Title Layout

Social Assignment On Disaster ManagementMade by- Aniruddha K KawadeClass 10 Y Roll no. - 34

IntroductionWhat is a Disaster? A disaster is a natural or man-made hazard resulting in an event of substantial event causing physical damage loss of life, or drastic change in the environment. It is phenomenon that can cause damage to life and property and destroy the economic, social and cultural life of people

As mentioned above there are two types of disaster:-Man-made disaster- Some of them are industrial accidents , rail, road and air accidents, terrorist attack, war etc.Natural disaster Some of them are floods, landslides, earthquake, volcanic eruption, droughts, etc.One of the deadliest natural disaster is Tsunami.

What is Tsunami? A tsunami is a series of gigantic water waves caused by the displacement of a large volume of a body of water generally an ocean or large lake. Earthquake , underwater explosions, landslides, glacier calving, meteorite impacts and other disturbances above or below water all have the potential to generate a Tsunami.

Tsunami dont resemble normal sea waves, because their wavelength is far longer. Rather than appearing as a breaking wave , a tsunami may instead initially resemble a rapidly rising tide and are often referred to as tidal waves. Tsunamis generally consist of a series of waves with periods ranging from minutes to hours, arriving in a so called wave train. Wave heights of tens of metres can be generated by large events. Although the impact of tsunamis is limited to coastal area, their destructive power can be enormous and they can affect entire ocean basins.

Facts about TsunamiTsunami waves can reach heights of over 100 feet.About 80% of tsunamis happen within the Pacific ocean.The first wave of tsunami is usually not the strongest , successive wave get bigger and stronger.In 2004, the Indian Ocean tsunami was caused by an earthquake with the energy of 23,000 atomic bombs. After the earthquake, killer waves radiating from the epicentre slammed into the coastline of 11 countries. The final death toll was 283,000.Tsunamis can travel up to the speed of 500- 800 kilometres per hour.

Tsunami can poison mainland with a lot of salt, causing people to die out of hunger and disease after the tsunami is gone.The costliest tsunami occurred in U.S. and Canada in 1964. Damage was as huge as $106 million.Tsunami is a term, which literally means a harbour wave. A term specific to Japan.Tsunamis can travel across oceans as they retain their energy with limited energy loss.A mega tsunami has very huge waves and has occurred in Alaska in 1958. Surprisingly only two people died.

Warning signs of TsunamiAn earthquake is a natural tsunami warning. If you feel a strong quake, dont stay close to the shore.An approaching tsunami is sometimes preceded by a rise or fall in water level. If you see the ocean receding unusually rapidly that is a good sign that a tsunami may be on its way.

Experts believe that a receding ocean may give people as much as 5 minutes warning to evacuate the area .A tsunamisearch maybe small at one point on the shore larger than other. a short distance away Don't assume that because there is a minimal sign of a tsunami in one place it will belike that everywhere else.Tsunamis can travel up river and streams that lead to the oceans asyou would stay awayfrom the beach and ocean if thereis a tsunami.

Tsunami in JapanJapan was hit by a 9 magnitude earthquake on march112011 that triggered adeadly23 feet tsunami in the country's north the giant waves deluged cities and rural areas like sweeping away cars, homes. Buildings, trains and boat, leaving a path of death and devastation in its way. Video footage showed cars racing away from surging waves.

The Earthquake the largest in Japan history struck about 230 miles northeast of Tokyo the pacific tsunami warning centre issued warnings for Russia, Taiwan, Hawaii, Indonesia, the Marshall Islands, Papua new guinea , Australia and the west coasts of the US, Mexico, central America and south America. According to the official toll the disasters let 15,839dead, 5950 injured and 3642 missing.

Safer Construction PracticesResiding on river banks and slopes on river banks be avoided Buildings should be built at 250m away from the sea coast Build proper drainage systems in all flood or tsunami prone area.Construct the whole village or settlement on a raised platform higher that the known high flood level.

A high wall can be created along the coast.Flood gates or channels are created to direct the water to some more places other than destroying property and lives these channels also absorb part of the water or the lesser waves.A tree cover can also be made along the coast to serve the purpose of wall

Survival SkillsIf you are in school and you hear there in a tsunami warning, you should follow the advice of teachers and other school personnel.Stay away from rivers and streams that lead to the ocean as you would stay away from the beach and ocean if there is a tsunamiTsunamis generated in district locations will generally give people enough time to move to higher groundStaying away from all low lying coastal areas is the safest technique.If you hear or feel a strong earthquake dont wait for an official tsunami warning tell your family and friends to join you in leaving for high ground.

Alternate Communication SkillsPublic Switched Telephone Network (PSTN) is the prime network responsible for transmitting and receiving voice tax and data. All government and private offices, police stations, hospitals fire stations and many homes are serviced by the PSTN line.A matter Radio operation does not use ground based infrastructure. Moreover these have limited power needs which can be easily met by batteries. So they are a good communication method.

Satellite based communication systems are designed for users on the earth that have some equipment in space called a satellite.Geo stationary orbit satellites are stationed above the earth. The images of weather forecast and disaster observations that we see in our television are made with the help of images from weather satellites.

Sharing ResponsibilityNational level The response from the Central government is based on keeping in view the gravity of the disaster the scale of the relief operations and the requirement of the control assistance for augmenting financial resources and logistics support at the disposal of the state government.State level The responsibility to cope up with natural disasters is essentially of the state government. The chief minister or the chief secretary of the state heads a state level committees which is in overall charge of the chief of the relief operations of the state and the relief commissioner who is in charge of the relief and rehabilitation measures in the wake of natural disasters .

District level The district administration in the focal point for implementation of all government plans and activities. A disaster management committee has been set up at the district level headed by the magistrate, etc.

Conclusion While no country in world is entirely safe lack of capacity to limit the impact of hazards remains a major burden for developing countries, An estimated 97% of natural disaster related deaths each year occur in developing countries although smaller in absolute figure, the percentage of economic loss in relation to the GNP (Gross National Product) I n developing countries far exceeds the one in developed countries. Hence the need for safer construction practices is rising day by day and thus increasing our need to be alert and responsible to minimize and possibly evade the impact that these disasters have on our lives to made our county reach greater heights .