Case study: Volcanic eruption in an EDC - Guatemala

What is the HDI of Guatemala?

0.65

What is the GDP per capita?

$7500

What percentage of people live below the poverty line?

60%

What is the literacy rate of Guatemala?

35%

What percentage of Guatemala’s population is in the primary sector?

40%

What plate boundary is the El Fuego volcano found on?

Convergent plate margin - Caribbean and Cocos plates

What type of volcano is El Fuego?

Stratovolcano

What type of magma, activity levels and type of explosion?

• Viscous magma

• Very active - every 25 mins small eruptions

• Explosive

What was the VEI score on this eruption?

VEI 3

Explain the reasons why people choose to live near Fuego: poverty

Lack of education and extreme poverty means people can’t leave to urban areas as they cannot get a job or afford to travel there.

Explain the reasons why people choose to live near Fuego: History

Traditional Mayan communities have settled on the foothills of Guatemala’s volcanoes. High concentrations of Mayan population - 6 million people linked to indigenous culture.

Explain the reasons why people choose to live near Fuego: Culture

The Mayan religion is very empowering to humans, believing that people are able to control natural events. Volcanoes aren’t as much as a threat.

Explain the reasons why people choose to live near Fuego: Fertile soils

The land around the volcano is fertile and can grow things like cpffee which is economically significant

Explain the reasons why people choose to live near Fuego: tourism

Half the people in a nearby village earn a living from volcano tourism

Explain the reasons why people choose to live near Fuego: Perception of risk

The volcano hadn’t properly erupted in 116 years so they were used to the low activity

When did the El Fuego erupt?

3-18th June 2018

What were the social impacts of the eruptions?

• At least 190 deaths, 57 injured and 2000 buried

• The pyroclastic flow buried several of the affected villages under 10 feat of ash - cut off roads

• 2000 were evacuated - 3000 internally displaced people going to temporary housing

• Over 10% of the population have been effected

• 411 buildings, industrial sites and La Reunion had been destroyed

What were the economic impacts of the eruptions?

• Agriculture - 17,000 small scale farmers were effected as crops were lost

• 90% of people were effected; 22,000 families impacted by the agriculture loss

• Tourism loss - resorts have shut (everyone evacuated before there)

• 21,000 acres of sellable crops destroyed

• Guatemala airport closure

What were the political impacts of the eruptions?

• Mandatory evacuation wasn’t given fast enough; some places had already been buried - investigations began into criminal negligence

• Guatemalan law didn’t allow the President to spend finance on the disaster.

• No one knows the real scale of the disaster due to poor governance

• 2000 people still in shelters as of Feb 2019. They were unable to return - have to migrate for employment.

What were the attempts to mitigate against vulnerability?

• National coordination for Disaster Reduction (CONRED) - created to prevent and respond to volcanic disasters. They received information from the National Institute for Seismology Volcanology, Meteorology and Hydrology in Guatemala - they told people to evacuate 8 hours before but rural people didn’t have the communications to reach the message.

• CONRED failed to pass on the warning to people even though seismometers showed signs

What were the attempts to mitigate against losses in the short term?

• Initial rescue efforts from volunteer fire fighters - they had to stop due to safety hazards

• Medical teams from Mexico and the US helped the most vulnerable and severely wounded

• CONRED mobilised and 1,200 were involved in rescue operations; they opened temporary shelters for those who were forced to flee. CONRED also struggled with search and rescue due to thick lahars

• UN arrived to get first hand knowledge

What were the attempts to mitigate against losses in the longer term?

• Dignity Project - $23 million to relocate and rehouse those effected.

• People can still return - no ban was placed

• No land around - reliant on aid due lack of resources

• Basic assistance in relocation.

• People don’t have insurance

• Relocated people were put in wooden places and with no employment or education

What were the hazards created by the eruption?

• Clouds of volcanic ash - ash columns formed at 15km in height and 12 miles in radius.

• Pyroclastic flow - fast moving hot ash cloud at 62-430mph up to 1000 degrees

• Lahars - heavy rainfall leads to dangerous lahars; ash mixed with rainfall (climate) which can bury villages and cut off roads

• Infrastructure - 10ft of ash and rocks and cut off roadways - solidified lava and hot gases and volcanic rock