Name
Name |Earthquake – Italy 2009 – L' Aquila
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|Magnitude |Monday 6 April 2009 at 03.32 local time an earthquake of magnitude Mw=6.3 and hypo central depth 8.8 km occurred with an epicenter|
| |a few kilometers southeast of the city of L'Aquila |
|Date of past earthquakes and |Timeline of Earthquakes in Italy - Italy frequently experiences earthquakes but it is uncommon for them to be very deadly. |
|their magnitude: |() Italy has acquired a |
| |reputation as being one of the most earthquake-prone countries in the world. |
| |(). |
| |Sept. 26, 1997 - Two earthquakes measuring 6.4 kill 11 people and cause serious damage to the Basilica of St Francis in Assisi, |
| |ruining priceless Mediaeval frescoes. A further quake measuring 5.1 hits Umbria days later causing damage. |
| |Sept. 6, 2002 - An earthquake measuring 6.0 strikes Sicily. Two people died from heart attacks triggered by the earthquake which |
| |also damaged artistic treasures. |
| |April 11, 2003 - An earthquake measuring 4.6 rocks northern Italy, rattling buildings from Milan to Turin and prompting officials |
| |to evacuate some schools. |
| |April 6, 2009 - A powerful earthquake strikes a huge swath of central Italy, killing at least 27 people as houses, churches and |
| |other buildings collapse. The quake was centered in the mountainous Abruzzo region east of Rome. The dead were mainly in L'Aquila,|
| |a 13th century city about 100 km (60 miles) east of Rome with a population of 68,000. |
| |() |
|Location and cause: | |
| |Italy lies between two huge plates: the African plate (continental tectonic plate) to the south and the Eurasian plate |
| ||(continental plate) to the north. The two plates are connected by convergent boundaries, which mean that the two plates dive or |
| |collide under another. () |
| |Geophysicist Paul Earle of the U.S. Geological Survey says a smaller "microplate" has also been pushing into Italy from the east. |
| |This has caused the landmass to compress like a carpet being pushed from the side on a wooden floor. The carpet bundles up into |
| |ridges — that's the Apennine Mountains, where the recent quake took place. |
| |(). Italy is one of the most seismically active countries in Europe.|
| |The Alps in the north are the result of the African tectonic plate pushing north into the Eurasian plate, a process that continues|
| |at a pace of 3cm a year. Movement of a second microplate beneath the Adriatic sea off the country's east coast is thought to have |
| |contributed to today's earthquake. ( |
| | |
| |Ground shaking - Its shock waves spread through L’Aquila, shaking to the ground a hotel and several apartment blocks. |
| |() Most injuries and deaths that happened were not because|
| |of the earthquake itself but by people being hit by falling roofs or are trapped in collapsed buildings. The L’aquila earthquake |
| |was preceded by several aftershocks. |
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|Effects on landscape and relief |The Earthquakes mark the history of L'Aquila, a city built on the bed of an ancient lake, providing a soil structure that |
|of land: |amplifies seismic waves. (.)The existence of well-defined fault-lines and |
| |geological movements’ criss-crossing the area make it particularly prone to earthquakes. Italy has two fault lines running across |
| |it – one running from the north to the south of Italy and another running East to West of Italy. |
| |L’Aquila is extremely vulnerable to earthquakes because it is situated along the North South Fault line near to the Apennine |
| |Mountains. (). |
| | |
| |Formation of Apennine Mountains |
| | |
| |The Apennine Mountains s a mountain range stretching 1000 km from the north to the south of Italy along its east coast, traversing|
| |the entire peninsula, and forming, as it were, the backbone of the country. The mountains are mostly green and wooded, although |
| |one side of the highest peak, Corno Grande (2,912 m), is partially covered by the southernmost glacier in Europe. The eastern |
| |slopes down to the Adriatic Sea are steep, while the western slopes form a plain on which most of Italy's historic cities are |
| |located. The total length is some 800 miles and the maximum width 70 to 80 miles. The range characteristically consists of |
| |limestone and related sedimentary strata believed to have been uplifted near the end of the Cretaceous era when the African plate |
| |began to gently collide with the eastern part of the European plate. The same tectonic episode also formed the Alps. |
| |(). |
| | |
| |The Apennines are an ancient continuation of the Alpine chain, but are now mostly representative of a large accretionary wedge |
| |located ahead of what appears to be a shifting subduction zone in which the African Plate is descending beneath the Eurasian |
| |Plate. () |
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| |The relief of the land has helped to shape the way in which the city has been constructed. L'Aquila sits upon a hillside in the |
| |middle of a narrow valley; tall snow-capped mountains of the Gran Sasso massif flank the town, this makes it at risk to |
| |displacement. |
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| |The fact that much of the city is made from historical buildings make it extremely vulnerable to collapse buildings. |
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| |[pic][pic] |
|Country Profile: |Italy is one of the richest nations in the world with a GDP currently ranking 7th in the world’s richest countries in terms of |
| |GDP. () consequently its capacity to cope and recover from the |
| |2009 earthquake was very high. This can be further seen be the high levels of education and GDP per capita see above. |
| |() |
| |Population - 60,045,068 (2008) (see Pyramid below) |
| |GDP - $2.399 trillion (2008 est.) |
| |GDP per Capita - $31,000 (2008 est.) |
| |HDI – 0.945 |
| |Life Expectancy – 80.2 years |
| |Literacy Rate – 94.8 |
| |Labour Force – 25.09 million (2008 est) |
| |Labour force by occupation (2008 est) - Services (65.1%),Industry (30.7%), |
| |Agriculture (4.2%). |
| |Main Industries - tourism, commerce, communications, machinery, iron and steel, chemicals, food processing, textiles, automobiles,|
| |home appliances, clothing, footwear, ceramics. |
| | - cite_note-CIA-1 ) |
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| |() From the population pyramid it is evident that Italy has a top |
| |heavy population, with the percentage of people aged 29+ outweighing the under 29’s from this we can tell that the older |
| |generations aged 55+ are the most vulnerable. We can also tell that Italy has a good healthcare system as the life span of an |
| |average person is relatively high |
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| |GDP Growth Rate -( ) |
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| |North and South Divide |
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| |The North |
| |The industrial triangle is located at the western end of Italy’s largest area of lowland, the North Italian Plain. The region is |
| |the richest area in Italy. The cities of Milan, Turin and Genoa are at the three corners of the triangle. |
| |In the last 50 years industrial growth has been very rapid. Italy is now one of the seven richest nations in the world and the |
| |industrial triangle is has become the wealthiest region in the whole country. |
| | |
| |Why is the industrial triangle the richest region in Italy? |
| |Italy is located near to the main European markets of France, Germany and the UK. Goods that have been produced can be easily |
| |exported and sold in these countries. Also, road and rail tunnels provide good links (communications) through the Alps to the |
| |European markets. |
| |There is plenty of flat land available for large factories. The large population in the area (10 million) provides a large local |
| |labour force and market (to sell goods to). |
| |The flat land is also ideal for the large-scale farms. This also provides many jobs. The good weather also provides ideal |
| |conditions for farming. |
| |Export (moving goods to other countries to sell) markets are available through port of Genoa and several airports. |
| |Although this is the richest part of Italy with most of the better-paid and skilled jobs, it still has problems. As more and more |
| |land is being built upon there is less for farming and recreation. |
| | |
| |The South |
| |The south of Italy is the poorest region in Italy. One are has the lowest standard of living in the EC. Most people still live in |
| |hilltop villages in rural areas. The few towns, which are on the coast, have little industry to attract people. Many people from |
| |the south migrate to the North, or to other European countries or even North America or Australia to find work. |
| |Farming - Agriculture is still the main type of landuse. Most farms are small in size. Farming is at a subsistence level which |
| |means farmers grow just enough food for their own needs and have very little left over to sell. Because farmers make very little |
| |money they cannot afford fertiliser. |
| |Much of the land in the south is high and steep. Therefore it is difficult to farm. Also, most rain falls in the winter. In summer|
| |there is usually a drought. |
| |The farmers are far away from European markets. Therefore they have no one to sell their produce to. |
| |There are few local farming collages, which means that farming methods are still traditional. Animals are often used instead of |
| |machinery. |
| |Industry - The South of Italy has never been important industrial region. It is isolated from the rest of Europe by poor transport|
| |links. The are has very few natural resources, little money and limited skills. The high birth rate means there are too many |
| |people looking for the few available jobs. |
| | |
| |Despite these problems the South is slowly becoming better off. Marshy areas have been drained and trees planted. New dams, |
| |irrigation schemes and motorways have been built. The hot, dry summers and the sandy beaches are attracting more tourists. Some of|
| |the earlier migrants to the North have returned with the money which they earned there. Even so, the gap between the North and the|
| |South of Italy continues to grow. |
|Profile of local area affected. |Population - 72550 in 2008 () It is an agricultural and industrial centre, and a summer|
| |resort. Manufactures include building materials, machinery, and electronic equipment. There is a university in the city University|
| |of L'Aquila nearly 30,000 university students. It is the capital of the Abruzzo region and it is conveniently located 100 km (62 |
| |miles) to the east of Rome. The city is on a hill at 720 m (2365 ft) above sea level and is surrounded by mountains, most notably |
| |to the north by the Gran Sasso range, which includes the highest peaks (up to 2900 m) of the Apennines, with a number of small |
| |lakes, trails and mountain climbing routes as well as deep caves. Within the province of L’Aquila there are also two national |
| |parks (Parco Nazionale Gran Sasso Monti della Laga and Parco Nazionale della Majella). H |
| |The Province of L'Aquila is the largest, most mountainous and least densely populated Provinces of Italy of the Abruzzo region of |
| |central Italy.... |
| |as a daily presence in the territory of 100,000 people to study, tertiary activities, jobs and tourism. Before the earthquake |
| |Abruzzo had the highest GDP per capita in southern Italy. Mechanical engineering, transport equipment and telecommunications are |
| |well established. |
|Cost to country of earthquake: |Socio-economic – |
| |6.3-magnitude earthquake struck the Italian community of L'Aquila, a 13th-century mountain city, and other villages in the Abruzzo|
| |Region. In total twenty-six villages were destroyed or damaged. |
| |Nearly 300 people were killed and 1,600 injured. |
| | |
| |The Civil Protection department said up to 50,000 people may have been made homeless in some 26 cities and towns (see image |
| |below). Thousands of houses, ancient churches and buildings collapsed or were damaged. 250 people were still missing. |
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| |Of the 1,467 buildings checked as of Monday, authorities said 53 percent were deemed habitable, while the rest had various degrees|
| |of damage that made them at least temporarily uninhabitable. () |
| |Italy needs to spend 12 billion euros ($16 billion) to reconstruct housing and other buildings in the earthquake-devastated region|
| |of Abruzzo. |
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| |Environmental |
| |Earthquake with a magnitude of 6.3 shook central Italy around 3:30 a.m., causing serious damage in the mountainous Abruzzo region |
| |east of Rome. |
| |Frequent aftershocks hampered salvage operations and kept tension in the area high. Further damage occurred in L'Aquila. The |
| |narrow streets of the town's historic center were filled with rubble, and parked cars were crushed under large blocks of |
| |debris.() |
| |Toppled buildings everywhere; leaving toxic fumes in the air from gas lines, and all of the other crushed toxic debris. |
| |() |
|Response and capacity to cope: |Prior Warnings () |
| | |
| |ROME (Reuters) - An Italian scientist predicted a major earthquake around L'Aquila weeks before disaster struck the city on |
| |Monday, killing dozens of people, but was reported to authorities for spreading panic among the population. |
| |The first tremors in the region were felt in mid-January and continued at regular intervals, creating mounting alarm in the |
| |medieval city, about 100 km east of Rome. |
| |Vans with loudspeakers had driven around the town a month ago telling locals to evacuate their houses after seismologist |
| |Gioacchino Giuliani predicted a large quake was on the way, prompting the mayor's anger. |
| |Giuliani, who based his forecast on concentrations of radon gas around seismically active areas, was reported to police for |
| |"spreading alarm" and was forced to remove his findings from the Internet. |
| |Italy's Civil Protection agency held a meeting of the Major Risks Committee, grouping scientists charged with assessing such |
| |risks, in L'Aquila on March 31 to reassure the townspeople. |
| |"The tremors being felt by the population are part of a typical sequence ... (which is) absolutely normal in a seismic area like |
| |the one around L'Aquila," the civil protection agency said in a statement on the eve of that meeting. |
| |"It is useful to underline that it is not in any way possible to predict an earthquake," it said, adding that the agency saw no |
| |reason for alarm but was nonetheless affecting "continuous monitoring and attention". |
| | |
| |Reasons why so many people died |
| |At 3: 32 am while people slept the disaster hit. Why? Because the buildings weren't designed for the impact. So many people died |
| |in the Italy Earthquake because the warning(s) weren't taken seriously. Even though the area was experiencing subtle earthquakes |
| |for three months, around Sulmona. Which is located 30 miles south of L' Aquila area. |
| |Warnings, and safety measures should have been in place; and even consideration for Evacuation Measures thought out fully just in |
| |case things were to get worse. |
| |To over come exisiting problems Build green, and earthquake proof buildings. When natural destruction happens, toppling building; |
| |the buildings that take their place should protect in the repeat of the misfortune. |
| |Building buildings that hold up in natural disasters can reduce effects from earthquake. - Smart Changes need to take place. Earth|
| |friendly structures need to be built to save lives and eliminate waste. |
| |How was the news about the earthquake reported? |
| |It took one hour and a half for the news to be reported by national television and more than three hours before the main |
| |newspapers did the same in their online edition. |
| |People awakened by the quake used Twitter to spread the news even before news agencies. For a couple of hours Twitter was the only|
| |source available to Italian people to share news and information and, most of all, try to contact friends and relatives living in |
| |Abruzzo. |
| |On Twitter Italian bloggers also lamented the lack of news in Italian while foreign media like CNN and BBC were already providing |
| |updates. |
| |After the Quake - For the first time social networks also played a role during the whole day spreading information about ways to |
| |make donations and give blood, food and help (Italy's Civil Protection agency reported at least 1,500 injured and 50,000 without |
| |shelter). |
| |Facebook was the most effective, being the most popular social network in Italy (with a 30% growing rate every month), but also |
| |Friendfeed has a peculiar story to tell. () all |
| |information above. |
| | |
| |Government response |
| |The country is well-prepared: the first rescue teams arrived on the scene only minutes after the earth stopped shaking. |
| |() |
| |Italian authorities launched a major response effort involving multiple helicopters and fixed-wing aircraft after the major |
| |earthquake that hit the nation. |
| |() |
| |The military was dispatched to lay out logistical plans and shore up infrastructures like bridges and overpasses. Then |
| |civil-protection workers and fire-fighters worked alongside policemen and neighbours to dig through the rubble in search of |
| |survivors, relying on local residents to tell who and how many people lived in each area. Lists were created and the numbers of |
| |missing and dead were dispatched to regional officials. () |
| |Buses were lined up along the city streets to transport residents to nearby towns where residents opened their homes. |
| |() |
| |The state is planning to provide people with about one-third of the money to rebuild their homes and businesses and offer |
| |low-interest mortgages. () |
| |The billionaire Prime Minister Silvio Berluscon offered his private homes as a means of refuge. |
| |() |
| |All tax billing for all Abruzzo residents have been suspended by the government, as well as mortgage payments. |
| | |
| |National Aid – Source for all below – ('Aquila_earthquake#cite_note-34) |
| | |
| |Many Italian companies have offered some sort of help. All Italian mobile companies such as Telecom Italia Mobile, Vodafone Italy,|
| |Wind (Italy) as well as some Mobile virtual network operators, sent free minutes and credit to all their pre-paid customers in |
| |Abruzzo, suspended billing to all post-paid customers and extended their coverage with additional mobile base stations to cover |
| |homeless camps. |
| |In addition, some companies sent free mobile phones, SIM Cards and chargers for those who lost their mobiles, and set up a |
| |national unique number to send donations to, by placing a call or sending an SMS. |
| |Poste Italiane sent to homeless camps some mobile units acting as Postal Office, to allow people to withdraw money from their |
| |accounts as well as their retirement. |
| |Many companies, such as pay-tv SKY Italia, suspended billing to all customers in Abruzzo, and offered some decoders to homeless |
| |camps to allow them to follow the funerals and the news. |
| |Ferrovie dello Stato offered its railway sleeping carriage to host some homeless people, and offered free tickets to all people |
| |and students living in Abruzzo. |
| | |
| |International Aid |
| |Mr Berlusconi has refused foreign aid, saying Italians were "proud people" and had sufficient resources to deal with the crisis. |
| |But later said that he would accept funds from Washington to help restore historical buildings. |
| |() |
| |The EU offered immediate assistance, as did Russia and Israel, but an Italian government spokesman said the situation was under |
| |control at present. () |
| |The British Red Cross has donated £15,000 from its Disaster Fund to support the emergency response. |
| |() |
| |The Italian Red Cross is responded with health, first aid, logistics and humanitarian relief. It also established a field hospital|
| |to relieve the burden on local health facilities, which are under an enormous strain. The Italian Red Cross has also set up mobile|
| |kitchens able to provide 10,000 meals a day. Two soup kitchens providing 200-400 meals a day have been set up to respond to the |
| |needs of L’Aquila hospital which is being evacuated. Thirty-six ambulances from the Italian Red Cross are on rotation to evacuate |
| |injured people from L'Aquila to the hospitals in Tagliacozzo, Pescina and Avezzano and it is also evacuating an orphanage in San |
| |Gregorio and will ensure care is provided for all the children. Additionally, five psychological support teams from the Italian |
| |Red Cross are now operational on the ground. () |
|Strategies for the future. |Given that predictions about future earthquakes are impossible, Ceranna from the German Seismological Central Observatory |
| |recommends to taking precautions. Governments can draft mitigation strategies and even set up warning systems, as in Japan. |
| |Geologists can often detect an imminent earthquake just before the tremors begin. Used wisely, these precious seconds could save |
| |lives. “You can have up to 30 seconds or even a minute to close gas pipelines, stop trains, and even informed people in affected |
| |areas,” says Ceranna. “This can make a big difference.” |
| | |
| |Berlusconi urged focus on the future, including a model program to rebuild stronger houses and assured reconstruction will be |
| |quick. He also urged those left homeless to take advantage of a government offer to put survivors up in hotels along the Adriatic |
| |coast which they will be paying for and paying for well looked after. |
| | |
| |Slow Food has taken immediate action and - together with local partners -
has promoted new initiatives in order to give new life |
| |to the local economy, and to reinforce the identity of the community. Two important initiatives have been implemented community |
| |gardens and Earth markets. |
| |With support of many organizations, we are now setting up community gardens in ten refugee camps. The community organizers and the|
| |coordinators of the Slow Food School Gardens project are working together to give assistance to the affected people involved in |
| |the gardens. With summer approaching, children have the opportunity to play while learning at the same time, harvesting the fruits|
| |of the gardens that they have grown. In addition to being an educational endeavour, the initiative directly impacts local food |
| |security for the people who have been displaced by the earthquake. |
| |Certain allocated funds from the contributions will be used to buy a new wooden building in the city of L’Aquila. This building |
| |will host all local food producers who meet the requirements of the Slow Food Earth Market, meaning that the food they produce is |
| |good, clean and fair. The goal is to create a permanent farmers' market for all the producers who have lost their historical |
| |market location to the earthquake in Piazza Duomo in L’Aquila. Now they will have a new place to sell their products and to |
| |re-establish their connections with local consumers. This strengthens the normal daily routines of the people and the economy of |
| |the community, assists the farmers in making a living, and gives locals access to greater food security.
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|G8 Summit July 2009. |The 35th G8 summit took place in the city of L'Aquila, Abruzzo, on July 8–10, 2009. It was moved from the Sardinian seaside resort|
| |of La Maddalena as part of an attempt to redistribute disaster funds after L'Aquila was struck by a devastating earthquake in |
| |April 2009. () and draw attention to the area's plight. |
| |() |
| |The Italian president has decided to set aside £7.6 billion for reconstruction in Abruzzo. |
| |The Italian President said that the summit would be hosted at the Finance Police barracks which has been turned into headquarters |
| |for the emergency services, and where as mass funeral of the earthquake victims was held. |
| |The cabinet drew up a decree setting aside €8.5 Billion for reconstruction in Abruzzo, €1.5 billion of which is assigned to the |
| |emergency measures. It is not clear how the money is to be raised but report said that Mr. Berlusconi would draw on government |
| |emergency funds as well as EU funds and the national lottery. |
| |Those whose businesses have been affected will receive €800 a month in compensation for a period of up to 120 days. |
| |() |
| |The area where the three-day summit is being held is still suffering aftershocks and an evacuation plan is in place in case a |
| |serious tremor should hit. |
| |Mr Berlusconi may also be hoping to use the summit to put his domestic troubles behind him. His wife has filed for divorce and he |
| |has faced myriad accusations about wild parties and relations with young women and prostitutes. |
| |() |
| |The tremors, which have reached 4.1 on the Richter scale, have forced the Italians to consider moving the conference and |
| |newspapers are reporting that the security concerns for leaders, including Gordon Brown and Barack Obama, could cause the summit |
| |to move to Rome () |
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