By:Josephine, Piers, Luke and Steven

GEOGRAPHY PRESENTATION ON AN EARTHQUAKE IN AN LEDC: 2004 INDIAN OCEAN EARTHQUAKE  

  

Overview of earthquakes in generalAn earthquake is a result of a sudden release of energy in the Earth's crust caused by the increased tension of tectonic plates.  This release in tension creates seismic waves which create vibrations that we can feel on land. These vibration can be extremely vigorous and cause a lot of damage e.g destroying buildings, creating cracks in roads

An overview: Countries around the plate boundary• The countries that are located around the plate boundary are Indonesia, Sri Lanka, India, and Thailand. It was due to this that these countries were the hardest hit when the earthquake and tsunami occurred

The earthquake and facts about it

• Date: 00:58 UTC on Sunday the 26th of December 2004 Names of plates involved: Indian Plate slides under the overriding Burma Plate (a section of the Eurasian plate)Type of plate boundary: Destructive plate boundaryEpicentre: off the west coast of Sumatra, IndonesiaMagnitude: -Mercalli scale: 9.1-9.3  - Richter scale: 7.3Major countries affected: Indonesia was the hardest-hit country, followed by Sri Lanka, India, and Thailand

The tsunami

The earthquake occurred in the middle of the ocean. This was a problem as this sudden movement in the earth caused a wave. This wave was travelling at a high speed and was able to gain a lot of energy. This high energy had the power to cause mass destruction. This would increase the damage already caused by the earthquake

Image showing spread of tsunami

Lack of warning systemsThere was a large gap between the actual earthquake and the tsunami. Even though this was true most people were caught by surprise. This was due to the fact that there was no tsunami warning system in that area of the ocean. This was because tsunami's in this area were quite rare. This was changed after the earthquake in 2005 as the UN took immediate action and invested into a warning system.

Consequences: Positive

• Earthquakes bring up old land to the surface for scientists to study. This can increase the likelihood of finding oil reserves• It brought the world community

together and encouraged humanitarian aid

• Earthquakes relieve the tension building up between tectonic plates. • The government invested

money so that future constructions would be better able to withstand earthquakes as well as rebuilding houses for those who were left homeless• Scientists have started to

monitor seismic activity across the fault line in case of another risk of an earthquake

Short Term Long Term

Consequences: Negative

• Death- 230 210-280 000 deaths, unable to get an exact figure as the disappearances were so great (sixth deadliest natural disaster in history) as well as many people injured.

• Electricity, Water and Transport communications were all greatly damaged and many people were in despair and could not contact anyone.

• Fear and distress to all people affected- 532,898 lives were caused much trouble as many people affected had to be relocated to places with little space. Many people in one place can then lead to spread of disease.

• Destruction of housing and livelihoods as well as bridges, schools and hospitals. The tsunami attacked many fishing boats on the shore and affected the fishers (fishing is a major source of income). Communities at sea-level, often with poorly constructed homes, were completely washed away by the tsunami. The powerful waves had an extreme impact on these areas, washing away two thirds of their inhabitants, boats and gear.

• Loss Of Tourism- Prior to the 2004 tsunami, tourism, fishing, and agricultural industries were the major sources of income for the provinces along the Coast. Tourism was the biggest income generator for people in this area.

Most of the beach front resorts were directly affected by the tsunami. The fishing industry was also impacted with losses that included fishing boats, ponds cages, and other aquatic necessities which also negatively impacted local economies. A tourist infested resort named phuket lost over 100.000 dollars.

• Many people were left homeless due to all of the destruction of housing and money would have to be spent on new housing. Money which the government could not afford to spend.

• Most fresh water sources had been polluted by the water from the sea, causing a shortage of drinking water as well as destroying local eco-systems. This also caused a hygienic problem as well as health problem.

• There was a major food shortage as all major trading routes were destroyed. Food had to be flown in by the red cross and other humanitarian agencies.

Short Term Long Term

Media Coverage

This event was covered in the media worldwide. This was because it was the sixth most deadly natural disaster recorded in history with a magnitude of 9.3. It also got a lot of media coverage because many humanitarian agencies and the UN got involved to help all the people affected as well as the fact that a proportion of the dead were international tourists.

References• https://encrypted-tbn1.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9

GcT8X8lSaRCfr8tDjxRq8fapIr9_qy9TRbprzBQBvSLEbZs196NXkA• https://www.istockphoto.com/stock-photo-12473058• https://encrypted-tbn0.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9

GcSLIUFPQCBFd4gJPyAO9vHoSGhWbHhvObxu2zIW2zcq45-RWmRhJQ• http://www.learner.org/interactives/dynamicearth/images

/new_map.jpg&w=695&h=405&ei=26R9UJGgNITAtAbun4GAAg&zoom=1&iact=hc&vpx=301&vpy=198&dur=8&hovh=172&hovw• http://

www.rotarycolombocentral.org/web-data/Components/2005/tsunami%20wars/second/articleTsunami2.htm• http://

en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:2004_Indonesia_Tsunami_Complete.gif• https://encrypted-tbn2.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9

GcR6ZcItJ5du2kclRgYdjIIX7WH88onhty4TlKNTy6-ODQKPHuN_