4. An Earthquake: Kashmir, Pakistan

Causes:

• In 2005, an earthquake measuring 7.6 on the Richter scale hit Kashmir, Pakistan.

• The Indian and Eurasian plates collided, causing an earthquake.

• Had a shallow focus (15 km below the surface)

Impacts

Short-term effects:

• Large cracks in the ground were formed

• Many buildings collapsed throughout the whole city

• Many fires were ignited

Long-term effects:

• The sewage pipes exploded and contaminated the water pipes

• Since it was in the middle of the winter, the hard temperatures killed many people due to the freezing temperatures.

Response

Short-term management:

• The government sent the army, firefighters and the police to help rescue people.

• Other countries sent food and shelter to help the victims.

• The citizens were evacuated out of the city.

Long-term management:

• Many of the public buildings were rebuilt.

• The government invested money into rebuilding buildings to make them earthquake-proof.

• Multiple jobs were created to rebuild the city.

• Many seismometers were built to detect any future earthquakes.