Which structural failure risked Pompeii's walls when subjected to ground deformation during earthquakes prior to Vesuvius eruption?

💡 Explanation

When seismic waves propagate through the ground, tensile forces develop at the mortar joints of Pompeii's walls because differential movement separates adjoining sections, leading to cracking. Therefore tensile cracking is the primary risk, rather than shear, buckling, or toppling failure, which require different stress distributions or mechanisms .

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