case study = America - Storm Sandy

    Cards (26)

    • 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.