Option D: Hazards and disasters risk assessment and response 2010 Haiti Earthquake 6th deadliest earthquake Date:

e: January 12, 2010

Factors affecting earthquake damage: Physical Distance from the epicenter: near the town of Logne; 25 km west of Port-au-Prince, Haitis capital Magnitude and depth: It was a shallow-focus earthquake (13km) measuring 7.0

on the Richter Scale The energy released was very close to the surface. Roads: Roads were blocked with road debris or the surfaces broken. The main road linking Port-au-Prince with Jacmel remained blocked ten days after the earthquake. Airport: The control tower at Toussaint L'Ouverture International Airport was seriously damaged. Planes carrying lifesaving medical supplies and equipment continue to be turned away. Communications infrastructures: The public telephone system was not available. Two of Haiti's largest cellular telephone providers, Digicel and Comcel Haiti, both reported that their services had been affected by the earthquake. Effects of previous natural disasters: Haiti was still struggling to recover from

the effects of a series of hurricanes in 2008. (and lots more other hazards) Human Low construction standards: Buildings were constructed with materials poorly suited for an area prone to earthquakes. Structures lacked framing, were built from poured concrete slabs, and were weakened by the addition of sand to the concrete to reduce the costs. Structures were raised wherever they can fit; some buildings were built on slopes with insufficient foundations or smooth steel works. Poor medical facilities: There was a severe shortage of doctors, in which only about 1 in 100, 000 Haitians have an access to a doctor. All of Haiti's hospitals were demolished and inoperable so that they were unable to assist those requiring medical attention. The Argentine military field hospital was the only one available until 13 January. Poor housing conditions: About 2 million Haitians lived in squatters. The slums were made up of buildings cobbled together from materials like corrugated iron and cardboard, unable to withstand the forces of earthquakes.

Limited governmental efficiency: Several parliamentarians were trapped in the Presidential Palace. Offices and records were destroyed. Some high-ranking government workers lost family members, or had to tend to wounded relatives. There remained confusion as to who was in charge and no single group had organized relief efforts as of 16 January. Sewage: The large number of bodies that was not buried, the bodies that were decaying, the fecal matter, etc., accelerated the sewage problem, causing additional disease to everyone involved. Sporadic violence and looting: Survivors roamed through the ruins as anger grew amid desperate shortages of food, water and medical supplies. Food trucks were rushed by hungry people clamoring for nutritional biscuits and water purification tablets. This was worsened as most of the local police force was dead, including its chief of police. Delayed aid: More than 6 months after the quake, less than 1/10th of the money that was pledged by foreign governments to the United Nations special fund was received; and of all these nations, only four had actually sent any of the pledged money: Australia, Brazil, Estonia, and Norway

Impacts: 222,570 people killed, 300,000 injured, 1.3 million displaced in the Port-au-Prince area and in much of southern Haiti 250,000 residences and 30,000 commercial buildings had collapsed or were severely damaged, including the Presidential Palace, the National Assembly building, the Port-au-Prince Cathedral, and the main jail Many victims slept in the streets either because their houses had been destroyed or they feared standing structures would not withstand aftershocks. At least 52 aftershocks measuring 4.5 or greater on the Richter Scale

Responses: Medical treatment: Doctors Without Borders carried out surgeries and amputations for many victims with any available resources, such as constructing splints out of cardboard and reusing latex gloves. The hospitals in Dominican Republic were made available. International Red Cross set up two first-aid posts there and distributed first-aid kits. Traffic control: The US Air Force assumed control at Toussaint L'Ouverture International Airport. The airport in Dominican Republic was opened to receive aid. The Republic also provided logistics support and ensured the coverage of relief operations in border provinces.

Food and water: Over the first weekend 130,000 food packets and 70,000 water containers were distributed to Haitians. Financing: The Central Emergency Response Fund allocates US$10 million for the earthquake response immediate after the quake. Donors pledge a total of US$9.9 billion, of which US$5.3 billion is pledged over two years, in support of the Haitian governments Action Plan for National Recovery and Development. Adoptions: Unicef and SOS Children urged adoption of 400 children by families in the U.S. and the Netherlands from Haiti. Several organizations planned an airlift of thousands of orphaned children to South Florida on humanitarian visas Military personnel: MINUSTAH and the UN civilian police provided support on Haitian National Police. Over 20 countries sent military personnel to the country, with Canada, the United States (20,000 troops) and the Dominican Republic providing the largest contingents. There was a simultaneous investment in courts and prisons.

Earthquake in Kobe, Japan January 17, 1995; Richter Scale 7.2 4600 people killed, 40,000 injured, 70,000 houses destroyed Buildings of strong earthquake-resistance standards High-rise buildings had to have flexible steel frames and smaller building shad to have concrete frames with reinforcing bars to absorb shockwaves. Houses were not to be built from brick or wood but with fire-resistant materials. Structures should be built on solid rock not clay as water rises during an earthquake causing clay to liquefy into mud. Readiness of emergency personnel and apparatus Over 1.13 million volunteers arrived to help local communities. Laptop computers were ready to be used in relief efforts to collect local community information such as missing-person reports and availability of water, shelter and food. The computer operators created a geographical information system and put the data online for everyone to access. A government satellite communication system helped as well. Existence of prediction systems Sensitive seismometers were installed so that earth tremors, pressure and any release of radon gas could be measured. Map epicentres and frequencies of previous

earthquakes were used to see if there was a location and time pattern of quake events. Part of the residents was alerted by the early warning system beforehand. Hurricane Katrina Date: Areas affected: 23rd August (formed) 30th August (dissipated), 2005 Bahamas, South Florida, Cuba, Louisiana (especially Greater New Orleans), Mississippi, Alabama, Florida Panhandle, most of eastern North America The highest- 280 km/h 1,836 confirmed US$90.1 billion (by 2010)

Wind speed: Fatalities: Damage:

Over 1830 people killed, US $81.2 million damaged Concentration of human activity Densely-populated growing cities such as Mississippi, Louisiana and Florida concentrate along the coastlines, particularly in large urban areas. As more people and infrastructures move into harm's way, storms are likely to become more destructive. Clearance of natural wetlands for commercial activities In the last 100 years, the construction of levees and canals turned thousands of square miles of wetland habitat into open water. As these habitats serve as natural speed bumps to approaching hurricanes by starving them of warm ocean water and creating physical barriers to surging flood waters, the loss of marshland and wetland worsened the impacts. Cyclone Bijli, Bangladesh April 14, 2009 4 directly killed Time allowed in carrying out evacuation Solid preparations along the coastal belt were immediately done when predictions of full force of the cyclone were available. Some 600,000 people were evacuated by the Bangladesh authorities from coastline districts to cyclone shelters in Cox's Bazar several days prior to the cyclone.

International aid in hazard management Cyclone Preparedness Programme (CPP) was set up by the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies. Storm warnings based on satellite were relayed by radio to 33,000 village-based volunteers. 40,000 volunteers from the Bangladeshi Red Cross were trained to rescue people, evacuate them to custom-built cyclone shelters, and assist in relief efforts. Drought in China The 2010 China drought and dust storms a series of severe droughts during the spring of 2010 that affected more than 10 provinces such as Yunna, Sichuan and Chongging in China as well parts of South east Asia including Vietnam and Thailand. there has been referred to as the worst in a century in southwestern China.

Severity level

People and crops affected More than 60 million people are affected and it is estimated that billions of dollars worth of crops are now ruined. Commodities including sugar cane, flowers, tea, fruit, potatoes, rapeseed, medicinal ingredients, tobacco, wheat, rubber and coffee have been severely affected with output reduced by as much as 50%. More than 20 million people are left without adequate drinking water in Yunnan, Guangxi, Guizhou, Sichuan and Chongqing, and many wells in Yunnan have gone dry. The drought affected over 28 million farmers, and a grain shortage has affected 8 million people. About 4.348 million ha of cropland were affected by the drought in Southwestern China and 942,000 ha would yield no harvest by late March, according to China's State Commission of Disaster Relief. Water Shortage Asia's biggest waterfall, Huangguoshu, has been reduced to a trickle. More than 90% of the rivers and reservoirs downstream have dried up. Around 3,600 rivers and brooks in Guizhou have run dry

The source of the Pearl River's headwaters was cut off, and its outflow was severely reduced.

Many wells have gone dry in the south Relocation of people Thousands of people will have to be relocated from remote hillsides if the drought continues. In Yunnan province, some villagers are travelling for up to three hours to try to find water in valleys. About 5,000 villagers in Yunnan Province have left their homes from the drought for streams near Himalayan foothills, and many residents in Guangxi who are able to leave have also left.

Economic Economic damage to agriculture and failed electricity generation from hydroelectric dams from the drought was estimated to be at least $3.5 billion USD. Crop shortages in China could affect prices around the world. According to the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization, the potential of damage to China's wheat harvest was likely a factor in an increase of worldwide wheat prices in early 2011. The effects of El Nio are believed to be contributing to the drought, which may be exacerbated by global warming and resulting climate change.

Cause of drought

Temperature Increase Prior to the drought in Yunnan and Guizhou, the China Meteorological Administration recorded temperatures averaging 2C warmer than normal over six months and half the average precipitation for the past year across the region, both unprecedented since at least the 1950s. Reduced precipitation Large areas of south-west China have not had proper rainfall since October in 2009.

The lack of precipitation caused lower than normal snow cover, reducing the amount of moisture in the ground, causing even more serious drought. Dust storm Spring dust storms are common in China, but have become more

severe

in

recent

years

due sprawl and

to desertification, deforestation, drought, urban overgrazing. Why so severe?

The more frequent dust storm brought away the moisture in and dry the land. The problems are compounded by the growing water demands of cities and industry. Restrictions on using water from certain sources, intended to go to industrial or residential developments, for increasing the effects of the drought on their crops. For example, on the outskirts of Sishui, villagers complain that they are not allowed to use the Si river that runs past their homes because the water is earmarked for the Huajin paper mill and an artificial lake in a nearby urban development.

Some farmers affected by the drought criticized the government for not doing enough to support the agriculture industry during the drought, or for giving aid too late. officials have denied reports of drought refugees leaving their villages.

The Bhopal Disaster On the night of 2nd-3rd December, 1984 Union Carbide India Limited (UCIL) pesticide plant in Bhopal, Madhya Pradesh, India Death toll: 2,259 (official) Date: Place: A leak of methyl isocyanate (MIC) gas and other chemicals from the plant High reactivity- high reactive rate with a large range of chemicals Highly irritant Very soluble in water, vaporizing at almost the same temperature as the human body Reacted with water and vaporized Main pipe system running throughout the factory At the molecular level things happen extremely fast

Causes of the disaster Instrument readings were taken every 2hours, rather than the required 1hour readings. The flare tower and the vent gas scrubber had been out of service for five months before the disaster. The gas scrubber did not treat escaping gases with sodium hydroxide, which might have brought the concentration down to a safe level. To reduce energy costs, the refrigeration system, designed to inhibit the volatilization of MIC, had been left idlethe MIC was kept at 20 degrees Celsius, not the 4.5 degrees advised by the manual, and some of the coolant was being used elsewhere. Slip-blind plates that would have prevented water from pipes being cleaned from leaking into the MIC tanks through faulty valves were not installed. The pressure gauge of MIC tank had been malfunctioning for roughly a week. Other tanks had been used for that week, rather than repairing the broken one, which was left to stew. The build-up in temperature and pressure is believed to have affected the magnitude of the gas release. Carbon steel valves were used at the factory, even though they corrode when exposed to acid. On the night of the disaster, a leaking carbon steel valve was found, allowing water to enter the MIC tanks. The pipe was not repaired because it was believed it would take too much time and be too expensive. The water curtain, designed to neutralize any remaining gas, was too short to reach the top of the flare tower, from where the MIC was billowing.

Factors of the high death toll There was no warning for people surrounding the plant as the emergency sirens had been switched off. Medical staff was unprepared for the thousands of casualties. Doctors and hospitals were not informed of proper treatment methods for MIC gas inhalation. They were told to simply give cough medicine and eye drops to their patients. There were a lack of information and even misinformation. The Bhopal plant medical doctor did not have proper information about the properties of the gases.

Effects Choking, reflexogenic circulatory collapse and pulmonary oedema caused deaths.

170,000 people were treated at hospitals and temporary dispensaries. 2,000 buffalo, goats, and other animals were collected and buried. Supplies, including food, became scarce owing to suppliers' safety fears. Fishing was prohibited as well, which caused further supply shortages. 100,000 to 200,000 people had permanent injuries. Reported symptoms were eye problems, respiratory difficulties, immune and neurological disorders, cardiac failure secondary to lung injury, female reproductive difficulties and birth defects among children born to affected women. There was land pollution due to uncontrolled disposal of hazardous waste. Environmental awareness and activism in India increased significantly. The Environment Protection Act was passed in 1986, creating the Ministry of Environment and Forests and strengthening India's commitment to the environment. Under the new act, the ministry was given overall responsibility for administering and enforcing environmental laws and policies.

Due to the rapid industrial growth in rehabilitation after the disaster, the GDP per capita has increased from $1,000 in 1984 to $2,900 in 2004 and it continues to grow at a rate of over 8% per year

Gulf of Mexico Oil Spill Location: Spill date: Gulf of Mexico near Mississippi River Delta, United States 20 April 2010 15 July 2010

Casualties: 13 dead (11 killed on Deepwater Horizon, 2 additional oil-related deaths), 17 injured Oil spill is the release of liquid petroleum hydrocarbon into the ocean or coastal waters, due to human activity mainly sinking or leakage of oil carrying vessels or oil pipelines, countries at war, illegal dumping by industries, terrorist activities and natural disaster. Oil from a pipeline in the Gulf Coast is leaking oil into the Gulf of Mexico- Rates of leakage range from 5000 barrels a day (BP estimate) to 70000 barrels a day (Purdue estimate), which would make this spill even worse than the Exxon Valdez spill in 1989. An explosion on the BP rig on April 20 2010 caused the rig to sink on April 22 and take 11 workers lives.