Geography

2014 is a year full of misfortunes for the tourist industry and yet there is an increase in international tourists worldwide by 5% in the first 10 months of 2014 with more than 1.1 billion according to the latest UNWTO World Tourism Barometer,.
http://media.unwto.org/press-release/2014-12-18/international-tourism-track-end-2014-record-numbers

Transport disasters:
1. 239 people (mainly Chinese and Malaysian) on board flight MH370, which disappeared on 8 March on its way from KL to Beijing http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Malaysia_Airlines_Flight_370http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sinking_of_the_MV_Sewol
3. 298 people (mainly Dutch, Malaysian and Australian) were on board MH17, which was shot down over eastern Ukraine on 17 July on their way from Netherlands to Malaysia http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Malaysia_Airlines_Flight_17
4. Taiwan: 48 dead (mainly Taiwanese with 2 French exchange program students) in Trans Asia Airways GE222 plane crash on Peng hu island on 23 July http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/TransAsia_Airways_Flight_222
5. Air Algerie flight AH5017 crashed in Mali, Africa with 116 people (mainly French on transit) on board 24 July http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Air_Alg%C3%A9rie_Flight_5017
6. 162 people on board Air Asia which lose contact when flying from Surabaya to Singapore. http://www.channelnewsasia.com/news/singapore/live-blog-missing-airasia/1553132.html

Outbreak of diseases:
Ebola outbreak in West Africa http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ebola_virus_epidemic_in_West_Africa
Philippines advisory for travellers to ebola affected country - http://www.healthpromo.doh.gov.ph/ebola/

Political unrests:
Thai crisis http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2013%E2%80%9314_Thai_political_crisis
social unrest in Vietnam http://www.economist.com/blogs/banyan/2014/06/social-unrest-Vietnam
Protests in Vietnam http://www.4hoteliers.com/news/story/13203
unrest in Turkey http://www.bbc.com/news/world-middle-east-29530640

Terrorism threat in Egypt - https://www.gov.uk/foreign-travel-advice/egypt

example of travel advisory issued for travellers to countries facing political unrests - http://www.smartraveller.gov.au/zw-cgi/view/Advice/Index

Map on travel warnings - http://www.cbc.ca/news2/interactives/travel-warnings/

How did the above affects the tourist industry?

Lava from Pico do Fogo volcano in Cabo Verde which erupted from the 23 November 2014, destroyed two nearby towns and about 1,500 inhabitants were evacuated and continued to advance.

Pictures on the eruption http://www.bbc.com/news/world-africa-30291041

More than 367 people died and nearly 2,000 were injured when a strong earthquake hit southwest China's mountainous Yunnan province on Sunday (August 3). Note the short term responses - setting up the relief team. Though the magnitude of the earthquake is only 6.1, it struck at a relatively shallow depth of 10 kilometres, many buildings collapsed resulting in more casualties. http://www.channelnewsasia.com/news/asiapacific/death-toll-from-southwest/1295220.html


What was the impacts of the earthquake?
What are the responses to the earthquake as shown in the video clip?

For my Geography students.. read the article from the link above and note the epicenter of the quake, the magnitude, the tsunamis, the aftershock, breakwater, evacuation and contaminated water... Revise on the cause, impacts and management of tectonic hazards

An eruption of Indonesia's Mount Sinabung on 4 February resulted in an ash plume of 3.6km. Based on dispersion model simulations by the Meteorological Service Singapore as well as Australia's Darwin Volcanic Ash Advisory Centre, the volcanic ash is expected to move southeast, and be confined to the northern half of Sumatra for the next 48 hours. The NEA added that three other volcanoes - Mount Karangatang, Mount Lokon and Mount Paluwah are likely to erupt but pose little threats,

The impacts of ash from volcanic eruption on people:

• Health issues esp people with lung problems
• Reduction of outdoor activities
• Burns and even death from the hot ashes falling onto them

The impacts of ash from volcanic eruption on the environment:

• Air pollution
• Destruction of forest
• Destruction of farmland
• Contamination of water sources