tectonic processes and hazards- case studies Flashcards
factfile: nepalese earthquake (LIC)
date: april 2015
magnitude: 7.8
deaths: 8633
injuries: over 21,000
homeless: 3 million people
cost: lost US$5 billion from its GDP (25% of its total
rebuilding cost: US$6.6 billion. Nepal will need to rely on foreign aid.
impacts of Nepalese Earthquake
(7)
The earthquake was a major disaster:
1.nepal is extremely poor; half of its population lives in poverty.
2.the countrys infrastructure (e.g. roads, water supplies) was severly damaged
3.many buildings collapsed in the capital ( Kathmandu) because they werent built to withstand earthquakes
4.over 100 afterschocks followed the inital earthquake; cause more death and destruction, made rescue efforts dangerous
5.Nepal is mountainous; the shaking caused landslides; making rescue and aid efforts difficult in rural areas.
6.Nepal’s emergency services were unable yo cope and relied on overseas countries and aid agencies
7.tourism fell after the earthquake, putting people out of work
Loma Prieta earthquake Factfile- HIC
date: october 1989
magnitude: 6.9
location: loma prieta, near San Francisco
Areas affected: worst hit= Marina District; built in landfill, its soft sandy soils liquefied, causing buildings and roads to collapse. The Cypress Freeway (built on soft muds) collapsed, causing 42/67 earthquake related deaths.
Iceland: Eyjafjallajökull factfile- HIC
date: april 2010
location: Eyjafjallajökull, Iceland
deaths: none
injured: none
impacts of Iceland Volcano
-because of atmospheric circulation, ash clouds from Eyjafjallajökull affected flights over nothern Europe for a week
- 100,000 flights were cancelled, affecting 10 million people, losing airlines US$1.7 billion in revenues
- global airline capacity was cut by 30%, European capacity by 75%
-impacts of European flight cancellations were felt in Kenya where 20% of the economy is basrd on exporting green vegetables and flowers to Europe, costing US$1.3 million daily in lost revenue
Montserrat Volcano- LIC
impacts and small factfile
date: July 1995
Eruptions continued for 5 years, the worst being in 1997
- dozens died; two thirds of its 11,000 people were evacuated, most permanently
- Monserrats capital, Plymouth, was destroyed
-two thirds of houses were buried by ash or flattened
- three quarters of infrastructure was destroyed
Indian Ocean tsunami background
- the earthquake causing the tsunami was magnitude 9.0-9.3
-labelled as “causing one of the worlds worst disasters”
-upward thrust lifted the floor of the Indian ocean by about 15 m - epicentre in close proximity to densely populated communities
-earliest waves 17 metres high
-low lying coastlines of neighbouring countries allowed the tsunami to travel inland
-no early warning system
-many countries affected=LIC’s, no resources to spend on protection
-costal mangroves destroyed to allow tourist development; reduced protection
Indian Ocean tsunami impacts
date= december 2004
deaths= over 230,000
including 9000 tourists
homeless= 1.7 million
-5 million people affected in 14 countries including:
-Indonesia
- Sri Lanka
-India
-costal settlements devastated, 70% of people were killed
-1500 villages destroyed in Sumatra
-Infrastructure was destroyed
-In Sri Lanka, more than 60% of the fishing fleet was destroyed
-In Thailand, the tourism industry lost US$25 million per month and 120,000 people lost their jobs
- water supplies and soil contaminated by salt water
-the total cost of damage exceeded US$10 billion.
Haiti earthquake factfile
date= January 2010
magnitude= 7.0
deaths= estimated 222,570
injuries=300,000
-3 million displaced, 97,294 houses destroyed and 188,383 damaged in the Port-au-Prince area and in much of southern Haiti
deaths and injuries among worst on record due to:
- shallow earthquake focus of 13km
- liquefaction caused building foundations to sink
- epicentre only 24km from the capital Port-au-Prince.
what does the PAR model show, to suggest why the event was a disaster?
-Haiti is poor; resources spent on reducing poverty not earthquake protection
-high levels of government corruption meant money not spent on infrastructure improvements or living standards
-poorly built buildings; lack of building regulations
-rescue teams found access difficult because of high population density
- lack of education for preparedness of earthquake
-ports, main roads and only airport were damaged, preventing aid from arriving, increasing death tolls
-25% of gov officials killed, making organising relief difficult
- a cholera outbreak lasted six years, affecting 720,000 people
Indonesia volcanic eruption 2010-NEE
- volcanic eruptions at Mt Merapi starting in late October have resulted in 386 reported deaths and 131 injuries
-November 2010
Indonesia volcano responses
-the Indonesian government received aid from the red cross and other countries such as Australia, Japan and the USA
-medical facilities in nearby regions treated burn victims, respitory issues and other health issues as a result of the eruption
Indonesia volcano pre disaster
-there were challenges in implementing effective early warning systems which increased vulnerability
-some areas around Mt Merapi had a high population density which is bad as it brings risks for evacuation
Indonesia volcano
Post disaster
-efforts were made to revive tourism emphasising the resilience of local communities
-the eruption promoted improvements in early warning systems to better be prepared for future erosions
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