earthquake case study geography igcse

On a mission to end educational inequality for young people everywhere.

ZNotes Education Limited is incorporated and registered in England and Wales, under Registration number: 12520980 whose Registered office is at: Docklands Lodge Business Centre, 244 Poplar High Street, London, E14 0BB. “ZNotes” and the ZNotes logo are trademarks of ZNotes Education Limited (registration UK00003478331).

• 0 Shopping Cart

Haiti Earthquake 2010

Haiti earthquake case study.

A 7.0 magnitude earthquake .

The earthquake occurred on January 12th, 2010, at 16.53 local time (21.53 GMT).

The earthquake occurred at 18.457°N, 72.533°W. The epicentre was near the town of Léogâne, Ouest department, approximately 25 kilometres (16 mi) west of Port-au-Prince, Haiti’s capital. The earthquake’s focus was 13km (8.1 miles) below the Earth’s surface.

Haiti is situated at the northern end of the Caribbean Plate, on a transform (slip/conservative) plate boundary with the North American Plate. The North American plate is moving west. This movement is not smooth, and there is friction between the North American Plate and the Caribbean Plate. Pressure builds between the two plates until released as an earthquake.

A map to show the location of Haiti in relation to tectonic plates. Source BBC.

The epicentre of the earthquake was 16km southwest of Port-Au-Prince. The earthquake was caused by a slip along an existing fault (Enriquillo-Plaintain Garden fault).

A map to show the location of the epicentre of the earthquake

Primary Effects

As of February 12th 2010, an estimated three million people were affected by the quake; the Haitian Government reports that between 217,000 and 230,000 people died, an estimated 300,000 were injured, and an estimated 1,000,000 were made homeless. They also estimated that 250,000 residences and 30,000 commercial buildings had collapsed or were severely damaged.

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.

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.

Long-term Responses

• As one of the poorest countries on Earth, Haiti relied 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.

So, why did so many people die in the Haiti earthquake? There are several reasons for this:

• The earthquake occurred at shallow depth – this means that the seismic waves must travel a smaller distance through the Earth to reach the surface to maintain more energy.
• The earthquake struck the most densely populated area of the country.
• Haiti is the poorest country in the Western Hemisphere
• 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.
• Three million people live in Port au Prince; most live in slum conditions after rapid urbanisation.
• Haiti only has one airport with one runway. The control tower was severely damaged in the earthquake. The port is also unusable due to damage.
• Initially, aid had been piling up at the airport due to a lack of trucks and people to distribute it. Water and food have taken days to arrive, and there is not enough to go around.
• 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.
• There has been a severe shortage of doctors, and many people have died of injuries like broken limbs.

 The BBC News website has a comprehensive overview of the earthquake here . In addition, the BBC has produced an excellent article titled Why so many people died in the Haiti earthquake? and provides comparative data with similar earthquakes.

Premium Resources

Please support internet geography.

If you've found the resources on this page useful please consider making a secure donation via PayPal to support the development of the site. The site is self-funded and your support is really appreciated.

Related Topics

Use the images below to explore related GeoTopics.

Previous Topic Page

Topic home, next topic page, share this:.

• Click to share on Twitter (Opens in new window)
• Click to share on Facebook (Opens in new window)
• Click to share on Pinterest (Opens in new window)
• Click to email a link to a friend (Opens in new window)
• Click to share on WhatsApp (Opens in new window)
• Click to print (Opens in new window)

If you've found the resources on this site useful please consider making a secure donation via PayPal to support the development of the site. The site is self-funded and your support is really appreciated.

Search Internet Geography

Top posts and pages.

Latest Blog Entries

Pin It on Pinterest

• Click to share
• Print Friendly

Case Studies

Lesson 1: case study 1.

Developing Country

Haiti - port au prince, january 12, 2010.

Interactive

Haiti Earthquake : Prepare a case study for the Haiti Earthquake.

WHAT INFORMATION NEEDS TO BE COLLECTED FOR A CASE STUDY??

Look at the facts about the Haiti earthquake in the card sort and colour code them according to background, the earthquake event, the impacts / effects (what happened as a result of the EQ), and the response

FILL IN THE CASE STUDY FACT SHEET (assigned on Classroom) . Use the information from the card sort above and the following resources.

https://handygeography.wordpress.com/gcse/the-restless-earth-revision-materials/earthquake-case-study-haiti-poor/

https://www.bbc.com/bitesize/guides/z3sg87h/revision/2

https://www.britannica.com/event/Haiti-earthquake-of-2010

http://insidedisaster.com/haiti/the-haiti-earthquake

TASK 2a: BACKGROUND

a. Where is it? Locate it on a map, and write a description of the country's location

b. What is Haiti like? IE population, climate, terrain, resources, economy, education levels, political/ government situation -

c. What percentage of Haitians live in poverty? How much do Haitians earn/ day or / year?

d. Why do you think this information you just gathered might be important to studying the impacts and response to an earthquake?

TASK 2b: THE EARTHQUAKE EVENT

a. When - day, date, time of day

b. Where was the focus and epicenter

c. what happened? What caused the EQ?? Be specific - name plates and boundaries

Task 2c: EFFECTS /IMPACTS

a. what were the primary impacts?

b. secondary?

c. social/economic/ environmental

Task 2d: RESPONSE

a. The emergency response

b. Long term recovery

Task 2e: MANAGEMENT

a. What was done before, during, after to predict, prepare, protect??

CHECK YOUR ANSWERS and add any additional information you need to your sheet

Case study 2: developed country, christchurch, new zealand - february 22, 2011.

Development Indicators for NZ

GDP per capita (average income): $27,700 per person each year

Life expectancy: 81 years old

People per doctor: 2.4 doctors per 1,000 people

Adult literacy rate : 99% over 15 years old can read/write

Access to clean water: 100% of people have access to clean water

% of people living below poverty line: approx 10%

Birth rate: 13 per 1000 people

Infant mortality: 5 deaths / 1000 live births

TASK 1: LOCATION - LOCATE ON A MAP, AND WRITE A DESCRIPTION OF THE LOCATION

also add the names of the plate boundaries or faults that are relevant to causing the earthquake

FILL IN CASE STUDY SUMMARY SHEET (assigned on classroom) - Use the card sort (below) for your information, or the links above if you need more information

a. What is New Zealand like? IE population, climate, terrain, resources, economy, education levels, political/ government situation -

b. What percentage of New Zealanders live in poverty? How much do NZers earn/ day or / year? Data for Christchurch and neighbourhoods hit particularly hard?

c. Why do you think this information you just gathered might be important to studying the impacts and response to an earthquake?

Comparing the Management of the Haiti and NZ Earthquakes

Fill in the worksheet assigned on Classroom to answer the following.

How did the emergency response work in each of these case studies?

How fast were people rescued?

Who was doing the rescuing? emergency services or civilians?

was there machinery available to dig people etc out?

where did people whose homes were destroyed go? Was it safe? Clean?

was medical attention available?

was food and water available?

how long did it take for aid to arrive?

how was the aid distributed?

How long did it take for water/ electricity/ telecommunications to be restored?

how long until transportation links (airport, sea ports, roads ) were operational?

was there one coordinating body?

Was the population in each case prepared? What evidence do you have for your answer?

After the earthquakes, what changes were made to cope with future earthquakes?

Earthquakes and volcanoes

Study and revision resources.

1. Plate Tectonics

Structure of the earth.

The earth consists of 4 main layers:

• The  crust  is the outer layer, broken into sections caled tectonic plates. It is the thinnest layer and the one which we live on.
• The  mantle  is the thickest layer and consists of molten rock
• The  outer core  is molten & about 3000 degrees C.
• This  inner core  is solid due to the immense pressure and is about 5000 degrees C.
• Both the inner & outer core consist of iron & nickle.

Tectonic Plates

Plate Movement

The earths crust is broken into different sections which are slowly moving about.

Convection currents in the mantle distribute the heat from the core. This movement drags the plates in different directions and is responsible for earthquakes and volcanoes.

Over millions of years the land masses that we are familiar with have moved around the planet as the tectonic plates shifted about.

Where the different sections of tectonic plate meet the movement causes geographical features such as mountains, volcanoes and earthquakes.

Constrcutive Boundaries

• Convection currents in the mantle drag the plates apart.
• Magma rises to fill the gap and solidifies to form new crust.
• As the process repeats a ridge is formed and this slowly gets wider as the plates continue to seperate.
• Example: the Mid-Atlantic Ridge.
• This creates fissure volcanoes which are long cracks, they are less explosive.

Destructive Boundaries

• Oceanic & continental plates collide. The oceanic plate is denser and so sinks under the continental plate.
• As the oceanic plate sinks it takes some sand, water and other materia from the sea bed with it. This melts and is gaseous which causes it to force its way up to the surface as a volcano.
• The continental plate crumples at the edge creating fold mountains in addition to the volcanoes.

Collision Boundary

• Convection currents in the mantle pull two plates of continental crust together.
• Since both crusts are made of the same material and have equal density neither subducts. They crumple up.
• This process creates fold mountains. There are no volcanoes at these boundaries but earthquakes occur.
• Example: the Himalayas.

2. Volcanoes

Types of Volcano

• Shield : gentle sloping, created by basic lava (travels along way before solidifying). Found at constructive boundaries.
• Composite : alternating layers of acid lava & rock/ash create the classic conical shape. Found at destructive boundaries.
• Ash & cinder : Alternating layers of ash & cinder compacted.
• Fissure : volcanoes running along a crack in the crust, usually a constructive boundary.
• Caldera : Crater volcano created after volcano collapses in on itself having emptied the magma chamber.
• Dome : steep sided volcano created by acid lava which cools before it has travelled far.
• Destructive boundary volcanoes are often cone shaped and explosive.
• Constructive boundary volcanoes are often more gently sloped and have less violent erruptions.

Volcanic Features

Objective: be able to correctly label the key features of volcanoes and relate them to the increased risk they pose to human settlements.

• Volcanoes vary in shape and structure depending on the reason for their existence.
• Secodary vents (fumaroles) occur when magma and gases force their way through weaknesses in the main volcanic structure.
• Lava, ash, cinders and smoke may be ejected from the vent.
• Draw and label a simple diagram of a volcano and the ejected material.
• Make simple sketch diagrams showing fissure, dome and ash-cinder volcanic structures.
• Using Figure 2.0, describe the location of the Pacific Ring of Fire and explain why this area has this name.

Costs & Benefits of Volcanic Environments

Negative Impacts

• Volcanic eruptions can cause significant damage and loss of life.
• Lava flows destroy vegetation buildings and roads.
• Ash can smother plants, cut out light in the atmosphere, disrupt air travel and cause respiration problems for people.
• Eruptions often cause earthquakes as pressure is released.
• Volcanoes with ice near the peak, or crater lakes can cause devastating mud flows as the water mixes with loose ash.
• Gas released from volcanoes can travel down the slopes silently killing people and animals.

Positive Impacts

• Volcanoes can bring environmental and socio-economic benefits.
• Fertile soils: ash and lava contain many minerals and nutrients that weather to form fertile soils which can be used very effectively for farming.
• Sulphur deposits: sulphur is mined and sold by the people living close to volcanoes in Indonesia.
• Tourism: the volcanic scenery, crater lakes, hot spring and geysers attract tourists and create many job opportunities.

Case Study: Montserrat

Objective: be able to describe the main events and damage caused by the volcano. You should be able to suggest reasons for the extent of the damage.

Montserrat is an island in the Caribbean that unexpectedly suffered devastating eruptions.

• Using the google map shown to the right, describe the location of Montserrat on a regional scale.
• Draw a sketch map showing the location of the Sufriere Hills volcano within the island.
• Explain the cause of the volcano
• Describe the main effects/impacts of the eruptions
• Why did they cause so much damage on the island?
• Make a sketch of Figure 2.1 to show the hazard map and restricted zones that are in place on Montserrat since the eruption.

3. Earthquakes

Earthquake Characteristics

• Focus: the exact point at which the earthquake occurred- often deep in the ground.
• Epicentre: the point on the surface of the earth directly above the focus (so it can be located easily on maps).
• Seismic waves: these are the shockwaves that move outwards from the focus. Their energy disipates the further they travel.
• Seismometer: instrument that measures the magnitude of earthquakes.

Risk factors and Earthquakes

Objective: Demonstrate an ability to to identify factors that can affect the scale of a disaster and be able to link them to levels of development.

• Watch Video 2.1.2
• Describe why older building tend to suffer more damage in earthquakes than newer ones.
• Why do buildings built on soft land suffer more than those with foundations on rock?
• Why can hospitals outside towns add to the problems?

Measuring Earthquakes

• Seismometer: a machine that records vibrations in the earth.
• Seismograph : the print out/graph produced by the seismometer.
• Richter scale : the sale traditionally used to record the magnitude of an earthquake.
• Movement Magnitude Scale: the scale often used currently to record the magnitude of earthquakes (it is more accurate for large earthquakes than the Richter scale.

Case Study: Haiti

Cause & Effect of the Haiti Earthquake

Objectives:

• Understand the cause of the Haiti earthquake.
• Demonstrate an ability to interpret information shown in photographs.
• Demonstrate analytic and reasoning skills in relation to development and disaster impacts.
• Describe the location and cause of the earthquake.
• Go to this page BBC bitesize. Describe the key facts about the damage it caused.

Responses to the Earthquake

• Watch Videos 2.1.3 and 2.1.4
• Go to these links Guardian: Haiti 2015 and Haiti then & now .
• How well has Haiti recovered from the earthquake?
• Describe three reasons why there are still lots of problems in Haiti 5 years on from the earthquake.

Extended Writing Task

Explain why the less developed a country is the more it is likely to suffer if an earthquake occurs. (you should write about a page in your book to answer this. Factors to include: preparation, emergency response, rebuilding/reconstruction.

4. Revision

Revision Guides

Cambridge IGCSE Geography Revision

A guide to the Cambridge IGCSE Geography Syllabus

Other Revision Websites

• IGCSE Biology
• IGCSE Chemistry

Wednesday 20 July 2016

Case study: an earthquake and a volcano, 3 comments:.

I'm very much inspired when I've visited your blog. Your blog is really informative. Hope you will continue with new article. Geography curriculum

very useful

Our blog is very informative thumps up