KAMAISI 



Contour interval in meters-, 

 heavier numerals are water 



heights in centimeters; 



Smaller numerals are ground 



elevations in meters (measured 



from the same datum) 



scale 



100 



200 



METERS 

 Figure 50. Tsunami runup at Kamaisi, Japan (after Nasu, 1934). 



Iwasaki and Horikawa (1960) show that the period of the waves will 

 be a major factor in determining maximum inundation levels. The waves 

 from the tsunami which struck the coast of Japan on 24 May 1960 had 

 periods of about 60 minutes, while the 1933 tsunami reported on by Nasu 

 (1934) had wave periods of about 12 minutes. The 1960 tsunami did not 

 form a bore or a spilling front, and the water level gradually gained 

 height over the entire surface of the bays where it was observed. For 

 the longer period waves of the 1960 tsunami, the orientation of the bays 

 appeared to have no influence on the runup heights; the height of the 



150 



