NOTABLE EVENTS AND DISASTERS OF 2014
HIGHLIGHTS OF VOLCANIC ERUPTIONS
Walter Hays, Global Alliance for Walter Hays, Global Alliance for Disaster Reduction, Vienna, Disaster Reduction, Vienna,
Virginia, USA Virginia, USA
VOLCANIC ERUPTIONS are awesome manifestations
of heat flowing non-explosively as a result of
mantle hot spots (e.g., Hawaii and Iceland) or erupting
explosively in subduction zones (e.g., the Pacific Rim).
VOLCANIC ERUPTIONS are awesome manifestations
of heat flowing non-explosively as a result of
mantle hot spots (e.g., Hawaii and Iceland) or erupting
explosively in subduction zones (e.g., the Pacific Rim).
ELEMENTS OF VOLCANIC HAZARDS AND RISK
HAZARDSHAZARDSHAZARDSHAZARDS
ELEMENTS OF RISK ELEMENTS OF RISK ELEMENTS OF RISK ELEMENTS OF RISK
EXPOSUREEXPOSUREEXPOSUREEXPOSURE
VULNERABILITYVULNERABILITYVULNERABILITYVULNERABILITY LOCATIONLOCATIONLOCATIONLOCATION
RISKRISKRISKRISK
LOCATIONS OF ACTIVE VOLCANOES
VOLCANO HAZARDS CAN HAVE FAR REACHING IMPACTS
• VERTICAL PLUME (can affect jet aircraft)
• ASH AND TEPHRA
• LATERAL BLAST
• PYROCLASTIC CLOUDS, BURSTS, AND FLOWS
VOLCANO HAZARDS CAN HAVE FAR REACHING IMPACTS
• LAVA FLOWS
• LAHARS (can bury villages)
• EARTHQUAKES (related to movement of lava)
• “VOLCANIC WINTER” (causing famine and mass extinctions)
LATERAL BLAST
VOLCANIC
ERUPTIONS
VOLCANIC
ERUPTIONS
PYROCLASTIC FLOWS
FLYING DEBRIS
ASH PLUME AND GASES
LAVA FLOWS
LAHARS
TOXIC GASES
CAUSES OF RISK
CAUSES OF RISK
CASE HISTORIESCASE HISTORIES
AIRLINES ON RED ALERT AFTER VOLCANIC ERUPTION
IN ICELANDAugust 23, 2014
BARDARBUNGA ERUPTS
WHAT HAPPENED?
• After a week of seismic activity rattled the uninhabited area 200 miles (320 kilometers) east of the capital of Reykjavik with thou-sands of earthquakes, Iceland's Bardarbunga volcano began erupting Saturday (Aug. 23rd) under the country's largest glacier.
WHAT HAPPENED?
• An Iceland volcanologist said it was not clear when, or if, the eruption would melt through the ice — which is between 100 and 400 meters (330 feet and 1,300 feet) thick — and send steam and ash into the air.
WHAT MIGHT HAPPEN?
• She said it could take up to a day for the ice to melt — or the eruption might remain contained beneath Europe's largest glacier.
OFFICIALS TAKE ACTION
• On Saturday, Icelandic authorities declared a no-fly zone of 100 nautical miles by 140 nautical miles around the eruption, but did not shut down flights in the rest of the country's airspace.
Officials Remembered the Eruption of the
Eyjafjallajökull Volcano in Southern Iceland
MARCH 20, 2010
The 2010 eruption of Iceland's Eyjafjallajokul volcano
produced an ash cloud that caused a week of international aviation chaos, with more than
100,000 flights cancelled.
VOLCANIC ERUPTION IN JAPAN
Saturday, September 27, 2014
MOUNT ONTAKEERUPTS AFTER 35 YEARS
OF DORMANCY
ONTAKE, ONE OF 100 ACTIVE VOLCANOES IN JAPAN, ERUPTED A
LITTLE BEFORE NOON ON
SEPTEMBER 27, 2014
MOUNT ONTAKE: SATURDAY, SEPTEMBER 27, 2014
MOUNT ONTAKE: SATURDAY, SEPTEMBER 27, 2014
MOUNT ONTAKE: SATURDAY, SEPTEMBER 27, 2014
MOUNT ONTAKE: SATURDAY, SEPTEMBER 27, 2014
MOUNT ONTAKE: SATURDAY, SEPTEMBER 27, 2014
MOUNT ONTAKE: SATURDAY, SEPTEMBER 27, 2014
PHYSICAL IMPACTS
• With a sound likened to thunder, the 10,065 foot (3,067 m) high volcano spewed large white plumes of gas and ash high into the atmosphere and blanketed the top and surrounding area with volcanic debris and ash reaching thicknesses of 50 cm or more.
MOUNT ONTAKE COVERED WITH ASHMOUNT ONTAKE COVERED WITH ASH
MOUNT ONTAKE COVERED WITH ASHMOUNT ONTAKE COVERED WITH ASH
LOCAL IMPACTS
The mountain is a popular climbing destination, and an estimated 303 people were initially trapped on the slopes.
At least 36 were killed; most made their way down by Saturday night, but the injured, unable to descend the 10,062-foot mountain on their own, stayed in mountain lodges.
HIKERS RETURNING: SATURDAY, SEPTEMBER 27, 2014
HIKERS RETURNING: SATURDAY, SEPTEMBER 27, 2014
HIKERS RETURNING: SATURDAY, SEPTEMBER 27, 2014
HIKERS RETURNING: SATURDAY, SEPTEMBER 27, 2014
INJURED HIKERS HAD TO TAKE REFUGE IN ASH-COVERED LODGES
SATURDAY: INITIAL S AND R WITH HELOCOPTERS
SATURDAY: INITIAL S AND R WITH HELOCOPTERS
THE REST OF THE STORY
• On Sunday, a large plume of ash continued to rise from the ash-covered summit of Mount Ontake.
• A convoy of red fire trucks, sirens blaring, rescue workers on foot, and helicopters headed into the restricted zone around the mountain for search and rescue operations.
SUNDAY: BEGINNING OF S AND R OPRATIONS
SUNDAY: BEGINNING OF S AND R OPRATIONS
MOUNT ONTAKE: SUNDAY, SEPTEMBER 28, 2014
MOUNT ONTAKE: SUNDAY, SEPTEMBER 28, 2014
SUNDAY: S AND R WORKERS GOING THE WRONG WAY
Sunday: Rescue workers had to suspend S and R operations due to toxic
gases and volcano-induced seismic activity
MONDAY: RESCUE WORKERS ABLE TO REACH ASH-COVERED TOP
MONDAY: RESCUE WORKERS ABLE TO REACH ASH-COVERED TOP
A HORRIFIC SCENE
• Rescue crews found harrowing situations near the mountaintop; the typical scenes were of victims buried in ash with their arms and legs emerging from gray volcanic dust, or of bodies pressed between rocks where they were trying to find shelter.
Tuesday: S and R operations were suspended as Mount Ontake continued
shaking violently and coughing out toxic steam.
DEATH TOLL REACHED 36AT LEAST 69 INJURED
LAVA FLOW—A SILENT VOLCANIC HAZARD IN HAWAII
Thursday, October 30, 2014Monday, November 10, 2014
LAVA FLOW MOVING AT 5 M PER HOUR TOWARDS PAHOA
LAVA FLOW MOVING AT 5 M PER HOUR TOWARDS PAHOA
WHAT HAPPENED?
• The lava from Kilauea, a non-explosive volcano, that has been erupting for years, emerged from a vent in June.
• Traveling slowly, it entered Pahoa on Oct. 26, when it crossed a country road at the edge of town.
LAVA FLOW FROM KILAUEA CONTINUES ITS ADVANCE TOWARD PAHOA
LAVA FLOW FROM KILAUEA CONTINUES ITS ADVANCE TOWARD PAHOA
PAHOA HAWAII
• A contingent of National Guard troops was dispatched to Pahoa on Thursday, October 30, to provide security to the Big Island community that was being threatened by the slow-moving river of molten lava creeping slowly towards the town's center.
WHAT HAPPENED?
• The leading edge of the molten rock stalled at the edge of town on Oct. 30, but lava began to break away at several other upslope spots..
• Between October 30 and November 10, the flow smothered part of a cemetery, and burned down a garden shed, tires, some metal materials, and vegetation.
Monday, November 10, 2014
LAVA FLOW ARRIVES AND SETS FIRE TO FIRST HOUSE
LAVA FLOW ARRIVES AND SETS FIRE TO FIRST HOUSE
WHAT HAPPENED?
• The 200 degree molten rock set fire to the first house in Pahoa around midday on Monday, November 10th .
• The house was allowed to burn as firefighters took actions to prevent its spread to other houses.
• The home's occupants had already left the residence.
WHAT IS NEXT?
• Officials were working on safe evacuation routes and plans.
• Many residents had evacuated.
• Having put their belongings in storage, others were prepared to leave for a friend’s house, or elsewhere, if necessary when the lava got closer.
THE REASONS FOR A DISASTER TO OCCUR. . .
• The community is UN-PREPARED for what will likely happen, not to mention the low-probability of occurrence—high-probability-of-adverse- consequences event.
THE REASONS ARE . . .
• The community has NO DISASTER PLANNING SCENARIO or WARNING SYSTEM in place as a strategic framework for early threat identification and coordinated local, national, regional, and international countermeasures.
THE REASONS ARE . . .
• The community LACKS THE CAPACITY TO RESPOND in a timely and effective manner to the full spectrum of expected and unexpected emergency situations.
THE REASONS ARE . . .
• The community is INEFFICIENT during recovery and reconstruction because it HAS NOT LEARNED from either the current experience or the cumulative prior experiences.
LEARNING FROM GLOBAL VOLCANIC-- ERUPTION
DISASTER LABORATORIES
WHAT MAKES THESE 11 VOLCANOES DANGEROUS
• Eyjafjallajökull and Katla (ICELAND)
• Chaiten
• Krakatau
• Merapi
• Vesuvius
• Pinatubo
• Mount Rainier
• Nevada del Ruiz
• Popocatepl
• Nyirangongo (CONGO)
ELEVEN OF THE WORLD’S NOST DANGEROUS
VOLCANOES
THE NEXT ERUPTION OF THESE 11 ACTIVE VOLCANOES IS LIKELY TO BE
DEVASTATING LOCALLY, REGIONALLY, AND GLOBALLY
LOCATED NEAR CITIES AND INTERNATIONAL AIRLINE ROUTES
An eruption of any one of these eleven volcanoes is certain to be devastating to people, their property, their health, the economy, and, sometimes, the regional air space.
COMMUNITYCOMMUNITYCOMMUNITYCOMMUNITYDATA BASES DATA BASES AND INFORMATIONAND INFORMATIONDATA BASES DATA BASES AND INFORMATIONAND INFORMATION
HAZARDS: GROUND SHAKING GROUND FAILURE SURFACE FAULTING TECTONIC DEFORMATION TSUNAMI RUN UP AFTERSHOCKS
•HAZARD MAPS•INVENTORY•VULNERABILITY•LOCATION
RISK ASSESSMENTRISK ASSESSMENT
RISK
ACCEPTABLE RISK
UNACCEPTABLE RISK
VOLCANO DISASTER VOLCANO DISASTER RESILIENCE RESILIENCE
•PREPAREDNESS•PROTECTION •EMERGENCY RESPONSE•RECOVERY and RECONSTRUCTION
POLICY OPTIONSPOLICY OPTIONS
THE KEYS TO RESILIENCE: 1) KNOW THE ERUPTIVE HISTORY OF
YOUR REGION’S VOLCANOES,2) BE PREPARED
3) HAVE A WARNING SYSTEM 4) EVACUATE
5) LEARN FROM THE EXPERIENCE AND START OVER