Case Studies

• UK STORM DESMOND 2015: IMPACTS

  • Social => 50 000 left without power, 1 person drowned, 1000 evacuated, 515 properties flooded
  • Economic => £ 3 billion in damage, 515 properties destroyed
  • Environmental => national park and tourism destroyed
• UK STORM DESMOND 2015: RESPONSE

  • long term => Cumbrian Flood Partnership Group -> publish plan on how to improve, service cuts to renew flood defences
  • short term => Cumbria Flood Recovery Fund 2015 gave £500 000 to clear up costs, NGOs gave evacuation aidm Keswick Flood Action Group pressure authorities to give £2 million to help with flood defence upgrades
• TOHOKU 2011 IMPACTS:

  • Social => ~19 000 dead or missing, 100 000 children seperated from families, buried people in mass graves
  • Economic => US$ 300 billion in damage, sony stopped exporting causing a stock market crash, 4.4 million businesses and homes lost power
  • Political => move against nuclear power, government debt increased
  • Environmental => contamination of farmland
• TOHOKU 2011 RESPONSES:

  • Short Term => emergency council called by the prime minister, rescue as many stranded
  • Long Term => rebuild sea wall and other defences, help re build the economy of the worst afflicted areas
  • Preparedness => bullet trains stopped, alerted 20 mins before tsunami, sinces the 1970s there have been aseismic bulidings
  • Mitigation => better sea walls, hazards maps
• HURRICANE KATRINA 2005 IMPACTS:

  • Social => 1800 died, 80% of new orleans flooded, mass looting, 300 000 homes destroyed, 3 million with no electricity, increased racial tensions
  • Economic => damage overall was US$150 billion, fuel prices rose (over US$70 an oil barrel), insurance companies stopped giving payouts
  • Environmental => 217 square miles of land changed, 43 days to clean raw sewage leaks, 7 million gallons of oils spills
• HURRICANE KATRINA 2005 RESPONSES AND CRITICISMS:

  • evacuations => 60 000 refused to leave, the super dome could only hold 800 although 30 000 turned up, coast guard rescued 33 500 people
  • federal aid => 140 000 temporary homes, Bush administration accused of racism
  • NHC => simulated where the storm would hit and successfully warned areas
• CYCLONE WINSTON 2016: IMPACTS

  • Social => 350 000 significantly affected, 80% lost power, 44 killed
  • Economic => US$1.4 billion damage, food prices rose, US$54 million loss in crops
  • Environmental => lost US$54 million in crops
• CYCLONE WINSTON 2016: RESPONSE

  • short term ==> relief from NGOS, New Zealand gave NZ$ 4.7 million, state of emergency for 2 months, well prepared due to monitoring, 1 168 000 water purification tablets
  • long term ==> FRANZ agreement ( France, Australia, New Zealand) 1992, aid from UN, Fiji government gave US$ 9 million to countries for reconstruction
• MT. NYIRAGONGO 2002: IMPACTS

  • social => 250 deaths (200 from CO), poor hygiene in refugee camps, families split
  • economic => men willing to work for $1.50, loss of food shops, homelessness
  • environmental => loss of crops and live stock
• MT. NYIRAGONGO 2002: RESPONSES:

  • short term ==> red alert for the capital (Goma), evacuation of 40 000, UN gave 260 tonnes of food, WHO gave 28 000 kids against measles
  • long term ==> preparation (evacuation drills), prediction #9scientists captured by paramilitary in Rwanda), mitigation (community officers relay information)
• ALBERTA WILDFIRE 2016: IMPACTS

  • Social => 90 000 evacuated, jobs affected, 24 000 homes destroyed, contaminated water supply
  • Economic => CA $9 billion in damage, 1/3 of workers evacuated
  • Environmental => toxins including mercury released, ash into rivers, toxic waste
  • Political => impacts of climate change, phased re entry
• ALBERTA WILDFIRE 2016: RESPONSE

  • CA$ 1250 per adults, CA$ 500 per dependent
  • Canadian Red Cross CA$50 million
  • nearby governments accepted evacuees
  • new road built out of the city
  • Prime Minister promised long term aid
  • help from USA, Russia and Australia ==> helicopter, water bombers and fire fighters
  • careful monitoring
• MOORLAND FIRE 2018: IMPACTS

  • social => 5 million faced dangerous pollution levels () exceeding WHO
  • economic => £21.1 million
  • environmental => 8km^2 destroyed
• MOORLAND FIRE 2018: RESPONSE

  • 34 homes evacuated
  • fire engines carried 1800 litres of water
  • roads were used as fire breaks
  • Peak District Rangers helped fire fighters understand the wind direction
• EYJAFJALLAJOKULL 2010: IMPACTS

  • Social => 700 people evacuated, drinking water was contaminated, respiratory diseases became common
  • Economic => 100 000 jet engines were unusable, Europe lost US$ 2.6 Billion in GDP
  • Environmental => ash made land more fertile, cows killed due to fluoride
• EYJAFJALLAJOKULL 2010: RESPONSE

  • short term ==> 700 evacuated, exclusion zone, 100 000 flights stopped
  • long term ==> health effects, rebuilt river banks
  • preparedness ==> texts sent within 30 minutes, diggers in position to dam rivers
• HAITI EARTHQUAKE 2010: IMPACTS

  • Social => 220 000 lost their life, 4000 escaped prison, 30 000 commercial buildings collapsed, 2 million were displaced
  • Economic => US$ 8.5 billion in damage, communications were lost
  • Environmental => rivers polluted, swathes of land for agriculture was destroyed
• HAITI EARTHQUAKE 2010: RESPONSE

  • Short-term ==> 1.5 million received emergency shelter, medical aid, Hope For Haiti ==<> $58 million, 4 million received food aid
  • Long-term ==> poor governance, environmental clean up, $13.5 billion in aid pledged
• MOORLAND FIRE UK 2018: background information

  • tourism
  • most well known for the Moorside murders
  • North West England
  • believed to be from arson
  • 22 year old man arrested
  • group of males lighting bonfire
  • close to communication masts
  • 3 sq mile pockets of fire
• ALBERTA WILDFIRE 2016: background information

  • Natural el nino cycle
  • unseasonably warm -> 32.8 degrees
  • Population was 4 million
  • forced 90 000 to evacuate
  • no deaths or injuries
  • 6 000 000 hectares of land destroyed
  • jumped a river
  • lightning led to more fires
  • precise cause remains unknown
• HURRICANE KATRINA: background information

  • 454 845 population
  • New Orleans was located between the River Mississippi and Lake Pontchartrain --> built below sea and river level with the delta shrinking
  • started pumping in 1895
  • GDP of $55 347
• Philippines + Japan are multihazardous
• BOXING DAY TSUNAMI 2004 -> impacts and effects

  • Primary effects: ground shaking, schools destroyed, immediate deaths, shocked people, slope failure sets off landslides and avalanches, liquefactions, damage to power stations, panic and fear
  • Secondary effects: fires, diseases, emergency services hindered, education suspended, NGOS provide tents, bodies cremated, further death, buildings subside, civil disorder
  • Long-term impacts: lost generation, high unemployment rates, trauma, emergency homes become permanent, loss of farmland, repairs difficult, problem restoring trust
• BOXING DAY TSUNAMI 2004 -> key information

  • magnitude: 9
  • date: 26/12/2004
  • location: subduction of Indian plate under Burma plate -> large mega thrust
  • 300 000 lost their lives
  • lasted 2-3 minutes
  • $5.5 billion in cost of recovery
  • Thailand's fishing industry lost £226 million
• BOXING DAY TSUNAMI 2004-> why were the impacts so bad

  • no warning system in place
  • lack of education of tsunami indicators
  • low lying land and poorly constructed buildings meant that the wave destroyed a large proportion of buildings and homes
  • large settlements near the coast
• BOXING DAY TSUNAMI 2004 -> response

  • immediate response: multinational relief efforts between 160 aid organisations and UN agencies, foreign military troops provided assistance (Australian air force), refugee camps, food and water supplies, emergency medical supplies
  • long term response: large scale programmes of reconstruction were implemented, Tamil Tigers slowed aid to Sri Lanka, existing government prejudices, tourist areas were quickly rebuilt, education, practice drill, UN set up tsunami warning system -> up to the individual country