Cyclone Nargis is our case study of how physical/environmental factors make global inequalities worse.
Factfile from BBC Bitesize:
Cyclone Nargis happened in May 2008. Little warning was given. Winds of 200 km per hour and the low pressure created a storm surge, measuring 6.3 metres high. It mainly affected Myanmar (Burma) a country south west of Bangladesh. Crops were destroyed (a lot of rice is grown here) and the shrimp fishing industry was damaged. Areas were left without water, food and electricity. The UN suggest that nearly 200,000 people died.
Cyclone: Cyclone Nargis
Origin: Bay of Bengal
Landfall: Burma, an LEDC near Bangladesh
When: May 2008
Weather: Winds of 200 km/hour
Storm surge of 6.3m
Damage: 200,000 died / unaccounted for
Destroyed rice and shrimp industry
What caused Cyclone Nargis?
Factfile from BBC Bitesize:
Cyclone Nargis happened in May 2008. Little warning was given. Winds of 200 km per hour and the low pressure created a storm surge, measuring 6.3 metres high. It mainly affected Myanmar (Burma) a country south west of Bangladesh. Crops were destroyed (a lot of rice is grown here) and the shrimp fishing industry was damaged. Areas were left without water, food and electricity. The UN suggest that nearly 200,000 people died.
Cyclone: Cyclone Nargis
Origin: Bay of Bengal
Landfall: Burma, an LEDC near Bangladesh
When: May 2008
Weather: Winds of 200 km/hour
Storm surge of 6.3m
Damage: 200,000 died / unaccounted for
Destroyed rice and shrimp industry
What caused Cyclone Nargis?
What were the effects?
Economic effects:
$10 billion worth of damage
Majority of the population worked on the flooded rice fields therefore they lost their harvest and income
75% of buildings collapsed but on the delta 95% collapsed
1,163 temples were destroyed
Environmental Effects
Rice fields were flooded on the Irrawaddy Delta
The 2008 and 2009 harvests of rice were destroyed - The UN’s Food and Agricultural Organization (FAO) estimated that Nargis impacted 65% of the country's paddies.
Strong winds up to 135mph
• Storm surge of 7.6m
• Heavy rainfall
Floodwaters penetrated an estimated 40-50 km (24-31 mi) inland from the coast. Farmland, livestock, and fisheries were all destroyed.
Social Effects
There was a lack of food, water for survivors
Many children were orphaned
Diseases spread with many survivors dying from disease
50,000 people are still missing
A death toil of at least 138 000 people has been quoted, but estimates vary widely, it is thought that 80,000 people could have died in the town of Labutta alone, making the 84,000people death toll seem unrealistic
It is estimated that at least 2.4 million people were severely affected by this cyclone. Structural damage throughout Myanmar was extensive, causing over a million to become homeless after the event.
What was done to manage the situation in Burma?:
http://www.ifrc.org/en/news-and-media/news-stories/asia-pacific/myanmar/myanmar-cyclone-nargis-2008-facts-and-figures/
What exam questions might go with this?
June 2016:
Use a case study to explain how a natural hazard can hinder development.
[4 marks]
Economic effects:
$10 billion worth of damage
Majority of the population worked on the flooded rice fields therefore they lost their harvest and income
75% of buildings collapsed but on the delta 95% collapsed
1,163 temples were destroyed
Environmental Effects
Rice fields were flooded on the Irrawaddy Delta
The 2008 and 2009 harvests of rice were destroyed - The UN’s Food and Agricultural Organization (FAO) estimated that Nargis impacted 65% of the country's paddies.
Strong winds up to 135mph
• Storm surge of 7.6m
• Heavy rainfall
Floodwaters penetrated an estimated 40-50 km (24-31 mi) inland from the coast. Farmland, livestock, and fisheries were all destroyed.
Social Effects
There was a lack of food, water for survivors
Many children were orphaned
Diseases spread with many survivors dying from disease
50,000 people are still missing
A death toil of at least 138 000 people has been quoted, but estimates vary widely, it is thought that 80,000 people could have died in the town of Labutta alone, making the 84,000people death toll seem unrealistic
It is estimated that at least 2.4 million people were severely affected by this cyclone. Structural damage throughout Myanmar was extensive, causing over a million to become homeless after the event.
What was done to manage the situation in Burma?:
http://www.ifrc.org/en/news-and-media/news-stories/asia-pacific/myanmar/myanmar-cyclone-nargis-2008-facts-and-figures/
What exam questions might go with this?
June 2016:
Use a case study to explain how a natural hazard can hinder development.
[4 marks]