Seismic microzoning of the city of Cayes in south-west of Haïti

During an earthquake, we find that the recorded damage not only depend on the released energy and construction typology, but also the soil. The soil knowledge is one of the ways to reduce the seismic risk. This article, on seismic microzoning of the city of Cayes in south-west of Haïti, aims at the determining the soil nature in order to mitigate the earthquakes consequences. In this study, the spectral analysis of surface waves (SASW) testing were executed in order to identify the shear waves velocity (Vs) profiles. SPT and dynamic penetrometer (PD) testings were collected and correlations between their values and Vs were also used to develop velocity profiles. The categorization of soil, based on the Vs30 parameter, identified three soils classes: C in mountainous region, D in plain area and E, near the coast.