This introduction covers The Earthquake That Should Have Killed Thousands within Tectonic Hazards for GCSE Geography. Revise Tectonic Hazards in The Challenge of Natural Hazards for GCSE Geography with 18 exam-style questions and 24 flashcards. This topic shows up very often in GCSE exams, so students should be able to explain it clearly, not just recognise the term. It is section 1 of 12 in this topic. Use this introduction to connect the idea to the wider topic before moving on to questions and flashcards.
🌋 The Earthquake That Should Have Killed Thousands
Five years later, on 25 April 2015, a much weaker earthquake — magnitude 7.8 — struck Nepal. Buildings collapsed across the Kathmandu Valley. Ancient temples that had stood for five centuries crumbled in seconds. Around 9,000 people were killed and 2.8 million were made homeless. In the remote mountain villages, rescue teams could not reach survivors for three days.
Chile's earthquake was 32 times more powerful. Nepal's killed 16 times more people. Why the difference? The answer is not geology — it is wealth, governance, and the choices societies make before disaster strikes.
Practice questions for Tectonic Hazards
At which type of plate margin do two plates move towards each other, causing one to be forced beneath the other?
Explain why the 2010 Chile earthquake caused far fewer deaths than the 2015 Nepal earthquake, even though Chile's earthquake was more powerful.