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- Permanent Link:
- http://dpanther.fiu.edu/dpService/dpPurlService/purl/FI13042445/00001
Notes
- Summary:
- The Hazard Profile of Myanmar gives a summary sketch of the nine most recurrent natural hazards that plague the country, which are: cyclones, droughts, earthquakes, fires, floods, forest fires, landslides, storm surges, and tsunamis. It outlines the threat that these hazards present, to serve as a resource for in-depth hazard assessment and risk profiling, and to provide relevant information for future interventions focused on reducing risk. The hazard profile report was developed in conjunction with a number of Myanmar government ministries and departments, UN agencies, ASEAN, professional associations, and NGOs. Myanmar is particularly threatened by cyclones due to its location on the borders of the Bay of Bengal and the Andaman Sea in South-East Asia, a place of tropical cyclone generation. The country is further exposed because of its long coastline, compounded by the fact that most of its population lives along riverbanks prone to flooding and coastal zones suitable for agricultural production. From 1887 to 2005, 1248 tropical storms formed in the Bay of Bengal, and 80 of them hit the Myanmar coast. Since 2000 the frequency of cyclones making landfall has gone up significantly from once every three years to once each year. The Chapter 2 profile of cyclones recommends a number of measures to mitigate risks facing communities including establishing safe shelters that are easily accessible to communities, tree plantations near villages to moderate the intensity of winds and floods, and mangrove forests along coasts and riverbanks to lessen the impact of storm surges. These structural measures should be complemented by other efforts such as awareness campaigns and broad training in disaster management. Earthquakes are also of particular significance in Myanmar since it lies on one of the main earthquake belts in the world. Record shows that there have been at least 16 major earthquakes of magnitudes greater than 7.0 in the country over the last 170 years. The majority of people in Myanmar live in rural areas in homes not built to withstand major earthquakes, but this is of less concern than rapid urbanization that could mean increased vulnerability. This is of particular importance since the Sagaing Fault runs through some of the most populated cities of Myanmar. The profile suggests that more studies of active faults be done, a probabilistic seismic zone map of Myanmar be established, and training of seismologists and earthquake engineers in countries with extensive experience mitigating risks associated with earthquakes, such as Japan. ( English )
- Subject:
- Disaster Risk Management ( English )
- Citation/Reference:
- (2009). Hazard profile of Myanmar. Asian Disaster Preparedness Center (ADPC), United Kingdom Department for International Development (DFID), Union of Myanmar, Myanmar Engineering Society (MES), Myanmar Geosciences Society (MGS), Myanmar Information Management Unit (MIMU).
Record Information
- Source Institution:
- Florida International University
- Rights Management:
- Refer to main document/publisher for use rights.
- Resource Identifier:
- FI13042445
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