On May 12, 2008, one of the largest earthquakes in Chinese history struck Sichuan (Northwest of Chengdu). The magnitude of the earthquake was 8.0 on the Richter scale (Han Q., Du, X., Liu, J., Li, Z., Li, L. & Zhao, J., 2009). The epicenter of the earthquake was located 80 kilometers west of Chengdu, near the city of Dujiangyan. According to government figures, the total death toll from the earthquake was 69,227, with about 68,636 individuals living in Sichuan. Further, the number of people injured in the quake was 374,176 and 18,222 people were missing (Cheng, Liu, Gan & Li, 2009). Research conducted indicated that an estimated 5 million people became homeless as a result of the earthquake which caused devastating effects on the Chinese landscape as it resulted in the collapsing of approximately 5.36 million worth of buildings and the damage of estimated 21 million buildings. The central locations where the buildings collapsed was in Hubei, Yunnan, Gansu, Shaanxi, Chongqing, and Sichuan.
The total assessed economic loss that emanated from the earthquake was about $86 billion. The most affected areas demolished because of the quake included Yingxiu, Beichuan, Wulong, and Dujiangyan. The other earthquake hit China with devastating effects more than the Sichuan earthquake was the 1976 Tangshan earthquake in which more than 240,000 people died. Indeed, the Tangshan earthquake was the deadliest earthquake which ever occurred in China. It is imperative to realize that the quake was followed by rock falls and land sliding. Nonetheless, as a result of these subsequent physical events, buildings, railways, and roads were destroyed. Furthermore, the earthquake led to the formation of 34 barrier lakes which came up as a consequence of the land sliding and about 700,000 people had to evacuate. In the days that followed, the road towards Chengdu had to be cut off. Numerous aftershocks occurred in the area with some of the aftershocks reaching a magnitude of up to six increasing the number of victims.
Factors which Turned the Physical Event into a Disaster
Physical effects resulted after the earthquake were even more horrible as health problems cropped up mainly because of the lack of clean water. Immediately after the Sichuan earthquake, several environmental challenges came up, including water pollution, fires, and gas leaks. In other areas, for example in Chongqing, Sichuan, and Hubei, the earthquake entirely interrupted all means of communication and the infrastructure collapsed (Der Hilst, 2008). Moreover, the earthquake led to the immediate closure of Chengdu International Airport with other effects being the distortion of Chengdu-Kunming and Baoji-Chengdu railways lines. The earthquake also resulted in the formation of landslides, floods, and many other tragedies which led to the demolition of infrastructures in that region. Indeed, the earthquake resulted in the obstruction of the Minjiang River due to the formation of landslides as well as land deformation.
The 2008 earthquake resulted in the destruction of whole villages and towns in the mountains that experienced damage with many schools collapsing in the process (Cheng, Liu, Gan, & Li, 2009). The lack of modern rescue equipment caused the delays that also contributed to the number of deaths in the area. Indeed, the earthquake led to the changing of the landscape to a large extent which, in turn, resulted in the formation of secondary landslides, mountain hazards, and debris flow. An estimate conducted shows that the landslides will continue for the next 5 to 10 years and the debris flow for the next 10 to 20 years. The earthquake also led to the formation of 34 barrier lakes, especially in the regions of Beichuan and Wenchuan. The Tangjiashan barrier lake is the most hazardous of the 34 barrier lakes which had been formed after the earthquake (Cheng, Liu, Gan & Li, 2009). In Sichuan, the earthquake led to the destruction of the Wolong giant pandas’ homes as a result of the debris flow, the collapsing of mountains, and land sagging. The earthquake also led to the destruction of the Gansu province as well as Sichuan and Shaanxi ecosystems. Indeed, the blocked rivers, geomorphology changes, and the bare soil negatively impacted the functions of biodiversity maintenance, water conservation, and soil conservation. Moreover, the earthquake affected not only the ecosystem but also the finance industry of the whole region. The impacts of the quake also reached the Agricultural Development Bank in Beichuan county branch. Due to the low insurance coverage after the earthquake, only $1.806 billion could be paid to the affected areas by the insurance industries (Cheng, Liu, Gan, & Li, 2009). Nonetheless, the earthquake affected the industrial enterprises of Shaanxi provinces, Sichuan, and Gansu which had a total of 17923 affected companies.
The whole country also suffered an enormous economic loss due to the effects of the earthquake. Though there was approximately $86 billion direct economic loss with some of the five largest cities in Sichuan suffering minor damages because of the quake, this made the earthquake one of the costliest natural disasters in the history of China (Cheng, Liu, Gan, & Li, 2009). It is imperative to realize that most of the deaths occurred after the quake were a result of collapsing buildings which had been accounted for 90% of the fatalities. The nature of the buildings made it hard for them to withstand the shock that emanated from the earthquake which therefore caused the high number of deaths experienced. Indeed, there is a debate that the shoddy construction of Chinese buildings, especially schools, led to the catastrophic collapse of so many buildings in the affected areas. The number of deaths experienced as a result of the quake included more than 5335 children who were mainly students attending their classes (Han et al., 2009). The structural damage made it hard for rescue teams to reach the victims on time. As such, they had to climb mountains and cross rivers by foot which led to the massive delay of assistance and, in turn, the number of casualties rose to unprecedented levels (Cui et al., 2009).
Recommendations
The Sichuan earthquake was one of the most horrible earthquakes China have ever faced. The disaster gave a lot of lessons to the country that it could learn from to mitigate the effects of such a catastrophe in the future. The following are some of the ways in which the country could minimize the impact of such natural disasters in the future as well as to ensure that a lot of innocent lives will be saved in the case if such terrible accidents happen. First of all, the number of deaths that resulted from the earthquake occurred due to the unavoidable collapsing of the shoddy buildings which indicate that the construction in China was not up to the standard at the time of the disaster (Cheng, Liu, Gan, & Li, 2009). Research conducted suggest that robust infrastructure made to withstand natural disasters can minimize the impact and, therefore, reduce the number of casualties to a vast extent. Further, the introduction of proper safety standards as well as the construction of buildings that meet the regulations could minimize the damage caused by the earthquake and other natural disasters. For example, the government could come up with a registration to ensure that the buildings constructed in those areas which have a high risk of earthquakes would be strengthened so that in the case of other natural disasters, the buildings would not collapse or shake (Wang, 2008).
Secondly, another mitigation that should be taken into consideration in order to reduce the number of casualties in the future is the introduction of training programs which can involve the local volunteers. Indeed, the government should set aside money and give it to the various establishments, such as educational institutes, to teach people about the different measures that should be taken in the case of an earthquake. The training program and the emergency plans should be updated in time and any change in the current situation. Indeed, coming up with such a response plan would make people aware of the situation and, thus, the means of responding accordingly to the case of a natural disaster. Such a knowledge can make people avoid panic at the time of disaster but rather know the means through which they can save their lives as well as those of others (Wasowski, Keefer & Lee, 2011).
Lastly, the expert points out that there was a great neglecting of the areas that had been majorly hit by the earthquake with those areas not feeling the economic status and rise of China. It is imperative to note that in such areas, the levels of healthcare and medical accessibility were inadequate and, as such, were not accessible to all during the disaster (Cheng, Liu, Gan, & Li, 2009). Facts and figures show that medical assistance during and after the catastrophe was not enough and thus failed to reach the victims in the hour of need. The lack of insurance for those affected made it hard for them to access hospitals and get the requisite treatment. In order to avoid such occurrences, there is the need to make medical facilities available to all citizens. Further, the government should come up with an Emergency Response Plan aimed at providing immediate help to those involved in the disaster in the first few hours of its occurrence. Such a program would contribute to reducing the number of casualties affected by a natural disaster saving countless lives. Nonetheless, timely help and medical assistance would treat the injured before it will be too late, thus reducing the number of death which may occur due to the negligence.
References
Chan, E. Y. (2008). The untold stories of the Sichuan earthquake. The Lancet, 372(9636), 359-362.
Cheng, J., Liu, J., Gan, W., & Li, G. (2009). Influence of 2008 Wenchuan earthquake on earthquake occurrence trend of active faults in Sichuan-Yunnan region. Earthquake Science, 22(5), 459-469. Retrieved from
http://dx.doi.org/10.1007/s11589-009-0459-6
Cui, P., Zhu, Y. Y., Han, Y. S., Chen, X. Q., & Zhuang, J. Q. (2009). The 12 May Wenchuan earthquake-induced landslide lakes: distribution and preliminary risk evaluation. Landslides, 6(3), 209-223.
Der Hilst, B. H. (2008). A geological and geophysical context for the Wenchuan earthquake of 12 May 2008, Sichuan, People’s Republic of China. GSA today, 18(7), 5.
Han, Q., Du, X., Liu, J., Li, Z., Li, L., & Zhao, J. (2009). Seismic damage of highway bridges during the 2008 Wenchuan earthquake. Earthquake Engineering and Engineering Vibration, 8(2), 263-273. Retrieved from
http://dx.doi.org/10.1007/s11803-009-8162-0
Parsons, T., Ji, C., & Kirby, E. (2008). Stress changes from the 2008 Wenchuan earthquake and increased hazard in the Sichuan basin. Nature, 454(7203), 509-510.
Wasowski, J., Keefer, D. K., & Lee, C. T. (2011). Toward the next generation of research on earthquake-induced landslides: current issues and future challenges. Engineering Geology, 122(1), 1-8.
Wang, Z. (2008). A preliminary report on the Great Wenchuan Earthquake. Earthquake engineering and engineering vibration, 7(2), 225-234.
