An earthquake that lasted for about three minutes hit the central coast of Peru on Wednesday August 15, 2007 at 11:41 pm.
This earthquake occurred between the Nazca and South American plates, which are moving towards each other at a rate of 78 mm per year. Experts say that this kind of earthquake happens about once every century. The earthquake measured 8.0 on the magnitude scale which had caused the death of 503 people and many were made homeless as more than 58,000 homes were destroyed. Water and electricity supply were disrupted, many jobs were lost, outbreaks of diseases occurred and there was a lack of food aid.
The Government of Peru reacted fast to the earthquake through the National Civil Defence System which was supported by the military, governments and the civil society. The response entailed removing the rubble, searching for survivors, maintaining security, providing the basic needs of the people and giving medical treatment to the injured. Shelters were provided for those who had lost their homes, food aid and clean water was distributed and psychosocial support was offered to those who had lost their loved ones.An earthquake is a devastating event and I think that they could minimize the damage by using a monitoring device to the detect the earthquake. This way, people can be evacuated quickly and fewer lives would be lost. The government should also warn people to not stay near areas where it is earthquake proned. I think that the government should step up measures to help the victims get back to their normal way of life as soon as possible.
Websites:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2007_Peru_earthquake
https://www.rms.com/Publications/Colombia_Earthquake.pdf
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