Tectonic case studies

What date and time was the Haiti earthquake?

12th January 2010 → around 17:00pm

What magnitude was the Haiti earthquake?

7.2

Were Haiti prepared for the earthquake?

• Haiti hadn’t been hit with an earthquake in recent years and especially not one with this high of a magnitude

• LIC → didn't have the economy to invest in disaster management strategies so they were not prepared.

• They had a lack of seismic monitoring, outdated building codes, poor enforcement, weak infrastructure, widespread poverty, and no national disaster plan

What was the development like in Haiti?

• Over ½ of the population were under the poverty line

• A lot of the population lived in informal housing on hills → collapse easily

Primary effects of the Haiti earthquake

• 100,000 homes destroyed

• 1.3 million made homeless

• 8 hospitals/healthcare centres destroyed/damaged

• Around 120,000 deaths

• Main shipping port + airport badly damaged

Secondary effects of the Haiti earthquake

• 2 million left without food/water

• Looting

• Cholera outbreak

• Tourists stopped visiting

• Frequent power cuts

• Aid couldn’t reach due to ports and airports being damaged

Causes of the main effects of the Haiti earthquake (5)

• Magnitude

• Development

• Predictability

• Governance

• Time of onset

What was the initial problem for the UN after the Haiti earthquake and how did they resolve it?

All communications were down and there was nobody to tell them what to do. They had to set up their own communications centre and create their own maps on where everything was located, they also set up makeshift hospitals

Long term responses in Haiti (5)

• New buildings are required to have some kind of earthquake protection (however slum areas still exist)

• Roads were rebuilt

• Education programs to teach how to respond to earthquakes were set up

• Planted trees to stabilise the soil/ground

• They made sure all areas had fresh water through filters

What was the extra issue after the Haiti earthquake?

When the UN peacemakers came to help they didn’t safely dispose of their waste at their base so it ended up leaking into the river. It contaminated the water that many people drunk, washed utensils with and bathed in → death from cholera

When and where was the China earthquake?

12th May 2008 - 2:30pm → Sichuan province

What magnitude was the china earthquake?

7.2 magnitude

Was China prepared for the earthquake?

China did have earthquake building codes and educational measures in place before the earthquake, however both were poorly enforced and unevenly implemented, especially in rural areas

What was development like in China?

Very mixed state of development

• areas that were built up often held up

• however rural/poor zones suffered the worst damage and highest casualties

• Sichuan wasn’t a wealthy province so there was less tax revenue to invest in management strategies

Effects of the China earthquake (6)

• Just under 88,000 deaths

• 5 million made homeless

• Many railways destroyed by landslides → train hit causing fire

• Public service buildings destroyed

• Two chemical factories collapsed releasing chemical gases

• Aftershocks

Causes of the main effects in China

• Development

• Location (rural area → hard to access)

• Magnitude

• Weak Rock

• Focus depth

Responses to the China earthquake

• Chinese government sent over 200,000 troops and volunteers

• Many foreign governments and aid organisations sent aid

• Temporary camps were established

• 250,000 evacuated

• Governments rebuilt buildings with stricter building codes and stronger materials

When was the New Zealand earthquake?

22nd February 2011 → 12:51pm

Was New Zealand prepared for the earthquake?

They had general earthquake preparedness however Christchurch was not expected to experience a major earthquake

• Older buildings had not been strengthened and the city wasn’t fully ready for the intense shaking

What was the development in New Zealand like?

A very highly developed, high income country. Christchurch was one of the major economic centres with well developed infrastructure, healthcare and education.

Primary effects of China Earthquake

• The old city centre core was made virtually unstable - 40% of the buildings damaged beyond repair

• 185 killed and 6,000 injured

• over $20 billion economic damage

Secondary effects of China Earthquake

• Landslides and a chunk of the Tasman glacier caved into the sea

• Rugby world cup was moved to another location

• Many central shops/offices/businesses closed (loss of income)

Causes of the main effects in China

• Focus

• Older buildings

• Ground conditions (liquefaction)

Immediate responses of the China earthquake?

• Search and rescue → police, fire crews and the army helped rescue people from collapsed buildings

• Field hospitals were set up

• Thousands of people were evacuated from unsafe buildings

• Water tankers and portable toilets were delivered to communities

• Electricity was restored in a few days

Long term responses of the China earthquake

• Rebuilding the city → inspecting buildings whether they were safe, repairable, or had to be demolished and stronger building codes were introduced

• Red zone creation → government declared certain badly damaged areas where rebuilding was not allowed