The Sikkim Earthquake, 2011
At 6:10pm on the 18th of September, 2011 Sikkim of India was shaken by a 6.9 magnitude earthquake. This devastating natural disaster lines up with some of the worst that has happened to India in the past century. It affected the majority of Sikkim as well as a large section of Bangladesh, Nepal, Bhutan and even as far as southern Tibet in China. What was to be just another average day in Sikkim began to shape up as the worst they would ever see. The epicentre of this horrific earthquake stood only 64km away from the North-West of Gangtok. The impacts to the environment, infrastructure and society and listed below.
Magnitude: 6.9 Mercalli Scale: VI Type of Earthquake: Inter plate Depth: 19.7km Epicentre: 27.723N, 88.064E |
IMPACT TO THE...
INFRASTRUCTURE:The impact of the Sikkim earthquake had a devastating effect to the infrastructure (buildings, bridges and roads).
• The main highway that linked Sikkim to the rest of India was completely destroyed. • Thousand of homes were destroyed leaving many in a temporary shelters for the time being. • Most roads were left with cracks • The cost of damage to infrastructure is about 15 billions dollars this also adds financial difficulties for the community of Sikkim. By: Christina Succar |
SOCIETY:This horrific disaster impacted the society and the community, taking the lives of many and creating victims of the earthquake. Many were left dead and injured.
• Approximately 111 people died, 97 from India and the rest from places such as China, Nepal and Bhutan. No one died in Bangladesh. • Thousands of people evacuated while they could • Long term effects to residents as they would have had great trauma during and after the earthquake took place. • The trauma would also continue as there houses, careers and families were all gone. Everything that they had would have vanished with in a few minutes. |
ENVIRONMENT:The Sikkim earthquake absolutely demolished the environment around it. The biosphere, hydrosphere, lithosphere and atmosphere were all crippled and were in need of life.
• Water supplies were interrupted in Sikkim. • The water from rivers and oceans were contaminated and unhealthy to use. • The lithosphere may have had ground ruptures, broken bricks everywhere and cracks that may have created landslides. • The biosphere would have also been completely wrecked, many crops would have been crippled and destroyed. • Earthquakes also let out emissions into the atmosphere . |