Investigation of coseismic liquefaction‐induced ground deformation associated with the 2019 Mw 5.8 Mirpur, Pakistan, earthquake using near‐surface electrical resistivity tomography and geological data

• Published in: Near surface geophysics (Online) 2021-04, Vol.19 (2), p.169-182
• Main Authors: Khan, Muhammad Younis, Turab, Syed Ali, Riaz, Muhammad Shahid, Atekwana, Estella A., Muhammad, Said, Butt, Nabeel Afzal, Abbas, Syed Mohsin, Zafar, Waqar Ali, Ohenhen, Leonard O.
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Coseismic Liquefaction; Earthquake; Electrical resistivity tomography (ERT); Groundwater
• ISSN: 1569-4445; 1873-0604
• DOI: 10.1002/nsg.12148

ABSTRACT An electrical resistivity tomography survey was conducted to assess the subsurface conditions associated with the coseismic liquefaction phenomenon in the epicentral region following the Mw 5.8 Mirpur earthquake (Pakistan) on 24 September 2019. The Mirpur earthquake produced extensive coseismic liquefaction‐induced surface deformations, including: sand blows, ground failure and lateral spreading along the Upper Jhelum Canal and in the nearby villages. Electrical resistivity data were acquired along three profiles and calibrated with available borehole data. The inverted electrical resistivity tomography profiles reveal three regional geoelectric layers, which consist of an upper 2–‐5‐m‐thick discontinuous zones of medium resistivity values ranging from 25 Ωm to 60 Ωm, underlain by a 7–8‐m‐thick zone of low resistivity ( 100 Ωm). Based on geological and geophysical data, we infer that. (1) disrupted geoelectric layers in the shallow subsurface and spatially extended low electrical resistivity (