Tectonic Tsunami Case study

Question 1

Names and dates of 3 case studies

Answer 1

Boxing day 2004 Indian Ocean tsunami
Talcahuano Chile, 2010 tsunami
Japanese 2011 Tohuku

Question 2

Boxing day, tsunami

location, details and magnitude and plate margin and focus depth

Answer 2

Epicentre is an Indian Ocean 250 km off the West Coast of Indonesia

affect south east of India and Sri Lanka magnitude

Magnitude 9.1

At subduction zone caused a 20 m uplift of water of Indo Australian plate under Eurasian, focus depth of 30 km.

Question 3

Boxing day Tsunami characteristics height in the station, inland and speed

Answer 3

24 meter tsunami height

800 km/h speed

inundated 3 km inland

Question 4

Social impacts, boxing day, tsunami 

Answer 4

Fatalities in 14 countries - over 200,000 deaths

125,000 injured,

1.7 million people displaced over 14 countries - as 1500 villages lost

Question 5

Boxing Day tsunami economic impacts

Answer 5

15 billion in economic losses reliance on which causes reliance on aid which increases debt that future economic

impact 70% of Sri Lanka‘s fishing industry was destroyed

Question 6

Boxing tsunami , environmental impact

Answer 6

8,000,000 L are oil spill damage coral reefs in coastal Wetland

crops and farming destroyed

Damage freshwater ecosystem and mangrove due to saltation. Mangroves are natural flood defences and maintain high biodiversity.

Question 7

Talcahuano Tsunami
Location details, magnitude plate boundary and focus

Answer 7

Nazca and South America plates convergent

Magnitude, 8.8

Mega thrust subduction zone, focus of 35 km below surface of Pacific Ocean 

Question 8

Talcahuano Tsunami

Tsunami, characteristics, speed, and height 

Answer 8

2.6 m
725 km/h.

Question 9

Talcahuano Tsunami
Social impacts

Answer 9

525 deaths

12,000 injured hard to treat as 56 hospitals damaged

More than 50 schools damaged

Shortage of food, water and fuel lead to widespread looting (increase crime means more injury and less social stability)

Question 10

Talcahuano Tsunami
Economic impacts

Answer 10

US$ 15- 30 billion losses

ports were destroyed damaging the 40 million sector

Talcahuano Port badly damaged - fishing and tourism industries, face decline

Question 11

Talcahuano Tsunami
Environmental impact

Answer 11

Debris dumped into fragile weapons and areas pipe damage mean on process switch released into the Biobio river cause eutrophication

HOWEVER Beaches were uplifted, which created habitats for intertidal species

Question 12

Japanese tsunami magnitude plate boundary and focus on location details

Answer 12

Pacific plate in North American plate convergence, 130 km east of Sendai

Magnitude, 9.0

Mega thrust subduction zone
focus 30 km below Pacific seabed


Question 13

Social impacts of Japanese tsunami

Answer 13

15,000 people died

4000 roads destroyed, preventing some evacuation and aid long-term can impact trade or get into school or hospital so social impacts

6100 injuries

Question 14

Economic impacts Japanese

Answer 14

US$240 billion in economic loss

Huge infrastructure damage to ports and water electric supply - (trade impacted, water affects health, electricity affect businesses and social eg for getting information on time)

46,000 buildings damaged

Question 15

Environmental impacts, Japanese tsunami

Answer 15

Radioactive chemicals leaked, found in Tokyo’s drinking water (from Fukushima)

5 million tons of debris end up in the sea

cracked a major iceberg in Antarctica which causes methane to be leaked - climate change

destroyed 21,000 hectare of farmland due salvation effects primary sector so low income people at higher impact.

Question 16

Boxing day tsunami why was it so devastating?

Answer 16

Earthquake was the most powerful ever recorded

Impacted 14 countries are many were developing so do not have necessary emergency supplies procedures of infrastructure to cope, cause heavy reliance on foreign assistance

Heavily densely populated areas

Coastline around Indian Ocean, particularly low-lying

Occurred during the main tourist season for visitors from Europe increased people density at the time

Tsunami not very common in Indian Ocean hard to predict so no warning system except Thailand


Question 17

Why is Boxing Day tsunami considered mega disaster

Answer 17

14 countries impacted

international aid required for food or shelter

economic and losses and deaths

one of the largest ever in terms of Ariel extent

Question 18

Talcahuano

Why was the tsunami so devastating?

Answer 18

Tsunami warning system was not in place, not quick enough to warn those living in coast of the impending danger tsunami disproportionately kill tourists who are camping in low-level coastal areas. Local residents were aware and evacuated to higher grounds day.

Long, blackout made rescue efforts, more difficult

epicentre very close, 70 miles from the urban area

Theft of food made assistance very hard to give out

isolated areas of more vulnerable and had less supplies to cope

Question 19

Sendai
Why was it so devastating?

Answer 19

9.0 magnitude of shore areas were particularly shallow Japanese lowland are found in the east coast waves able to reach further inland.

Question 20

Sendai why is it considered a global or mega disaster?

Answer 20

Only Japan was directly affected by economic impacts of global consequences due to disruptions of port, factories and power supply. They are important production supply chain, e.g. for Boeing jets and semiconductors.

Loss of public acceptability of nuclear power for sample, Germany and Italy, immediately shut down some of the nuclear reactors or shutdown plans to build new ones