Tectonic Hazard In An MEDC - Natural Hazards

Question 1

• name of disaster
• location
• facts (2)

Answer 1

• earthquake
• l’Aquila, Italy
• 6th April 2009
• the central Italian city had a population of 73,000 people

Question 2

• causes (2)

Answer 2

• destructive margin of Eurasian and African plates (the African plate is subducted below the continental Eurasian plate)
• magnitude 6.3 on Richter scale

Question 3

• primary and secondary impacts (3)

Answer 3

• around 290 deaths, mostly from collapsed buildings —-> aftershocks (magnitude 5) hampered rescue efforts and caused more deaths
• mains water pipe was broken outside of Paganica —-> caused a landslide which caused more destruction, injuries and deaths
• 10,000 buildings were damaged or destroyed —-> 68,000 people made homeless

Question 4

• reasons for severity (3)

Answer 4

• Civil Protection Department trains volunteers to help with rescue operations
• army and emergency services were sent in and used cranes and diggers to remove the rubble and specialist equipment, including heat senses cameras, and dogs to search for the survivors
• some modern buildings didn’t fit the laws on construction standards in Italy such as San Salvatore hospital, constructed in 2000

Question 5

• short term response (1)

Also first 2 on last card

Answer 5

• set up camps for the 68,000 homeless people with water, food and medical care

Question 6

• long-term response (2)

Answer 6

• Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi promised to build a new town to replace l’Aquila and 4,500 new buildings were constructed by late 2009
• strongly enforce building regulations