Gorkha earthquake, Nepal Flashcards
How many deaths and injuries where there and what type of impact is this?
-9000 deaths and 22,000 injuries central-eastern Nepal
-160 deaths in neighboring countries (India, Bangladesh and China), mainly in India
-avalanches at Everest killed 22 climbers near base camp
= social impact
What buildings and number of houses got destroyed and how many people became displaced? What type of impact is this?
-2.8 million displaced at Kathmandu valley
-around half a million houses destroyed or damage with whole villages
-26 hospitals in destruction
-7000 schools flattered (raised death toll)
= social impact
How many people required food assistance from the earthquake and the type of impact this is?
-1 million required food assistance
= social impact
What was there an increase in after the earthquake? What caused this to happen?
-drop into poverty and lack of opportunities increased child trafficking of women and girls from the poorest families to South Asian brothels
= social impact
What uneven impacts were there for different social groups?
- lower-caste were harder hit who lived in the higher slopes of the Himalayas
- single women struggled to receive relief aid
- culturally important locations were damaged such as the oldest Buddhist monument & World Heritage Site
What was the estimated cost of the earthquake disaster?
-US$10 billion by US Geological Survey
What impact impact did the closure of Mt. Everest have and the damage of trekking routes and World Heritage sites in Kathmandu valley?
-90% cancellation of tourist bookings
-impacting 10% economy
-loss of US$600 million 2015-17
= economic impact
How much aid for construction was given and by who?
-US$200 million given by Asian Development Bank
Who where in debt after the earthquake?
- Nepal Government
- businesses
- and individuals
What impact did the timing of the earthquake have on rural families and what type of impact did this create?
-disrupted the paddy-planting season
-stored grains destroyed
-harvest of rice and maize were disappointing & there was a loss of livestock which meant hardship for rural families
-700,000 were pushed into poverty (2015-16), majority from mountainous regions
= economic and social impact
How is Nepal politically?
- has been politically unstable in the past
- but showed signs of settling
What impact did the earthquake have politically towards Nepal?
-undermined progress towards peace and greater democracy
What political tension was created by the earthquake?
-tensions created towards International aid India using humanitarian aid to elf-promote within the region
What emergency aid assistance was there?
- military aircraft and operating personnel
- sent by Indonesia
How many in total were effected by the earthquake?
-the UN estimates 8 million (1/3 of total population)
What is the main aim for Nepal?
- build resilience in its economy
- social cohesion
- and governance
- to break through the cycle of vulnerability
What are the three main risks in Nepal’s preparedness?
- geology -> further seismic work needed & landslide mapping
- architecture -> older buildings and new ones have no structured reinforcements due to issues with resource availability & lack of education. Building codes need enforcement
- urbanization -> rapid expanding informal settlements - exceeds government ability to enforce regulations -> poverty crisis from over-reliance on concrete (loss in indigenous knowledge)
How are Kathmandu valley slopes vulnerable to landslides?
- powerful tremors in region
- saturated from snow melt
- monsoon rains
What unequal spatial impacts are there?
- poor quality rural houses more badly destroyed than towns /cities
- Kathmandu valley’s pre-historical lakes cause intense liquefaction & weak buildings collapse under ground shaking
What unequal Gender impacts were there?
- more female than male deaths due to working in houses which collapsed
- loss of livestock and small-scale enterprises impacted women
- destruction of water & sanitation infrastructure meant greater distances to receive supplies -> more time consuming for other economic activities
What was there a reduction in after the earthquake and by how much? What caused this drop off?
- 14 HEP stations were damaged
- caused a 25% loss in electricity capacity
How were the rescue efforts of the earthquake hindered?
- helicopters transporting badly injured to Pheriche (nearest clinic) hindered by bad weather & communications
- roads outside world were blocked preventing aid & daily supplies reaching Nepal
- main obstruction of rescue and relief operations were that villages were unreachable
What flooding was there and what caused this?
- floods upstream due to blocked rivers
- collapse of unstable debris blocking drainage of lakes
- moraines weakened by tremors cause thousands to evacuate
- lake created at Kali Gandaki river caused homes to be flooded 1km from the debris dam
How was the severity of the earthquake reduced?
-earthquake ahead of monsoon season so ground was dry -> less intense shaking and stronger rocks
What was the earthquake on the Richter scale and Mercalli scale?
- M7.8 on the Richer scale -> thousands deaths and widespread poverty
- IX (violent) on the Mercalli scale - made deadlier by underlying poverty
What caused the earthquake to occur and where about was it?
- subduction of the Indian plate and the overriding Eurasian plate (15km depth)
- approx 80km northwest Kathmandu, Gorkha district
How many aftershocks were there how intense were they and what impact did they have?
- 300 aftershocks over 6 weeks (M4.0 - 6.7)
- major aftershock M7.3 eastern end same fault line main earthquake
- killed a further 200
- disrupted relief efforts already underway
What info did scientist discover about the cause and energy of the earthquake?
- there was massive accumulated strain in the area
- Gorkha released 4-5% stored energy (crust ruptured, remaining pent up energy along fault line)
What secondary hazards were there caused by the earthquake?
-mountainous terrain led to landslides
-Langtang region (west Kathmandu) buried by landslides
-Langtang experienced pressure wave prior to the breaking-off point of part of a glacier caused avalanche 2-3km wide of snow, ice, rock and materials
-killed 300
250 deaths from mudslide and avalanche at Ghodatabela
-Laprak village of 2000 people completely destroyed
-25 vehicles on Armiko Highway to Tibet blocked by landslides
How many people were cut off by landslides on roads and how many were unreachable in remote areas?
- 315,000 people were cut off by road
- additional 75,00 were unreachable by remote areas
What was the response made by the Red Cross and what type of response was this?
-the Red Cross provided tents for 225,000 people
= immediate response
How much money did the UK’s DEC raise by September 2015 and what was it used for? Which type of response was this?
-the UK’s DEC raised US $126 million by September 2015
-to provide emergency aid & start rebuilding the worst hit areas
-rebuilding such as housing, schools, roads, monuments and agriculture
=long term response
What was the response of the World Health Organisation and what type of response was this in terms of short and long?
-The World Health Organisation (WHO) distributed medical supplies to the worst-affected districts
=immediate response
