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The Edexcel B specification requires you to study contrasting earthquake case studies from locations at different levels of development. This lesson compares the 2015 Nepal earthquake (an LIC) with the 2009 L'Aquila earthquake in Italy (an HIC). The contrast demonstrates a fundamental principle of hazard geography: the level of development is often more important than the magnitude of the earthquake in determining the scale of death and destruction.
Nepal is a low-income country (LIC) in South Asia, located in the Himalayan mountain range. The country sits directly on the collision boundary between the Indo-Australian Plate and the Eurasian Plate, making it one of the most seismically active countries on Earth. Nepal had experienced devastating earthquakes before, including a magnitude 8.0 event in 1934 that killed over 10,000 people.
| Key Facts About Nepal (2015) | |
|---|---|
| Population | ~28 million |
| GDP per capita | ~$730 (low-income country) |
| Terrain | Mountainous; 75% of the country is covered by mountains |
| Capital | Kathmandu (population ~1 million, metro area ~2.5 million) |
| Building stock | Predominantly unreinforced masonry and rubble-stone construction in rural areas; some reinforced concrete in Kathmandu |
| Infrastructure | Limited road network; many remote villages accessible only on foot; limited healthcare facilities |
| Characteristic | Data |
|---|---|
| Magnitude | Mw 7.8 |
| Focus depth | 15 km (shallow) |
| Epicentre | Barpak village, Gorkha District, ~80 km NW of Kathmandu |
| Plate boundary | Collision — Indo-Australian Plate being forced beneath Eurasian Plate |
| Aftershocks | Over 300 aftershocks >Mw 4.0, including a Mw 7.3 aftershock on 12 May 2015 |
| Duration of shaking | Approximately 50 seconds |
| Effect | Details |
|---|---|
| Deaths | 8,800+ people killed (some estimates exceed 9,000) |
| Injuries | Over 22,000 people injured |
| Building destruction | 604,930 buildings destroyed; 288,856 damaged. Entire villages in Gorkha and Sindhupalchok districts were flattened |
| Kathmandu damage | Historic temples and palaces in Kathmandu's Durbar Square (a UNESCO World Heritage Site) collapsed. The iconic Dharahara tower (built in 1832) was completely destroyed, killing 180 people inside |
| Infrastructure | Roads blocked by landslides; bridges collapsed; telecommunications disrupted; Kathmandu airport temporarily closed |
| Effect | Details |
|---|---|
| Landslides | The earthquake triggered thousands of landslides across Nepal's steep mountain terrain, burying villages, blocking roads and damming rivers |
| Avalanches | An enormous avalanche on Mount Everest killed 22 climbers at Base Camp — the deadliest single disaster in Everest's history |
| Displacement | Over 3.5 million people left homeless; many slept outdoors in the open for weeks due to fear of aftershocks and collapsed buildings |
| Economic cost | Estimated at $10 billion (approximately half of Nepal's GDP) |
| Water contamination | Damaged pipes and wells contaminated water supplies; increased risk of cholera and dysentery |
| Food insecurity | Crops destroyed; food stores buried; disrupted supply routes to remote areas |
| Cultural heritage | Irreplaceable historic monuments, temples and palaces destroyed or severely damaged |
| Education | Over 7,000 schools destroyed or damaged; 1 million children affected |
| Response Type | Details |
|---|---|
| Immediate domestic | Nepal's army and police conducted search and rescue; government established emergency shelters; declared a state of emergency |
| International aid | Pledges of over $4.4 billion from international donors. India, China, the UK, USA, and Japan were among the first to respond. The UK's DFID provided £73 million |
| Challenges | Nepal's remote, mountainous terrain made access extremely difficult. Only one international airport (Kathmandu) served as the main entry point for aid. Narrow mountain roads were blocked by landslides. Political instability and bureaucratic delays slowed recovery |
| Long-term recovery | A National Reconstruction Authority was established in December 2015 (7 months after the earthquake). Reconstruction was slow — by 2019, only about 60% of destroyed homes had been rebuilt. Many families spent 4+ years in temporary shelters |
L'Aquila is a historic city in the Abruzzo region of central Italy, situated in the Apennine Mountains. Italy is a high-income country (HIC) and a member of the G7. The Apennine Mountains lie along the boundary between the Eurasian Plate and the African Plate, which is being subducted beneath Italy, making the region seismically active.
| Key Facts About L'Aquila/Italy (2009) | |
|---|---|
| Population of L'Aquila | ~73,000 (city); ~300,000 (province) |
| GDP per capita (Italy) | ~$38,000 (high-income country) |
| Building stock | Mix of historic stone buildings (some centuries old) and modern reinforced concrete structures |
| Infrastructure | Well-developed road, rail and hospital networks |
| Emergency services | Professional fire service, police, ambulance and civil protection agency (Protezione Civile) |
| Characteristic | Data |
|---|---|
| Magnitude | Mw 6.3 |
| Focus depth | 9.5 km (very shallow) |
| Epicentre | Near the village of Onna, ~10 km SE of L'Aquila city centre |
| Plate boundary | Complex — extension (stretching) of the Apennine Mountains due to subduction of the African Plate |
| Time | 03:32 local time (most people were asleep in bed) |
| Duration of shaking | Approximately 20 seconds |
| Effect | Details |
|---|---|
| Deaths | 309 people killed |
| Injuries | Over 1,500 people injured |
| Building damage | 10,000–20,000 buildings damaged. Many historic stone buildings collapsed. The medieval centre of L'Aquila was severely damaged |
| Displacement | 67,000 people made homeless |
| Economic cost | Estimated at $16 billion (including reconstruction costs) |
| Infrastructure | Hospital damaged (patients evacuated); some roads cracked; water and gas pipes ruptured |
| Cultural heritage | Historic churches, palaces and the 16th-century Spanish fortress damaged |
| University | L'Aquila University's student residence collapsed, killing several students |
| Response Type | Details |
|---|---|
| Immediate | Italian Protezione Civile (Civil Protection Agency) responded within hours. Fire service conducted search and rescue operations. 4,000+ firefighters deployed |
| Temporary housing | Government provided tax-funded temporary housing within weeks. Displaced residents were housed in hotels, tent camps and temporary modular homes |
| Medical care | Field hospitals established rapidly; injured evacuated to hospitals in surrounding cities |
| Financial support | Italian government allocated billions for reconstruction. EU Solidarity Fund contributed €500 million |
| Reconstruction | The historic centre of L'Aquila was largely rebuilt by 2020 (11 years after the earthquake), though some areas remain under construction. New buildings were built to strict seismic standards |
L'Aquila is also known for a controversial legal case: in 2012, six scientists and a government official were convicted of manslaughter for allegedly providing "incomplete, imprecise and contradictory" reassurances to the public before the earthquake. They had told residents that a series of small tremors did not necessarily indicate a larger earthquake was coming. The convictions of the scientists were later overturned on appeal in 2014, but the case raised profound questions about how scientific uncertainty should be communicated to the public.
Exam Tip: The L'Aquila controversy is a good example to use in answers about prediction and communication. It illustrates that earthquakes cannot be reliably predicted, and that scientists face difficult choices about how to communicate risk without causing panic or complacency.
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