Hazardous earth case studies

Question 1

What magnitude was the 2015 Nepal earthquake

Answer 1

7.8 on the richter scale - collision plate boundary

Question 2

What were the primary effects of the Nepal earthquake (2015)

Answer 2

9000 deaths
19,000 injuries
3 million made homeless
600,000 buildings destroyed

Question 3

Secondary effects of the Nepal earthquake (2015)

Answer 3

Landslides and avalanches
- Blocked roads
- Killed 19 people at mt everest
Rice seed ruined - increased prices by 11%
Tourism, income and employment declined
liquefication

Question 4

Immediate responses of Nepal earthquake (2015)

Answer 4

Half a million shelters provided
300,000 people migrated from kathmandu to seek shelter
India and china donated $1 billion in aid

Question 5

Long term responses of Nepal (2015)

Answer 5

7000 schools rebuilt
Landslides and roadblocks cleared
Stricter building codes introduced
Asian development bank donated $200 million for first stage of rehabilitation

Question 6

What magnitude was the New Zealand (2016) earthquake

Answer 6

7.8 on the richter scale

Question 7

Primary effects of New Zealand (2016)

Answer 7

2 deaths
19 injured
60 people needed emergency housing
20,000 buildings destroyed

Question 8

Secondary effects of New Zealand (2016)

Answer 8

29,000 landslides blocked roadways and railways
Tsunami 5m high

Question 9

Immediate responses New Zealand (2016)

Answer 9

Emergency housing provided
Tsunami warning issued
Power restored within hours
Temporary water supplies set up

Question 10

Long term responses New Zealand (2016)

Answer 10

Road and rail routes opened within 2 years
Earthquake resistant pipes

Question 11

What magnitude was the Haiti earthquake (2010)

Answer 11

7.0 on the richter scale - conservative plate boundary

Question 12

Primary effects of Haiti 2010

Answer 12

200,000 deaths
300,000 injured
1 million homeless

Question 13

Secondary effects of Haiti 2010

Answer 13

Two million people left without water and food
Crime increased
Outbreaks of cholera led to further 10,000 deaths

Question 14

Immediate responses Haiti 2010

Answer 14

Port was damaged so aid was slow
USA sent rescue teams and 10,000 troops
Bottled water and purification tablets provided
235,000 moved to new homes
£20 million donated by the UK

Question 15

Long term responses Haiti 2010

Answer 15

Relied on overseas aid - one of the poorest countries in the world
One million people still lived in shelters a year after the earthquake

Question 16

Why did so many people die in the Haiti 2010 earthquake?

Answer 16

Earthquake occurred at shallow depth - stronger groundshaking
Struck the most densely populated city in the country
Poorest country in the western hemisphere
Poor living standards
Lack of infrastructure to make use of aid - only one airport with one runway

Question 17

What magnitude was the earthquake which caused the boxing day tsunami 2004?

Answer 17

9.1 on the richter scale - convergent plate boundary

Question 18

Primary effects of boxing day tsunami (2004)

Answer 18

Impacted 12 countries
230,000 deaths
650,000 injured
2 million homeless

Question 19

Secondary effects of boxing day tsunami (2004)

Answer 19

Outbreak of diseases such as cholera
Lack of food - agriculture and fisheries destroyed
Railways and roads blocked or destroyed
Electric cut off

Question 20

Immediate responses boxing day tsunami (2004)

Answer 20

food, water and shelter provided
Uk public raised and donated $100 million

Question 21

Long term responses boxing day tsunami (2004)

Answer 21

A year later the UK donated £370 million
Indian ocean tsunami warning system set up which also taught people how to respond during the event of an earthquake

Question 22

What magnitude was the magnitude of the earthquake which caused the Fukushima tsunami 2011?

Answer 22

9.0 magnitude

Question 23

Primary effects of the fukushima tsunami 2011

Answer 23

16,000 deaths
26,000 injures
330,000 buildings destroyed
$220 billion cost

Question 24

Secondary effects of the fukushima tsunami 2011

Answer 24

Nuclear power plant destroyed - still releasing radiation and is expected to for the next 50 years - leaving the area unhabited

Question 25

Immediate responses Fukushima 2011

Answer 25

Tsunami warning 3 minutes after earthquake - 58% of people followed the warning
100,000 rescue workers in Japan provided rescue and emergency aid
20km evacuation zone around fukushima

Question 26

Long term responses Fukushima 2011

Answer 26

Coastal protection policy suitable to provide protection against tsunamis of such scale
Tsunami resillitent coastal communities scheme
98% of electricity restored within months

Question 27

Why were the effects of the Tsunami so devastating fukushima 2011

Answer 27

shallow focus earthquake - just 20km below surface
Tsunami waves exceeded height of sea walls intended to protect against tsunami
Severely damaged nuclear power reactor
Convergent plate boundary which one of the plates was clay causing it to move 50m

Question 28

What was the mount merapi eruption 2010 ranked on the VEI?

Answer 28

4 explosivity

Question 29

Primary effects of mount merapi eruption 2010

Answer 29

350 deaths
200,000 made homeless
320,000 displaced
5000 died from the earthquake caused by the volcano

Question 30

Secondary effects mount merapi 2010

Answer 30

Lahars
Mud flow
Water supplies contaminated
Created geothermal energy
Global cooling due to ash clouds
Ash clouds contaminated crops increasing crop prices - in the long term created more fertile soils

Question 31

Immediate responses mount merapi 2010

Answer 31

210 evacuation centres
1600 people a part of national response
International aid from charities such as Red Cross
Evacuation area of 20 km

Question 32

Long term response mount merapi 2010

Answer 32

Formal evacuation centres set up
2600 people moved permanently to safer housing
Government funding for farmers to replace livestock

Question 33

What VEI was the Iceland 2010 eruption?

Answer 33

3 on the VEI - divergent plate boundary

Question 34

Primary effects Iceland 2010 eruption

Answer 34

• Ash clouds blocked the sun making the sky turn to night - released 250 million m^3 of tephra into the sky
• Crops destroyed by ash
• 100,000 flights cancelled due to ash clouds - cost £130 million a day for 8 days - impacted trade of food and goods

Question 35

Secondary effects Iceland 2010

Answer 35

Fresh food imports stopped
Local water supplies contaminated
Melted glacier causing flooding
Long term created more fertile soils
Global cooling

Question 36

Global impact of Iceland 2010 eruption

Answer 36

Kenya was impacted
- 5000 workers lost jobs as flowers and vegetables rotted at airports
- lost $1.3 million a day in exports
- the countries top export is flowers meaning the loss of trade of flowers to Europe was extremely costly to them

Question 37

Immediate response Iceland 2010

Answer 37

Evacuation of 700 people
Red Cross provided food and water for those in evacuation area of the volcano
Exclusion zone

Question 38

Long term responses Iceland 2010

Answer 38

Created higher river banks then before to prevent flooding
Improved monitoring systems
Aircraft fitted with ash resistant technology