2007 Earthquake in Peru
On the 15th of August 2007, disaster struck the Peruvian province of Ica. An earthquake that measured 7.9 on the Richter scale took the lives of many Peruvians. The earthquake was caused by the moving of the Nazca and South American tectonic plates which move at a rate of 78 millimetres per year. The Nazca plate converged with the South American plate and slid beneath it, causing one of the worst earthquakes in Peru for the past 30 years.
Many people were killed in this devastating earthquake which lasted for about two minutes. Almost 600 people died and more than 100 people were injured. More than 75 000 families lost their homes and many buildings and infrastructure were damaged in the earthquake.
There was a power outage in the city of Ica and many areas lost their telephone service, rendering them helpless. Over 300 people lost their lives as a cathedral in Ica collapsed and another 26 died when a hospital in Pisco suffered extensive damage due to the earthquake. These damages were largely due to buildings being built on soft soil and lack of proper urban planning.
The Peruvian government pleaded for international humanitarian assistance and declared a state of emergency. The United Nations Development Programme brought in national and international relief workers who coordinated recovery efforts. The government and military also led searches for survivors in the rubble and evacuated the injured. Shelter was provided for the homeless and medical and food aid was distributed.
From this, I have learnt that although natural disasters cannot be prevented, measures can be taken to lessen the extent of the damage. These include proper urban planning, reinforcing of buildings and investing in research and development as well as in sophisticated equipment to predict and prepare for occurrences of such natural disasters.
(300 words)
Name : Clara Anne Kwan (11)
Class : 1 Faith
Bibliography
Reuters, http://www.cnn.com/2007/WORLD/americas/08/15/peru.earthquake/ , extracted 24-02-2010
Laura Puertas and John Elsen, Earthquake in Peru Kills Hundreds, The New York Times, 16-08-2007 http://www.nytimes.com/2007/08/16/world/americas/16cnd-peru.html
Kelly Hearn http://news.nationalgeographic.com/news/2007/08/070816-peru-quake.html , extracted 24-02-2010
