David Kamien (2012) describes natural disasters as events that are a direct result from the Earth; to include floods, earthquakes, tornados, hurricanes, viruses, and volcanoes. The example of a natural disaster chosen to be reviewed for this essay is earthquakes. The United States Geological Survey (2016), describes earthquakes as a direct result of stress associated with friction which then releases energy causing an earthquake. there have been two major earthquakes in the United States, the 1989 Northern California and 1992 Southern California. These two earthquakes caused major destruction to both the northern and southern parts of California. California is very prone to earthquakes due to the geographical location and the tectonic plates.
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This disaster was a direct result of the vessel striking the Bligh Reef off the coast of Alaska. The shipping vessel spilled 11 million gallons of crude oil into the ocean (Atlas, 2011). The amount of crude oil that was spilled into the ocean affected the ecosystem and the animals that live within that system. Protecting the shorelines from the heavy crude oil from the leaking vessel was a major responsibility of the clean-up. The clean-up process was a very difficult one during this time due to the cold weather and the heaviness of the crude oil, dispersants were not used due to the State of Alaska concerns in the use (Atlas, 2011). The physiological effects from the oil spill has affected many Alaskans and the wildlife in and around the incident of the original accident. The clean-up efforts have taken years and years to fully clear the site from the initial leak, but this still does not account for the 11,000 square miles of ocean water that was effected by the heavy crude oil (Atlas, …show more content…
M., & Hazen, T. C. (2011). Oil Biodegradation and Bioremediation: A Tale of the Two Worst Spills in U.S. History. Environmental Science & Technology, 45(16), 6709–6715. http://doi.org/10.1021/es2013227
Hong, J., Cho, H. and Lee, A. S. (2010). Revisiting the Virginia Tech Shootings: An Ecological Systems Analysis, Journal of Loss and Trauma, 15: 6, 561-575. Retrieved from: http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/15325024.2010.519285
Rubin, C. B. (Ed.). (2012). Emergency management: The American experience 1900-2010 (2nd ed.). Boca Raton, FL: CRC Press
United States Geological Survey (2016). Earthquakes, Plate Tectonics, and Earth Structure. Retrieved from
This disaster was a direct result of the vessel striking the Bligh Reef off the coast of Alaska. The shipping vessel spilled 11 million gallons of crude oil into the ocean (Atlas, 2011). The amount of crude oil that was spilled into the ocean affected the ecosystem and the animals that live within that system. Protecting the shorelines from the heavy crude oil from the leaking vessel was a major responsibility of the clean-up. The clean-up process was a very difficult one during this time due to the cold weather and the heaviness of the crude oil, dispersants were not used due to the State of Alaska concerns in the use (Atlas, 2011). The physiological effects from the oil spill has affected many Alaskans and the wildlife in and around the incident of the original accident. The clean-up efforts have taken years and years to fully clear the site from the initial leak, but this still does not account for the 11,000 square miles of ocean water that was effected by the heavy crude oil (Atlas, …show more content…
M., & Hazen, T. C. (2011). Oil Biodegradation and Bioremediation: A Tale of the Two Worst Spills in U.S. History. Environmental Science & Technology, 45(16), 6709–6715. http://doi.org/10.1021/es2013227
Hong, J., Cho, H. and Lee, A. S. (2010). Revisiting the Virginia Tech Shootings: An Ecological Systems Analysis, Journal of Loss and Trauma, 15: 6, 561-575. Retrieved from: http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/15325024.2010.519285
Rubin, C. B. (Ed.). (2012). Emergency management: The American experience 1900-2010 (2nd ed.). Boca Raton, FL: CRC Press
United States Geological Survey (2016). Earthquakes, Plate Tectonics, and Earth Structure. Retrieved from