deck— which we later confirmed during our site visit.

– ASCE/COPRI tsunami assessment team

Lesley Ewing, P.E., Team Leader, Coastal Engineer, California Coastal Commission

Jennifer L. Irish, Ph.D., P.E.; Assistant Professor, Texas A&M University

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