Going Global and World At Risk casestudies unit 1

WAR: Haiti, 2004: (Hurricane Jeanne)

• 3,000 Haitians died

•  ¼ million Haitians were left homeless and starving. Hard to give supplies due to floodwaters or mudslides blocking roads.

• Storm killed 20 people in Dominican Republic

• Poverty stricken (lack of resources) therefore causing deforestation from locals to make charcoal. This means there was nothing to stop rainwater from flooding low lying areas. (for every tree planted, 7 are knocked down)

• In 1950s, 25% of Haiti was covered in thick forest whereas now there is less than 2%

• Poor level of education makes it difficult to develop effective communities.

• 100mm of rain in 24 hours

Caribbean, 2004: (savage storms)

• Hit by a series of tropical storms e.g. hurricanes Charley, Fran, Ivan and Jeanne.

• Cuba: Has a world class meteorological instituted which produces computer models and reaches people through media (within 48 of the storm arriving the vulnerable are contacted and escape routes planned. Within 12 hours people can be evacuated to shelters using public transport). All of the population is educated on the dangers and due to this, only 4 people died in the series of storms.

• Jamaica: Due to 1998 Hurricane Gillbert, the country is more prepared with community disaster-response officers and plans. They are aware of the houses most vulnerable and they have Red Cross emergency helpers, well equipped wardens and designated shelters. They have practise drills and due to the preparedness, only 12 people died during hurricane Ivan.

• Dominican Republic: Trying to respond to hazards by using maps and organised visits from Red Cross outreach workers. Main hazard are hurricanes therefore defence focus is on wind. The country lacks short-wave radios and key equipment. 20 people died by drowning in hurricane Jeanne due to floods.

Disaster hotspot: Philippines

• Consists of over 7,000 islands. It lies in a belt of tropical cyclones and by an active plate boundary (dense oceanic plate is being subducted beneath the Eurasian plate.

• Suffers hot climate and heavy rainfall which leads to flooding and therefore cause landslides because of deforestation.

• Middle-income country with a growing young population, population density is high (240 people per km² with up to 2000 people per km²). The people are poor and live on the coast which makes them vulnerable to tsunamis.

• On average 10 typhoons occur each season.

• In response, the government has established organisations to carry out forecasting, warnings, hazard risk assessments, disaster training and education. For example, the Philippine institute of volcanology and seismology.

• Deaths (occurred) - Drought: 8 (6), Earthquake: 9,580 (21), Flood: 2,716 (72), Slide: 2,996 (20), Volcano: 2,996 (20), tsunami: 69 (5) and typhoon: 35,983 (241).

Disaster hotspot 2: California coast

• Contains nearly 40 million people. Has an economy the size of high income country. Suffers from geophysical hazards (earthquakes) and atmospheric hazards such as fog, drought, wildfires and El Nino. The hazardous zone is situated along the San Andreas Fault (parallel to coast).

• Active faults underlie the LA region (average 7.5 magnitudes) and the San Francisco bay (7 magnitudes).

• Soft…