EARTHQUAKE STRIKES CHRISTCHURCH, NEW

ZEALAND

A SHALLOW (2.5 MI), M6.3 QUAKE LOCATED 3 MI FROM

CHRISTCHURCH (USGS) STRUCK AT NOON ON A WORK DAY

Walter Hays, Global Alliance for Disaster Reduction, University of

North Carolina, USA

LOCATION MAP: CHRISTCHURCH

Natural Phenomena that Cause Disasters

Planet Earth’s Restlessness Causes Movement of Tectonic Plates:

Earthquakes

THE INDO-AUSTRALIA AND PACIFIC SUBDUCTION ZONE

FAULT ZONES IN VICINITY OF NEW ZEALAND

SEISMICITY MAP: VICINITY OF CHRISTCHURCH

EPICENTRES: SEPT 2010 AND FEB 2011 EARTHQUAKES

THIS QUAKE: AN AFTERSHOCK OF THE 3 SEPT 2010 QUAKE

• Christchurch has been hit by hundreds of aftershocks since the M7.1 earthquake of 3 September 2010, which caused extensive damage and injuries, but no deaths.

PHILIPPINO SEISMOLOGIST: LOOKS AT SEISMOGRAMS IN MANILA

SHALLOW-DEPTH EARTHQUAKES ARE MORE DAMAGING

SOCIETAL IMPACTS EXACER-BATED BY SHALLOW DEPTH

• Strong ground shaking toppled tall buildings and churches on a busy weekday, killing at least 100 people, severing communi-cation lines, and leaving the centre of the city looking like “a war zone.”

INTENSITY MAP: CHRISTCHURCH

CHRISTCHURCH CITY CENTRE: “A WAR ZONE”

CHRISTCHURCH CITY CENTRE: “A WAR ZONE”

CHRISTCHURCH CITY CENTRE: “A WAR ZONE”

PYNE GOULD GUINESS BUILDING: COLLAPSED

COLLAPSED BUILDING; CHRISTCHURCH

DAMAGE: CHRISTCHURCH CATHOLIC CATHEDRAL

COLLAPSE: A BAPTIST CHURCH

CRUSHED CARS: CHRISTCHURCH

BARACADED BUILDING; CHRISTCHURCH

INTERIOR CONTENTS

TRAPPED IN RUBBLE

• More than 100 people, including as many as a dozen visiting Japanese students, are thought to be trapped in the rubble.

SEARCH AND RESCUE

• Despite darkness and drizzling rain, rescue crews with sniffer dogs (and eventually heavy equipment) fanned out across the city in search of survivors, some of whom were sending text and phone messages from beneath the rubble.

SEARCH AND RESCUE WORKERS

UNUSUAL PHYSICAL IMPACTS

• 40 million tons of ice were separated from Tasman Glacier located 120 mi from the epicentre, and flooding occurred in Bexley, a suburb of Christchurch.

40 MILLION TON ICE CHUNK DISLODGED FROM TASMAN GLACIER

DISLODGED ICE IN TASMAN LAKE

CHRISTCHURCH SUBURB, BEXLEY, FLOODED

POLICY POLICY ADOPTIONADOPTION

POLICY POLICY ADOPTIONADOPTION

RISK ASSESSMENT

• VULNERABILITYVULNERABILITY

• EXPOSUREEXPOSURE

• EVENTEVENT

POLICY ASSESSMENT

• COSTCOST

• BENEFITBENEFIT

•CONSEQUENCESCONSEQUENCES

TIME FOR A NEW EARTHQUAKE SCENARIO TIME FOR A NEW EARTHQUAKE SCENARIO AND A POLICY REVIEW: TOWARDS DISASTER AND A POLICY REVIEW: TOWARDS DISASTER

RISK REDUCTIONRISK REDUCTION

EARTH-EARTH-QUAKESQUAKES

EARTH-EARTH-QUAKESQUAKES EXPECTED EXPECTED

LOSSLOSS

EXPECTED EXPECTED LOSSLOSS