Volcanoes Case Studies Flashcards
Which case study is for LEDCs volcanic eruption
Soufriére hills, Montserrat 1995-97
Which case study is for an MEDC volcanic eruption
Iceland eyjallajokull march 2010
What plate boundary was Montserrat on
Destructive , magma is remelted material,high viscosity, very explosive
Where is Montserrat located
Part of an island arc in Caribbean
Located on soufriere hills on volcanic area called chances peak, southern part of island
What had montserrats activity been like before July 1995
Been dormant for 300 years
The most violent and intense eruptions occurred in 1997
Primary impacts of Montserrat 1995-97 volcanic eruption
Ash and steam , earthquakes (1995)
Huge ash cloud, dome growth, small pyroclastic flow (1996)
Small explosions, ballistic projections(1997)
Farmland, forest destroyed, livestock killed
Airport/docking facilities destroyed
What happened during montserrats climax in eruption
Large explosion
Extensive pyroclastic flow 4/5million m3 material
How many died in Montserrat 1995-97 eruption
19, they chose to stay on farms as not educated in eruptions as not experienced it, despite being warned
How many villages and homes destroyed
What about Plymouth?
7 villages destroyed
175 homes destroyed
Island capital Plymouth buried in 10m of ash and mud
80% buildings in Plymouth damaged/destroyed
Secondary effects of Montserrat 1995-97 eruption
Tourism - closed airport, ongoing threats on eruptions tourist industry stopped
Loss of tourist income, destruction farmland, loss of services -collapse of economy
Unemployment 7%–> 50%
Mass migration 7000- skill shortage
Short term responses to Montserrat eruption
People evacuated to safe north, exclusion in south
Temporary infrastructure built
U.K. -17million emergency aid
Local emergency services- look for survivors
Long term responses to Montserrat 1995-97 eruption
- Shelters built
- Risk map created- south off limits as volcano intermittently active
- U.K. - 41 million long term aid to develop north island - new docks,airport,houses built
- Montserrat volcano observatory set up - predict eruptions
Who helped with evacuation of Montserrat eruption
Royal Navy helped evacuate people to near island Antigua or resettlement to uk
How much were those affected by Montserrat eruption given to leave
£2500 per adult
Islanders didn’t think it was enough to compensate
What happened about montserrats capital
Moved from Plymouth to Salem
Who is Montserrat volcano observatory run by
British geological society set up to monitor soufriere hills activity
MEDC volcanic eruption case study
Eyjafjallajokull, Iceland March 2010
Why was there more Magma than on a normal constructive margin in Iceland
Iceland is located on a hotspot
What lava characteristics did Icelands eruption have
Basaltic, viscous so was slow flowing
Local impacts of Icelands eruption
Thick layer of ash - difficult to continue farming or grazing livestock
River levels rose - ice caps melt
Local gravel roads blocked by ash
Responses to Icelands eruption
500 farmers evacuated overnight
Roads closed- fear of flash floods
Flights stopped in nw European airspace, sporadic distrubtion to flight
Six day shutdown cost 1.2bn
Royal Navy war ship collected soldiers and stranded holiday makers from Santander port
What type of boundary was the Iceland eruption on
What plates
Constructive boundary on a hotspot so more magma than usual
Eurasian and North America plate
Located on a spreading ridge
Vulnerability of Icelands eruption
Dispersed population so not as vulnerable
Lots of warning signs of eruption- 3,000 recorded earthquakes before
Prediction for Icelands 2010 eruption
Iceland meteorological office - monitors earth movements - measured hight of ash plume (distribution of ash)
24/7 watch by meteorologists, seismologists
Communication with nation - Internet,tv.radio .
Tracked by satellite in many countries
