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GCSE | AQA | The Challenge of Natural Hazards | Case Study – HIC Earthquake

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Causes of earthquakes

Measuring earthquakes

What are the effects of earthquakes?

Responses to earthquakes

Case Study – HIC Earthquake

Case Study – LIC/NEE Earthquake

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Case Study – HIC Earthquake

Amatrice

Background

On 24 August 2016, a magnitude 6.2 earthquake hit central Italy near Norcia.
The earthquake’s epicentre was shallow, at a depth of 5.1 km.
It was the strongest quake in Italy since the 2009 L’Aquila earthquake, which killed over 300 people.
The Amatrice earthquake was felt over 100 miles away, including in Rome.
Amatrice, the town closest to the epicentre, suffered significant social, economic, and environmental impacts.
Italy’s seismic activity is due to its location on the Eurasian and African plate collision border, creating multiple fault lines.
Two major fault lines, north-south and east-west, contribute to the country’s geological instability.
The Apennines are stretching northwest at about 3 mm per year, causing pressure buildup along faults, leading to earthquakes when released.

Primary Effects

The primary effects of the Amatrice earthquake include:

Two hundred ninety-nine people died, 400 were injured, and 4454 were homeless.
293 historic buildings were damaged or destroyed, including the Basilica of San Francesco in Amatrice
Over half the buildings in Amatrice were damaged or destroyed. Despite their reinforcements, 80 per cent of the buildings in the old town were affected.
Although the government allocated €1 billion for building improvements since the 2009 L’Aquila earthquake, many properties did not meet seismic building standards. The uptake of the funding had been low.
Despite being restored in 2012, the school in Amatrice collapsed, indicating substandard building practices.

Secondary Effects

The secondary effects of the Amatrice earthquake include:

Landslides blocked roads, making access to the area difficult.
Local residents suffered psychological damage.
Individuals were reported to have been involved in looting.
Unsafe buildings led to the town centre being cordoned off. This had a negative impact on tourism.
Ninety per cent of barns and stalls for sheep, goats, and cattle in the affected area were destroyed, alongside the mechanical milking systems. As a result, farmers struggled to milk by hand, leaving their cattle at risk of mastitis, an udder-tissue disease. Farmers struggled to make a living in the aftermath of the earthquake.
The earthquake resulted in an estimated $11 billion in economic losses.

Immediate Responses

Ten thousand homeless people were accommodated in 58 tent camps.
Sports halls were converted to provide shelter, and hotels on the Adriatic coasts were used to home people temporarily.
Many rescue workers arrived within an hour of the earthquake. Five thousand soldiers, alpine guides, and the Italian Red Cross were involved in searching for survivors, providing food and water, and supplying tents. Seventy dog teams and twelve helicopters were involved in the rescue effort.
Six of the Vatican’s 37 firefighters have travelled to Amatrice to help civil protection workers look for survivors.
A temporary hospital was set up, and patients at Amazatrice Hospital, severely damaged during the earthquake, were transferred to a nearby hospital in Rieti.
Appeals were made by the national blood donation service to ensure demand was met.
Facebook activated safety check features so local people could inform family and friends they were safe.
Locals removed passwords from Wi-Fi at the Italian Red Cross’s request so rescue teams could communicate more effectively.
The Italian Government announced a €50 million emergency response. Taxes for residents were cancelled, and reconstruction work began immediately.

Long-term Responses

Students were educated in neighbouring schools, while 12 classrooms were constructed in prefabricated buildings in Amatrice.
Six months following the earthquake, the government promised to move people from temporary camps into wooden houses.
The cost of rebuilding was reduced by tax incentives, allowing 65 per cent of total renovation costs to be used as tax breaks.
Villages were rebuilt, with the building of the same character through a €42 million government initiative called ‘Italian Homes’.
A year on, 2.4 million tons of debris and rubble remained in the areas affected by the earthquake.

Chile

Background

At 3:34 am on 27 February 2010, an 8.8 magnitude earthquake struck off the coast of central Chile.
The earthquake happened at a destructive plate margin, where the Nazca Plate subducts the South American plate.
A series of smaller aftershocks followed it.
Tsunami warnings were issued due to waves travelling from the epicentre across the Pacific Ocean at speeds of about 800 km/h.

Primary Effects

Around 500 people died, and 12,000 people were injured. Over 800,000 people were affected.
Two hundred twenty thousand homes, 4500 schools, 56 hospitals, and 53 ports were destroyed.
Santiago Airport and the Port of Talahuanao were severely damaged.
The earthquake disrupted power, water supplies and communications across Chile.
The cost of the earthquake is estimated to be US$30 billion.

Secondary Effects

Tsunami waves devastated several coastal towns.
The tsunami struck several Pacific countries; however, warnings prevented a loss of life.
A fire at a Santiago chemical plant led to the local area being evacuated.
Landslides destroyed up to 1500 km of roads, cutting off remote communities for days.

Immediate Responses

Emergency services responded quickly.
International support provided field hospitals, satellite phones and floating bridges.
Within 24 hours, the north-south highway was temporarily repaired, allowing aid to be transported from Santiago to areas affected by the earthquake.
Within ten days, 90% of homes had restored power and water.
US$60 million was raised after a national appeal, which funded 30,000 small emergency shelters.

Long-term Responses

Chile’s government launched a housing reconstruction plan just one month after the earthquake to help nearly 200,000 families.
Chile’s strong economy reduced the need for foreign aid to fund rebuilding.
The recovery took over four years.

Christchurch

Background

The earthquake struck New Zealand’s South Island, 10km west of Christchurch, at 12:51 pm on 22nd February 2011, lasting just 10 seconds.
It measured 6.3 on the Richter Scale and had a shallow depth of 4.99 km.
The quake occurred along a conservative margin between the Pacific and Australasian plates.

Primary Effects

The primary effects included:

Christchurch, New Zealand’s second city, experienced extensive damage
185 people were killed
3129 people were injured
6800 people received minor injuries
100,000 properties were damaged, and the earthquake demolished 10,000
$28 billion of damage was caused
water and sewage pipes were damaged
the cathedral spire collapsed
liquefaction destroyed many roads and buildings
2200 people had to live in temporary housing

Secondary Effects

The secondary effects included:

five Rugby World Cup matches were cancelled
schools were closed for two weeks
1/5 of the population migrated from the city
many businesses were closed for a long time
two large aftershocks struck Christchurch less than four months after the city was devastated
Economists have suggested that it will take 50 to 100 years for New Zealand’s economy to recover
80% of respondents to a post-event survey stated that their lives had changed significantly since the earthquake

Immediate Responses

The immediate responses included:

around $6-7 million of aid was provided
International aid was provided
The Red Cross and other charities supplied aid workers
rescue crews from all over the world, including the UK, USA, Taiwan and Australia, provided support
more than 300 Australian police officers flew into Christchurch three days after the earthquake. They were sworn in with New Zealand policing powers and worked alongside New Zealand officers, enforcing law and order and reassuring the people of Christchurch
30,000 residents were provided with chemical toilets

Long-term Responses

The long-term responses included:

the construction of around 10,000 affordable homes
water and sewage were restored by August 2011
the New Zealand government provided temporary housing
Many NGOs provided support, including Save the Children
Canterbury Earthquake Recovery Authority was created to organise the rebuilding of the region. It had special powers to change planning laws and regulations.

Japan

Background

A 9.0 magnitude earthquake struck off Japan’s northeast coast, 250 miles from Tokyo, at a depth of 20 miles on March 11, 2011, at 2:46 pm local time.
Occurred 250 miles off the northeast coast of Honshu, Japan’s main island.
The earthquake resulted from the subduction of the Pacific Plate beneath the Eurasian Plate, a destructive plate margin.
Built-up friction over time led to a massive ‘megathrust’ earthquake.
Energy release was 600 million times the energy of the Hiroshima nuclear bomb.
Post-earthquake studies found a thin, slippery clay layer in the subduction zone, which allowed a significant plate displacement of 164 feet and contributed to the massive earthquake and tsunami.
The combination of the earthquake’s shallow depth and high magnitude generated a devastating tsunami.

Primary Effects

15,894 people died, and 26,152 were injured.
130,927 displaced, with 2,562 missing.
332,395 buildings, 2,126 roads, 56 bridges, and 26 railways damaged or destroyed.
300 hospitals damaged, 11 destroyed.
Over 4.4 million households in northeast Japan were without electricity.
Significant disruptions to Japan’s transport network.
Coastal land subsidence by over 50 cm in some areas.
Due to tectonic shifts, North East Japan moved 2.4 m closer to North America.
Pacific plate slipped westwards by 20 to 40 m.
Seabed near the epicentre shifted by 24 m; off Miyagi province by 3 m.
Earthquake altered Earth’s axis by 10 to 25 cm, shortening the day by 1.8 microseconds.
Liquefaction damaged 1,046 buildings in Tokyo’s reclaimed land areas.

Secondary Effects

The earthquake cost was estimated at US$235 billion, making it the most expensive natural disaster in history.
Tsunami waves up to 40m high caused widespread devastation, killing thousands and causing damage and pollution up to 6 miles inland; only 58% heeded tsunami warnings.
Fukushima nuclear power station experienced a meltdown in seven reactors; radiation levels spiked to over eight times the norm.
Transport networks in rural areas were severely disrupted; the tsunami destroyed major roads and railways and derailed trains.
The ‘Japan Move Forward Committee’ suggested young adults and teenagers could aid in rebuilding efforts.
Coastal changes included a 250-mile stretch of coastline dropping by 0.6m, allowing the tsunami to travel further inland.

Immediate Responses

The Japan Meteorological Agency issued tsunami warnings three minutes after the earthquake.
Scientists had been able to predict where the tsunami would hit after the earthquake using modelling and forecasting technology so that responses could be directed to the appropriate areas.
Rescue workers and around 100,000 members of the Japan Self-Defence Force were dispatched to help with search and rescue operations within hours of the tsunami hitting the coast.
Although many search and rescue teams focused on recovering bodies washing up on shore following the tsunami, some people were rescued from under the rubble with the help of sniffer dogs.
The government declared a 20 km evacuation zone around the Fukushima nuclear power plant to reduce the threat of radiation exposure to local residents.
Japan received international help from the US military, and search and rescue teams were sent from New Zealand, India, South Korea, China and Australia.
Access to the affected areas was restricted because many were covered in debris and mud following the tsunami, so it wasn’t easy to provide immediate support in some areas.
Hundreds of thousands of people who had lost their homes were evacuated to temporary shelters in schools and other public buildings or relocated to other areas.
Many evacuees came from the exclusion zone surrounding the Fukushima nuclear power plant. After the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear meltdown, those in the area had their radiation levels checked, and their health monitored to ensure they did not receive dangerous exposure to radiation. Many evacuated from the area around the nuclear power plant were given iodine tablets to reduce the risk of radiation poisoning.

Long-term Responses

One month post-disaster, Japan established the Reconstruction Policy Council for National Recovery, focusing on tsunami-resilient communities.
The government allocated 23 trillion yen for a ten-year recovery plan, introducing ‘Special Zones for Reconstruction’ to attract investments in Tohoku.
Coastal protection policies involving seawalls and breakwaters were adopted to withstand tsunamis with a 150-year recurrence interval.
Enacted ‘Act on the Development of Tsunami-resilient Communities’ prioritizing human life and promoting infrastructure and defence measures against major tsunamis.
Post-earthquake, Japan faced economic challenges, with the disaster impacting stock market values and raising concerns about economic recovery.
Infrastructure repair included 375 km of the Tohoku Expressway and Sendai Airport runway, with significant efforts from the Japanese Defence Force and the US Army.
Reconstruction efforts also focused on restoring energy, water supply, and telecommunications infrastructure, achieving significant restoration rates by November 2011.

L’Aquila

Background

A 6.3 magnitude earthquake hit L’Aquila, central Italy, on 6 April 2009, resulting in 309 fatalities.
The main shock occurred at 3.32 am, causing extensive damage to the 13th-century city, situated approximately 60 miles northeast of Rome.
This event was Italy’s most severe earthquake since the 1980 Irpinia earthquake.
The earthquake’s cause was normal faulting on the northwest-southeast-trending Paganica Fault, influenced by extensional tectonic forces from the Tyrrhenian Basin’s opening.
L’Aquila experienced several thousand foreshocks and aftershocks since December 2008, with over thirty exceeding a 3.5 Richter magnitude.

Primary Effects

The L’Aquila earthquake damaged or collapsed 3,000 to 11,000 buildings, injuring around 1,500 people, and made approximately 40,000 homeless.
Twenty children were among the 309 fatalities, and around 40,000 individuals were displaced, with 10,000 housed in coastal hotels.
The European Union estimated the earthquake’s total damage to be US$1.1 billion.
Historic buildings sustained severe damage, leading to widespread abandonment. Streets were blocked by fallen masonry, and a significant aftershock damaged the local hospital.
The Basilica of Saint Bernardino, a major Renaissance church, and its campanile were severely damaged.
Modern structures, including the earthquake-proof wing of L’Aquila Hospital, also suffered extensive damage, leading to its closure.
Displaced persons found temporary shelter in tented camps and hotels along the coast.

Secondary Effects

Aftershocks from the L’Aquila earthquake triggered landslides and rockfalls, damaging homes and transportation infrastructure.
A burst main water supply pipeline near Paganio caused a landslide and mudflow.
Student enrollment at L’Aquila University declined post-earthquake.
The scarcity of housing led to increased house prices and rents.
Much of the city’s central business district was cordoned off due to unsafe buildings, resulting in some areas remaining as ‘red zones’.
These ‘red zones’ have negatively impacted business, tourism, and income in the area.

Immediate Responses

Hotels sheltered 10,000 people; 40,000 tents were distributed to the homeless.
Some train carriages were repurposed as shelters.
Italian Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi offered his homes for temporary shelters.
Italian Red Cross, supported by dog units and ambulances, searched for survivors and set up a temporary hospital.
The Red Cross distributed water, meals, tents, and blankets; the British Red Cross raised £171,000.
Mortgages, Sky TV, gas, and electricity bills were suspended.
Italian Post Office provided free mobile calls, raised donations, and offered free delivery for small businesses.
L’Aquila declared a state of emergency, facilitating international aid from the EU and USA.
EU granted US$552.9 million from its Solidarity Fund for rebuilding efforts.
Disasters Emergency Committee (DEC) did not provide aid, deeming Italy capable with its resources and EU support.

Long-term Responses

A torch-lit procession and Catholic mass are held on the anniversary for remembrance.
Residents were exempt from taxes in 2010.
Students received free public transport, discounts on educational equipment, and an exemption from university fees for three years.
Home reconstruction took years; historical centres may take 15 years to rebuild.
Six scientists and one government official were initially convicted of manslaughter for not predicting the earthquake, sentenced to six years in prison, and fined millions in damages.
In November 2014, the convictions of the six scientists were overturned by Italian courts.

New Zealand 2016

Background

A magnitude-7.8 earthquake hit New Zealand’s South Island on November 14th, 2016, at 00.02 am, resulting in at least two fatalities.
The quake was felt up to 120 miles away, including in Wellington, the capital on the North Island.
A tsunami warning was issued two hours post-quake, advising people on the eastern coast to move inland or higher ground.

Primary Effects

Two people died.
Fifty people were injured.
Sixty people needed emergency housing.
Over 190km of roads and 200km of railway lines were destroyed
Twenty thousand buildings were damaged or destroyed.
Water, sewerage & power supplies were cut off.
Total damage is estimated at US $8.5 billion.

Secondary Effects

One hundred thousand landslides blocked roads and railways.
A landslide blocked the Clarence River, causing flooding. Ten farms were evacuated.
The earthquake triggered a tsunami of 5m, leaving debris up to 250 metres inland.

Immediate Responses

A tsunami warning was issued, and residents were told to reach higher ground.
Hundreds were housed in emergency shelters.
Two hundred vulnerable people were evacuated by helicopter.
Power was restored within hours.
International warships were sent to Kaikoura with food, medicine and portable toilets.
Temporary water supplies were set up.
Other countries sent food and medicine.

Long-term Responses

$5.3 million from the District Council for repairs and rebuilding.
Road and rail routes reopened within two years.
A relief fund was set up to provide basic supplies.
By March 2017, a permanent water main had been laid in Kaikoura. the new pipe was designed to move with any future earthquakes so it wouldn’t break

Responses to earthquakes

Case study – LIC/NEE earthquake