The Kashmir Earthquake is also known as the Great Pakistan Earthquake or the South Asia Earthquake. It was a major earthquake due to its power and the damage it made. The earthquake occurred in 2005 striking the region of Kashmir and countries including Pakistan. This natural disaster is indeed dangerous producing serious damage and effects.
"Image:8oct05 sasia quake neic.jpg” Wikipedia. wikipedia. 2 Dec 2007 .
Where
"SUPPORT EARTHQUAKE RELIEF ” Ekta Online. 2 Dec 2007 .
The epicenter of the earthquake is at the region called Kashmir in the close to the city of Muzaffarabad which is 100 km northeast of the capital Ismalabad. The area the earthquake occurred was full of mountains which cause landslides. Many cities of Pakistan received damage from the earthquake including Muzaffarabad, Ismalabad, Punjab, Karachi and many other areas and cities. Also, countries nearby were effected including northern India and Afghanistan. And many other areas were effected by minor aftershocks and secondary earthquakes.
The epicenter of the earthquake is at the region called Kashmir in the close to the city of Muzaffarabad which is 100 km northeast of the capital Ismalabad. The area the earthquake occurred was full of mountains which cause landslides. Many cities of Pakistan received damage from the earthquake including Muzaffarabad, Ismalabad, Punjab, Karachi and many other areas and cities. Also, countries nearby were effected including northern India and Afghanistan. And many other areas were effected by minor aftershocks and secondary earthquakes.
When
The time the earthquake occurred was 08:50:38am 8 October 2005 Pakistan Standard Time.
The time the earthquake occurred was 08:50:38am 8 October 2005 Pakistan Standard Time.
What
"Geography of Pakistan ” Answer.com. 2 Dec 2007 .
Kashmir lies where the Eurasian and Indian Plate collides which the Himalayas was also formed by the collision of these 2 plates. Collision margins occur when 2 continental plates move towards each other which may form mountains of earthquakes. Due to the movements of these 2 plates, the earthquake occurred measuring 7.7 or 7.6 on the Richter scale. After the initial earthquake, there were about 147 aftershocks which measure around 6.2. Then later there were a total of 976 minor aftershocks. The United States Geological Survey recognizes this earthquake as a major one.
Effects
“Image:Kashmir earthquake casualties” Wikipedia. wikipedia. 2 Dec 2007 .
The people that are most effected by the earthquake are the people that lives close to mountain areas. This is because of landslides occur easily, and they block roads and cause damage. This cause about 3.3 million people in Pakistan to be homeless. The earthquake occurred on Saturday which was a school day. Students and teachers were killed, and people in houses and villages had no time to escape. It was also the period of Ramadan in Pakistan, so people were sleeping in their houses. The numbers of people injured and dead was unimaginable. There were reports that villagers and buildings on the northern part of Pakistan was totally wiped out. Both India and Pakistan were greatly effected.
Results
“Image:Pakistan aid.jpg” Wikipedia. wikipedia. 2 Dec 2007 .
Though Pakistan is an LEDC, aid and help did come quickly. The problem is it took quite a while for some people to receive help because they live in mountain areas. Roads and passages were block, so it took some time and heavy machines to clear the area and give help. Also Pakistan had fairly good rescue teams and technology to help their people, though other countries and international organizations also gave a lot of help. The UN gave help and raised 272 million dollars in donation. However people tend to live in the area is because they were quite poor, and not much people decide to move somewhere else.
What is being done about it?
“Image:Lions-House-Kashmir.jpg” Wikipedia. wikipedia. 2 Dec 2007 .
The International Association of Lions Clubs raise funds and they built more than 150 houses for the people and build a water supply system. This is done because before houses were poorly built and can't withstand the earthquake, so stronger houses, water systems and many other constructions are built. Pakistan isn't able to install better facilities in warning systems in detecting earthquakes, but at least they did something to lessen the damage if the earthquake tends to happen again.
Citations
."2005 Kashmir earthquake." Wikipedia. 24 November 2007. 2 Dec 2007 http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2005%20Kashmir%20earthquake.
Khalid Bin Sayeed. “Pakistan.” The New book of Knowledge. Volume 15 Grolier Incorporated: Connecticut, 1993
