2.3 Haiti Earthquake
2.3 Haiti Earthquake
Embedded Files
What you need to know:
What you need to know:
The causes, effects and responses to the Haiti earthquake 2010
Why this matters:
Why this matters:
Understanding the causes and effects of such events informs better preparation and response strategies for future disasters
What were the causes
What were the causes
The earthquake resulted from tension between the Caribbean and North American plates along a conservative plate boundary.
What were the primary effects?
What were the primary effects?
Significant fatalities (approx 230,000)
Injuries (around 300,000)
displacement (around 1 million homeless).
30,000 commercial buildings damaged
What were the secondary effects?
What were the secondary effects?
Two million people were left without water and food.
Regular power cuts occurred.
Crime increased – looting became a problem and sexual violence escalated.
People moved into temporary shelters.
By November 2010 there were outbreaks of cholera.
What were the immediate responses?
What were the immediate responses?
Due to the port being damaged, aid was slow to arrive.
The USA sent rescue teams and 10,000 troops.
Bottled water and purification tablets were provided.
235,000 people were moved away from Port-au-Prince to less-damaged cities.
£20 million was donated by The UK government.
What were the long-term responses?
What were the long-term responses?
As one of the poorest countries on Earth, Haiti relied heavily on overseas aid.
Although the response was slow, new homes were built to a higher standard. Over one million people still lived in temporary shelters one year after the earthquake.
The port needed rebuilding, which required a large amount of investment.
Why did so many people die in the earthquake?
Why did so many people die in the earthquake?
The earthquake struck the most densely populated area of the country.
Haiti is the poorest country in the western hemisphere
Rescue teams from around the world took up to 48 hours to arrive in Haiti due to the problems at the airport. As a result, local people have had to use their bare hands to try and dig people out of the rubble.
The buildings in Port-Au-Prince and other areas of Haiti were generally in poor condition and were not designed or constructed to be earthquake-resistant.
Summary
Summary
The Haiti earthquake's severity was influenced by Haiti's development and the population density of the affected area.
Haiti's economic status and poor construction standards increased the disaster's toll.
Aid and recovery were complicated by the country's limited resources and infrastructure
Page updated
Google Sites
Report abuse