MY NATURAL DISASTER

Our school project this term was to create a presentation about a natural disaster that has had an affect on us or friends and family, which is why I chose the Christchurch Earthquake.

WHEN AND WHAT HAPPENED

It was 4:36 on the morning of September the 4^th 2010 when the first earthquake - a 7.1 - shook everyone awake. It was measured 37.3km from the centre of Christchurch at a depth of 10.95km. It was a terrifying experience for everyone. Luckily no one died, although many historical buildings had come down. Little did they know, there was another earthquake in store for them. That occurred on Feb the 22^nd 2011. While this was not as big it created a lot more damage from those buildings that were still unstable and many deaths.

WHO WAS AFFECTED

Many people think that it was just the Christchurch residents that were affected but it wasn’t. All of New Zealand felt the sadness and pain as well. We have stood beside Christchurch all the way, and as this had made headlines around the world, I would think that we are not the only ones who have been affected.

HOW DID IT AFFECT THE LAND

According to scientists a major fault line runs straight through the centre of Christchurch. The affect to the land was amazing. Many people think that it was the Avon River trying to take back its land. Lots of housing was built on reclaimed land and after the earthquake, the silt and mud rose to the surface causing huge problems with liquefaction for the residents.

AFFECTED LONG AND SHORT TERM

There were many, many short term affects such as : loss of power, schools being closed, broken roads, deaths and injuries, no work to go to, broken sewage systems and those poor lost pets . Some of the long term affects were : physical and emotional distress, Major debt for NZ government, condemned buildings and unusable land.

WHO HELPED

Many people from all over the world came to help those in need. Everything from search and rescue teams to engineers to SPCA volunteers. Christchurch was stunned by the amount of help and support they got from different countries in their time of need.

HOW DID LIFE GET BACK TO NORMAL

Life still has not gotten back to normal as the fears and worries are still floating around in people’s mind. Even the littlest things make a difference to those people who were affected, such as knowing where the nearest exit is or knowing where their loved one is 24-7. However many people are determined to get Christchurch back to the way it used to be and they are not letting this stand in their way of getting back to everyday life.

HOW DID IT HAPPEN

The earth is made up of many different plates. When two of these come into contact or collide with each other, it sends vibrations through the earth causing the land on top of the plates to buckle and tear. The reason why Christchurch got the main hit is because Christchurch actually sits right on top of a major fault line. As you can see this is what causes earthquakes here and all over the world.

CAN WE BE PREPARED FOR ANOTHER ONE

You can’t stop it happening but the Christchurch earthquakes have made people all around New Zealand more prepared. Children all know the earthquake drills, buildings have been checked all through New Zealand for safety and homes are becoming better equipped with survival kits.

EXTRA FACTS

181 was the total number of people killed in the February earthquake

Over 361 aftershocks occurred in the first week of the September earthquake

The cost of damage was between 25 and 30 billion dollars

54,000 homes had no power after the September earthquake

7.1 was the September earthquake while 6.3 was the February one