Haiti Earthquake

By: Fatima M. Al-Tamimi Class: 9D

Earthquakes Earthquakes are a tremor of the surface of the Earth, sometimes severe and

devastating, which results from shock waves generated by the movement of rock masses deep within the Earth, particularly near boundaries of tectonic plates.

They are measured by A seismometer which is an instrument that senses the earth's motion.

The Richter scale is a standard scale used to compare earthquakes. It is a logarithmic scale, meaning that the numbers on the scale measure factors of 10.

Earthquakes measuring more than 6.0 can cause significant damage. The maximum quake rating ever measured is about 8.9.

The Issue

The issue is the massive earthquake in Haiti it was the Strongest earthquake to hit Haiti since 1770

It happened on the 12th of January, 2010 now thought to have killed 100,000 people maybe more

The magnitude of the quake - 7.0 on the Richter scale - makes it the most powerful to hit the Caribbean republic in about 120 years

striking just 10 miles south-west of bustling capital Port-au-Prince means the structural damage and death toll of the quake will be all the greater

After the earthquake hit by a 7.0 , it got hit with the 6.1 aftershock which made even more damages

The cause of the earthquake is the same as most earthquakes. The land masses are built on floating tectonic plates. In Haiti, the North American Plate and the Caribbean plates struck together along the Enriquillo-Plantain Garden Fault System. The plates slip back and forth against each other in an east west direction. Seismologists call this a strike slip boundary. Some seismologists would call this a strike slip earthquake because the two plates are getting stuck or striking against each other and these plates would normally slip against each other at a rate of a few millimeters per year.

Location of Haiti

Location: Caribbean, western one-third of the island of Hispaniola, between the Caribbean Sea and the North Atlantic Ocean, west of the Dominican Republic

Climate: tropical; semiarid where mountains in east cut off trade winds Natural hazards: lies in the middle of the hurricane belt and subject to severe

storms from June to October; occasional flooding and earthquakes; periodic droughts

geography : shares island of Hispaniola with Dominican Republic (western one-third is Haiti, eastern two-thirds is the Dominican Republic)

Social Impact The social impact is the deaths and homelessness and the injuries.

In total Haiti’s population is about 8,121,622 but during the earthquake about 100,000 people were killed and no one knows how many people are injured and might die do to lake of hospitalization and health insurance. Also for homelessness most people are already homeless before the earthquake because Haiti is one of the poorest countries and after the earthquake and all the damage that happened even more people are homeless. Most of the people in Haiti are homeless and injured and some already died. This decreases in their population .

Economic Impact

One of the least expensive ways to build a home is with concrete. And, the most likely way to die in an earthquake is from something heavy falling on you. Many of the buildings in Haiti are build of concrete. And, since the area is historically not earthquake prone, the buildings aren't built for the shaking. Many people have been trapped under concrete rubble. So because of the poorness in the county they do not have a strong building foundation that could hold the building up during these kind of cases and not falling and increases the chances of more deaths .

Political Impact

Haiti as an independent nation appeared on the map of the world in 1804. Haiti , a former French colony, with the ten-million-strong population.

Haiti is the poorest nation of the Western hemisphere. The per capita GDP in 2008 made up only $1,317 a year.

It’s government type is an elected government

Environmental Impact Earthquakes represent a particularly severe threat due to the irregular time

intervals between events, lack of adequate forecasting, and the hazards associated which could happen from earthquakes are:

- Ground shaking which is a direct hazard to any structure located near the earthquake’s center. Structural failure takes many human lives in densely populated areas.

- Landslides occur because of ground shaking in areas having relatively steep topography and poor slope stability.

- Tsunamis or seismic sea waves, usually generated by seismic activity under the ocean floor, cause flooding in coastal areas and can affect areas thousands of kilometers from the earthquake center.

These impacts affect the economy of the country if it relies on natural Resources because these disasters would ruin farms, factories , and if any, mines

These would also ruin all the houses and hotels which makes it more difficult for people to live there.

Suggestions, Recommendation, and Solutions

A solution for the problems the Haitians are going through because of the earthquakes could e like getting seismologists in the country so that people could get ready for what ever disaster that might come up beforehand. Also the should have better building planes so that the could build with better foundation for the buildings so that they do not collapse

Many countries, especially those located on islands, are vulnerable to natural disasters. The major concerns with regard to policy includes:

deficiencies in disaster prevention, including the lack of zoning of vulnerable areas during the development planning process.

weak moderation mechanisms. deficiencies and limited use of anti-seismic building measures, as well as

inadequate governing arrangements and human resources for enforcement. lack of insurance policies for low-income households, and inadequate support

systems for affected communities.

Suggestions, Recommendation, and Solutions

Improving management is important to disaster reduction, especially non-structural moderation actions using natural mechanisms. For example, wetlands reduce floods, woodlands reduce landslides and mangroves lessen the effect of coastal storms and extreme tides. In general, good land use maintains healthy ecosystems, provides resources and facilitates non-structural mitigation action. This strategy is particularly attractive in countries where risk insurance and structural moderation come at a high price like Haiti.

Information Bibliography

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Mifflin, Houghton. "Earthquakes." Reference.com. Houghton Mifflin Company., 2005. Web. 6 Feb. 2010. <http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/Earthquakes>.

Gibbs, Tony. "Natural Hazards in the Caribbean." Oas.org. 8 Jan. 2001. Web. 6 Feb. 2010. <http://www.oas.org/pgdm/document/BITC/papers/gibbs/gibbs_02.htm>.

Service, Mail Foreign. "Haiti earthquake: Why was it so devastating?" Dailymail.co.uk. 13 Jan. 2010. Web. <http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/worldnews/article-1242827/Haiti-earthquake-Why-devastating.html>.

Gardner, David, and Liz Hazelton. "Thousands feared dead as earthquake measuring 7.0 devastates Haiti." Dailymail.co.uk. Associated Newspapers Ltd, 13 Jan. 2010. Web. 3 Feb. 2010. <http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/worldnews/article-1242717/Haiti-hit-major-earthquake-measuring-7-0-Richter-scale.html>.

Information Bibliography

"Haiti Gets hit with 2nd earthquake - 6.1 on Richter Scale." Gamespot.com. CBS Interactive Inc., 20 Jan. 2010. Web. 3 Feb. 2010. <http://www.gamespot.com/users/Juniorpower/show_blog_entry.php?topic_id=m-100-25784801>.

"Haiti." About.com. About.com, a part of The New York Times Company., 2010. Web. 4 Feb. 2010. <http://geography.about.com/library/cia/blchaiti.htm>.

Snow, Kristy. "Haiti Earthquake." Ezinearticles.com. EzineArticles.com, 2010. Web. 2 Feb. 2010. <http://ezinearticles.com/?Haiti-Earthquake&id=3581577>.

"Policy responses." Unep.org. Web. 3 Feb. 2010. <http://www.unep.org/Geo/geo3/english/471.htm>.

"Haiti Earthquake: Grand Finale of Political Instability." Pravda.ru. «PRAVDA.Ru»., 25 Jan. 2010. Web. 4 Feb. 2010. <http://english.pravda.ru/hotspots/disasters/25-01-2010/111829-haiti-0>.

"Natural Hazards in the Caribbean." Oas.org. Web. 3 Feb. 2010. <http://www.oas.org/CDMP/document/mitiplan/mitapend.pdf>.

Pictures Bibliography

http://www.cartage.org.lb/en/themes/Sciences/Earthscience/Geology/Earthquakes/MeasuringEarthquakes/Seismographs/seismograph.GIF

http://geography.about.com/library/cia/blchaiti.htm

www.flickr.com/photos/unicefsverige/4289954177/

www.flickr.com/photos/unicefsverige/4289954177/

www.zunescene.mobi/forums/index.php?topic=50835.0

http://earthobservatory.nasa.gov/NaturalHazards/view.php?id=42379

www.oglhaiti.com/