case study = America - Storm Sandy

• Sandy formed over the Bahamas on October 21st, 2012
• The storm was caused by the collision between two weather systems, one from the west and another from the east.
• The hurricane was named 'Frankenstorm' due to its size and strength.
• The hurricane made landfall at Atlantic City, New Jersey on October 30th, 2012.
• Tropical cyclones can be classified as either typhoons or hurricanes depending on their location.
• Hurricanes are tropical storms that form over warm ocean water with winds greater than 74 mph (35m/s).
• Wind speeds reached up to 95 miles per hour (mph) during the storm.
• Storm surges occur when high tides coincide with strong winds pushing seawater onto land.
• Over 8 million homes lost power as a result of the storm.
• Sandy had an unusually large diameter, covering more than 800 miles across.
• Sandy caused $65 billion worth of damage across eight states.
• New York suffered $33 billion in damages from Hurricane Sandy.
• start - October 22 2012
• where - East coast of USA
• started as a category 3 storm and lost energy as it moves to the north
• size was 1500km so impacted wide area
• Sandy unexpectedly turned NE instead of NW, straight to New York and New Jersey
• Short term impacts

  • death toll - 130
  • 100k homes destroyed/damaged, 55k people reloacated
  • 20k flights were cancelled and tunnels/train station were flooded
  • 13.38 ft of water in floods
  • 10bn garbage released - 94% in the sea
  • trees were ripped from the ground
• long term impacts :

  • $8mil hospital damage
  • crime in homes/hotels and in food store increased
  • fuel hard to find
  • metro system closed
  • 70% of crops destroyed
  • fires, storm surges and wave erosion
  • 0.8% uptick in economy, telecommunication effects economy
  • $20bil insurance
  • small businesses destroyed (they can't rebuild it again, too expensive)
• immediate response :

  • patients evacuated
  • 76 evacuation shelters
  • firetruck/ambulance have to relocate
  • those evacuated go inland
  • sea search - helicopters, national guard and airforce out to help people
  • FEMA - shipped 20mil litres of water, 16mil meals, 1.7 mil blankets, 79k cots and 568 generators
  • RED CROSS - bays of clothing offered, 11k people sheltered across 16 states
• long term response :

  • $3.8 bil cost for rebuilding
  • $280 mil - house owner payment
  • 40k people rehoused - not homeless anymore (relatively quick)
  • to stop this amount of damage next time they have satellite images to watch out for sea formed hurricanes (natural hurricane centres)
  • $40mil raised for hurricane saving aid
  • $50.5bil given by the government
  • takes time to reconstruct everything damaged
• people were given 4.5 days of notice to evacuate
• warning/response:

  • text message warnings
  • police encouraging people to leave
  • 50% of those affected didn't need/want any help/support from charities
  • co-ordinated support from state/federal government
• people now rebuilding house to be storm proof - they're paying half themselves the other half is covered by insurance

  • making house be higher from ground, with flood vents.

  On a larger scale in city front they're making buildings further back, pavements will be grated downwards so flood water flows back and vegetation which will help absorb the flood water
• tropical cyclone = intense circular storm that originates over warm tropical oceans.
• tropical cyclone = intense circular storm that originates over warm tropical oceans.