Impacts and Responses to Storm Hazards (AQA A Level Geography)

Social

Deaths and injuries

Displacement of people

Damage to properties and infrastructure causing disruption to people’s lives

Mental health issues e.g. stress, anxiety, depression

Homelessness

Disruption to services such as healthcare and education

Loss of cultural heritage sites

Economic

Destruction of property and infrastructure leading to significant costs for repair and reconstruction

Disruption of trade and economic activity

Loss of income and employment

Costs of immediate responses e.g. food aid, temporary shelter, medical treatment

Slower economic growth and development

Increased economic inequality as impacts are more severe for most vulnerable people

Increased costs of insurance and hazard management strategies

Environmental

Poor water quality due to pollution

Loss of biodiversity as freshwater habitats are inundated with salt water

Destruction of habitats and ecosystems e.g salt marshes, sand dunes, mangrove forests and coral reefs

Soil erosion and land degradation leads to decreased soil fertility which can lead to a loss of productivity of crops

Loss of habitat and biodiversity can affect other species such as migratory birds

Loss of coral reefs, sand dunes, mangrove forests and salt marshes can leave coastline more exposed to erosion and flooding in the long-term

Political

Pressure on governments to co-ordinate emergency response

Social unrest and political instability

Conflicts over government response and food shortage

Changes in government policy and regulations to reduce future risk

Evacuation of people before the tropical storm arrives

Improve long-term forecasting techniques to give people more time to evacuate in the future

Rescue people before the storm cuts people off from flooding and treat injured people

Provide aid, grants or subsidies to residents to repair and strengthen their properties

Recover any dead bodies to reduce and prevent water and air borne diseases

Repair and improve flood defences - flood gates, levees etc. 

Set up temporary shelters for the homeless and post notices where they are being housed for missing family members

Repair homes or rehouse people who have lost their homes or been damaged

Provide temporary supplies of power, food and water and restore communication systems as soon as possible

Repair, replace and improve infrastructure

Overseas aid may be sent in the form of workers, supplies, equipment or financial donations

Improve building regulations so that more buildings withstand the impacts of tropical storms or change planning rules to restrict homes being built in risk areas

Tech companies encouraged to set up disaster response tools to let people confirm their safety, report damaged areas and alert about risk areas 

Encourage economic recovery in the area and encourage people to return with incentives or tax breaks

Social

6201 people died 

1.1 million homes lost

More than 4 million displaced

Casualties 28,626 from lack of aid

16 million people affected

UN admitted its response was too slow, amid reports of hunger/thirst among survivors

UN feared possibility of the spread of disease, lack of food, water, shelter and medication

There was an influx of refugees into less affected areas

Two months later, 21,000 families were still in 380 evacuation centres, waiting to be rehoused by the government in bunkhouses that needed to be built

Economic

Damage estimated at $13 billion

Major sugar/rice producing areas were destroyed

Between 50,000 and 120,000 tons of sugar was lost

Over 130,000 tonnes of rice were lost

Government estimated that 175,000 acres of farmland was damaged (worth $85 million)

Tacloban city was decimated

Debt is a major obstacle for the Philippines, the country is locked in a debt cycle, with more than 20% of government revenue spent on foreign debt repayments

Environmental

Loss of forests/trees, and widespread flooding

Oil and sewage leaks into local ecosystems

Lack of sanitation in days following lead to a higher level of pollution

Coconut plantations were said to be 'completely flattened' (coconut equated to nearly half of the Philippines agricultural exports / is the world's biggest producer of coconut oil

Fishing communities were severely affected

An estimated 90 per cent of the rural population in typhoon-affected areas are small-scale farmers

With 33 million coconut trees felled, international help was sought to mill the 15 million tons of timber,
lying rotting on the ground, attracting pests that threatened healthy trees

Without a crop, families would not have cash to enable local markets to function

Political

President Aquino asked for international help the next day

Government was under growing pressure to speed up the distribution of emergency aid

Government was accused of being unprepared and there were widespread protests

Increased government spending and new policies to improve disaster preparedness and response

$3 billion allocated for rehabilitation and reconstruction of affected areas

The Philippines declared 'a state of national calamity’ and asked for international the next day

International aid agencies responded quickly with food, water and temporary shelters

The Philippines Red Cross delivered basic food aid e.g. rice & canned food

UK sent shelter kits to provide emergency shelter for a family

Over 1200 evacuation centres set up for the homeless 

The French, Belgian and Israelis set up field hospitals to help the injured

$475 million sent as aid and US sent 13,000 soldiers

The UN donated financial aid, supplies and medical support

5 days went by before any aid was received and only 20% of victims received aid

UN admitted its response was too slow

Rebuilding of the airport, ports, roads and bridges

'Cash for Work' schemes gave locals money to help clear the debris

Oxfam helped finance replacement of the fishing boats

Increased number of cyclone shelters have been built further away from coastal areas

Social

107 people died 

More than 200,000 homes were damaged or destroyed

30,000 people were displaced

13 million people affected

Water treatment facilities were damaged leading to water shortages and boil-water advisories

The psychological impact was significant with almost 50% of people experiencing trauma, stress or anxiety

Many people were displaced for extended periods of time of 6 months to two years

People of colour and poorer communities were particularly badly affected and experienced longer recovery times

Economic

Estimated $125 billion in damages

300,000 buildings damaged or destroyed

Disruptions to the energy industry, with an estimated 20% of US refining capacity impacted by the storm

Many businesses were forced to shut down or suspend operations

Approximately 30,000 jobs were lost

Supply chain disruptions had a knock-on effect across many industries e.g. manufacturing and construction

Costs of basic necessities increased

Insurance costs for property owners in affected areas increased

Environmental

Strong winds damaged trees and other vegetation

Widespread flooding caused pollution and water contamination

Air pollution from chemical plants and industrial facilities

Significant erosion altered the shape of beaches and estuaries

Several oil spills in the Gulf of Mexico threatened the marine ecosystem

Damage to biodiversity and habitat destruction had a long-term impact on ecosystems

Soil contamination had long-term effects on agriculture and ecosystem health

Air pollution contributed to long-term respiratory problems and other health issues

Oil spills and water pollution had a long-term impact on the health of marine ecosystems

Political

$15 billion was approved in emergency funding for the relief and recovery efforts

A huge emergency response was launched to provide shelter and resources involving over 50,000 emergency staff

A curfew was imposed to prevent looting of abandoned properties

The government was criticised for its handling of the crisis

The Houston Rising Coalition was set up to promote social, racial, economic and environmental justice in the aftermath of the hurricane due to the disproportionate effects on people of colour and low-income communities

Funding was allocated for long-term infrastructure projects to mitigate the impact of future disasters

Warnings were issued and compulsory evacuations were ordered

Evacuation and rescue teams were mobilised including over 12,000 military personnel

Millions of sandbags were made available and non-essential services were closed

Flood managers authorised the controlled release of water from reservoirs to try to reduce flooding

Curfews were imposed to maintain order and prevent looting and other criminal activities

The American Red Cross established over 200 shelters in Texas for people displaced by the storm

Financial assistance was provided to over 800,000 people by FEMA (the Federal Emergency Management Agency)

Electricity was restored to over 1.5 million customers in the days following the storm

Rebuilding of infrastructure such as roads and bridges

Financial assistance was provided to help homeowners repair or rebuild their homes

The Rebuild Texas Fund raised over $100 million to support the recovery of small businesses

The government provided over $1 billion in disaster recovery loans to support economic recovery

Over $5 billion was allocated to flood control projects in Texas to try to reduce future risk of flooding

Funding was allocated to mental health services to provide support to people affected by the disaster

Funding was provided for environmental restoration to restore habitats and ecosystems