Geography assignment

On the ill-fated 8^th of December, 2009, an earthquake of magnitude 5.9 struck Malawi, Africa. The pulling away of the Arabian Plate, and two parts of African plate (the Nubian and Somalian) have caused a crack in the crust of the earth therefore, the earthquake in Malawi.

A child was killed and 6 others injured. Around 3000 Malawians were living in makeshift shelters due to the earthquake. Although the fatalities and damages were not massive, an earthquake this strong is not common in Malawi. The earthquake caused damages to houses, schools and some government offices. People were afraid to stay in the area as they feared further earthquakes and also because cracks had formed in the ground.

The government tried to salvage the situation by asking for help from the public to render a helping hand to the displaced by donating food, blankets and tents.

I think that even though the extent of damage was not exactly too great, the government could have still minimized the impact of the earthquake by acting immediately when it was informed of the approaching earthquake. She should have evacuated the villagers and upgrade the houses there, making them stronger and able to resist the earthquake more effectively. In future encounters with earthquakes, the government should step up its policy to help prevent such loses again. After all, prevention is surely better than cure! (229 words)

Bibliography :

Websites:

- IGCP Project 559, http://www.earthscrust.org/earthscrust/science/transects/east-africa_1.html, extracted 19-02-2010

- The Malaysian insider, http://www.themalaysianinsider.com/index.php/world/45841-magnitude-59-quake-jolts-malawi-child-killed, extracted 19-02-2010

- Helen Nyambura-Mwaura and Agnieszka (edited by Matthew Jones), http://www.reuters.com/article/idUSTRE5BJ0DQ20091220, extracted 19-02-2010

Geog geog .