Tropical Storms Case Studies - Hazards

Cyclone Nargis and Hurricane Sandy

Cyclone nargis location and factors

Burma (Myanmar) LIC, 52 million ppl, one of poorest countries in southeast Asia

GDP per capita: $1,275 (compared to USA: $57,466), HDI: 0.556

83% of mangroves in Irrawaddy Delta destroyed for agriculture

Irrawaddy Delta affected

Nargis date and size

formed 27th April 2008 in Bay of Bengal, hit midday 2nd May 2008

Category 5 storm, wind up to 135mph, 2nd deadliest cyclone ever

number of deaths and people affected from nargis

140,000 ppl died and 2.5 million affected (injured/homeless)

infrastructure damage of nargis

95% of buildings in Irrawaddy Delta destroyed , power line and phone lines blown down, transport links swept away

secondary effects of nargis

cost of rice increased 50%, cost of repair was $10billion, thousands of ppl living on streets without water/food, dirty water = mosquito breeding, sewage leaked = causing disease

short term responses to nargis

• may 9: aid allowed in (food medicines, water purifiers) but no aid workers

• may 23: 3 wks later allowed Red Cross in from Thailand, 20 medical teams and 20 communicable disease suppression units

• UK sent £17 million and relief team aid

long term responses for nargis

• 93 Red Cross posts for community based first aid set up across country

• children taught good hygiene practices= reduce disease spread

• new wells built = access to clean water

• 4000 ppl from at risk villages trained in disaster risk management

• given stretchers, educational materials and loudspeakers for announcements/warnings

• telephone lines installed + ppl bought phones = improve communication

• people know where aid is

problems with management of nargis

• mangroves are natural defence but 83% have been cleared

• Burma military government were suspicious and rejected foreign aid and didn’t accept help until a week later from India

• warnings weren’t issued early enough despite warnings from India and Thailand, and they were unclear

hurricane sandy where and when

• Developed in the Caribbean (Haiti, Jamaica, Cuba, Bahamas) and moved north to US East Coast (Atlantic City, New Jersey) with most severe damage in New York and New Jersey

• Affected 24 US states

• October 22 - November 2, 2012

economic state of US in 2012

• GDP per capita: 50,700

• HDI: 0.92 (3rd overall)

• US was in period of fragile recovery following 2008 recession

• Storm hit Mid-Atlantic Region which is the nation’s most densely populated area

strength of hurricane sandy

• Transitioned from a category 3 hurricane to a massive ‘post-tropical’ storm

• At its largest it was over 900 miles in diameter and up to 100mph winds

primary social effects of hurricane sandy

• 159 deaths in US (285 total)

• 8.5 million ppl lost power

• 200,000 ppl without shelter

• 305,000 homes destroyed/damaged in NY

economic primary effects of sandy

• $65-70 billion damage 

• NYC subway and tunnels flooded

• 18,000 flights cancelled

environmental primary effects of sandy

• 14 foot storm surge in NYC

• Coastal erosion

• Destroyed crops

social secondary effects of sandy

• Displacement for months

• Spread of waterborne diseases in Caribbean

• Long term psychological trauma

economic secondary effects of sandy

• Loss of business revenue (Wall St closed for 2 days)

• Insurance premiums rose

• Gasoline shortages led to rationing 

environmental secondary effects of sandy

• Raw sewage (10 billion gallons) leaked into rivers 

• Destruction of coastal habitats eg Prime Hook Reg

political secondary effect of sandy

• Pressure on Obama during 2012 election

• ‘Build it Back’ Policy debates

• Reforms to FEMA flood maps

short term responses to sandy

• mass evacuation zones

• National guard was deployed for search and rescue

• FEMA set up 70+ disaster recovery centres

• The 12-12-12 concert raised over $50 million for relief

• Red Cross provided 7000 shelters

long term responses to sandy

• The Rebuild by Design competition funded projects like the ‘Big U’ a system of floodwalls and parks around Manhattan

• The Sandy Recovery Improvement Act 2013 streamlined how federal aid is delivered

• Building codes were updated to require essential equipment (boilers/generators) to be moved to higher floors.

• Large-scale beach nourishment and the construction of artificial dunes to act as natural barriers for future surges.