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Case Study: Nyriagongo volcano 2002 (The eruption (Eastern border of the…
Case Study: Nyriagongo volcano 2002
Impacts
Social
45 people died in the first 45 hours. 100+ deaths in total.
out of total population 450,000, not significant.
80% of all homes
were damaged or destroyed.
3 healthcare centres and 1 hospital
were lost to the lava flows, spreading dysentery and cholera.
Main water pipes destroyed.
Aid workers delivered 15litres of water pp every day.
Economic
Aviation fuel stores exploded
and runways melted, forcing Goma airport to close.
350,000 people still relied on aid 1 month later.
Environmental
Lava covered 15% of Goma and destroyed 30% of the city.
Lava reached Lake Kivi
, rising fears it would disturb methane on the lake bed.
Constant plume of toxic gases -
twice the level pollution produced by the whole of France.
The eruption
Caused by tension along the
East African Rift Valley.
Rising magma
squeezes through cracks in the earths surface.
Neighbouring volcano Nyamuragira, responsible for 2/5 of Africas historical eruptions.
January 2002, 3 fissures burst
Speed of 40mph, cannot outrun it.
strata-volcano. Basaltic lava
Eastern border of the Republic of Congo.
Very remote area with lack of scientific resources. Lack of warning and fragile infrastructure put Goma at risk along with other neighbouring towns. :!:
Neighbouring town
Goma, 16km away
, was cut in half by the lava flow.
Short term solutions
educate
younger population.
international support
funded volcanic observatory, hoping to predict eruptions 3 weeks prior.
scientists venture up mountain twice a month
to take measurements, width, concentration of gases, temperature.
300,000 resident fled to neighbouring town Rwanda.
Aid agencies (Christian aid and Oxfam) encouraged people to return
so they could organise food, medicine and blankets. Within a week, half a million people returned to Goma and surrounding villages.