Hazards Flashcards
Describe mount Java
Most active volcano in Indonesia
Stratovolcano
Thousands of people farm on the fertile flanks, at risk from eruption
What happened in the 2010 mount Java eruption
More than 5000 EQs were recorded underneath the volcano so an Evacuation of 20,000 was advised
Pyroclastic flows down the flanks of the volcano followed a series of eruptions
Fires, respiratory failures and blast injuries caused 350 deaths
350,000 were displaced
Abajarían problems due to thick ash
What is E15, Iceland
Shield volcano formed at a constructive margin between NA and Eurasian plates, a hotspot along the mid Atlantic ridge contributed to its creation
Behaves like a stratovolcano due to the ice cap that covers it. When lava erupts and interacts with the ice it produces a phreatomagmatic eruption
What happened in the 2010 E15 eruption
Very little interest at first but lava combined with water which created intense flooding and lahars
5000 residents evacuated
Water supplies contaminated
Plume of volcanic ash and gas over 10km high spread across Europe grounding 100,000 flights
50,000 farmers unemployed
Describe the Boxing Day Tsunami and its impacts
Epicentre was 240km off major city Sumatra, Indonesia
Third largest EQ in history, ranking 9.2 on the richer scale
General trend was that countries further away from the epicentre did not experience intense impacts, the only exception being Sri Lanka which suffered more damage than Thailand.
Large tsunamis affected 15 countries, 290,000 were reported dead or missing
500,000 in Indonesia were forced into refugee camps
Economies were devastated, 44% of those living in Aceh lost their livelihoods
What were the physical factors that contributed to the damage seen in the Boxing day tsunami?
Located near a 900m faultline where the Indian plate subducts under the Burma plate, a destructive margin.
Islands such as Phi Phi were engulfed as they had sea on either side of them due to wave refraction.
What were the human factors that contributed to the damage seen in the Boxing day tsunami?
No effective tsunami warning system in the Indian ocean, and most affected countries were LDEs.
No adequate MPPP due to lack of development
Mangrove swamps along the affected coats were removed due to economic/touristic reasons, and this exemplified the effects of the tsunami
29 million lived less than 2km from the coastal areas affected
What were the immediate responses to the Boxing day tsunami?
Internation relief efforts were established, involving 160 organisations and UN agencies, and military troops (e.g. Australian air force focussed on air traffic at Banda Aceh)
What were the long term responses to the Boxing day tsunami?
Large scale reconstruction programmes were impletmeted to encourage tourism and stabilise economies
Thousands of tents remained a year after the incident
Sirens/radio warnings were implemented in a new system (rural/isolated areas may still be underprepared)
Native coastal communities were driven out for new developments for example Andhra Pradesh
Tsunami awareness education began in school
Describe the 2010 Port au Prince EQ and its impact
Located in the Carribeean on the island of Hispaniola alongside the Dimincan Rebuplic
Sesimiucally acrive area, interceted by two conservative faultlines where the NA platre is sliding against the Caribbean plate
Lies in Atlantic Huriicane path
Magnitude 7 EQ after decades of built up tension was realsed
Shallow focus of 13km
Epicentre was 24km off the capital
200,000 died
2 million displaced and many living in shelters 6 years later
180,000 homes damaged and 5,000 schools destroyed
What were the physical factors that contributed to the damage seen in the 2010 Port au Prince EQ?
Multihazradous zone, located along 2 faultlines and hurricanes sweep Haiti annually
Unstable soil prone to liquefaction
EQ happened mid-afternoon so people were spread out in public transport etc
What were the human factors that contributed to the damage seen in the 2010 Port au Prince EQ?
Port au Prince is the most densely populated area in Haiti
The poorest country in the Western world, most of the population lives below the poverty line
Unprepared due to unstable government
NDMRS Operations Centre, the main fire station and many government buildings were destroyed this mean that emergency crews and civil servant could not respond
What were the immediate responses to the 2010 Port au Prince EQ?
Aid were slow to arrive due to damaged port
US sent 10,000 troops
UK’s disaster relief committee raised over £100m
UN peacekeepers accidentally introduced cholera to the water and killed a further 9,200
4 million received food aid
90% of those displaced had access to health clinics
140,000 people received agricultural inputs fro spring planting
What were the long-term responses to the 2010 Port au Prince EQ?
Better quality houses built
Ports needed rebuilidng but that required a lot of investment so it is still behind
economic activities moved form the capital to areas at less risk of damage from EQ
Describe Hurricane Katrina and its impacts
Formed over the Bhamas and hit SE USA
Catgroy 3 when it hit Mississippi and Lousiana
200km/h windspeed
Storm surge of 8.5m
Delta right at sea level so easily flooded
1800 killed
300,000 houses destroyed
3 million without electricity
Some of the main ways out of New Orleans were blocked off as bridges collapsed
Water supplies poluted and 5 died
230,000 jobs were lost
30 oil platforms and ports in the Gulf of Mexico were destroyed
Total cost was $300bn
Coastal habitats such sd teutle beaches destrpoyefd
Describe the repsonses to Hurricane Katrina
Hurricane warning sysetm gave few days warning for evacuation
FEMA and other organisations prepared for the storm by positioning the coastgurad
FEMA organised teams and supplies and mandatory evacuation orders were issued
Emergency shelters were set up for those who had not evacuated, the Lousiana Superdome sheltered 26,000
Emergency services rescued 50,000
Charities raised $4bn
