Jarkata is the name of the modern city on the island of Java which was earlier referred as the city of Batavia. The city was given a new name after Indonesia gained independence from the Dutch.
The plate tectonic setting of Krakatoa volcano is along the boundary of Eurasian tectonic plates and the Indian-Australian plates. The shifting of these two plates caused a massive eruption in Krakatoa. The zone is associated with submarine volcanoes and super seismic activities.
“˜Paroxysm’ was used to refer to a sudden periodic eruption of a disaster while “˜The Flood’ meant the overflow of hot magma to the surrounding areas. The “˜Crack of Doom’ referred to the end of the whole event.
Prior to fully erupting, red hot ashes were observed together with flow of magma. In addition, thick clouds and presence of pumice in the surrounding waters was observed. Then there was the foul smell which was thought to be that of sulphur dioxide.
In case of an eruption, people may die from; one, pyroclastic flows which consist of hot ashes flowing at a very high speed; second, landslides associated with the volcanoes; and finally tsunamis (tidal waves) generated when a volcanic eruption takes place in the ocean. In addition, poisonous gases such as sulphur dioxide are life threatening.
The Krakatoa eruption was very massive and resulted to death of many people. What makes it unique was the fact that it lasted for a long period of time and on each occasion it erupted it caused huge loss of life. Furthermore, the intense with which it exploded was an all time record.
A primary volcanic eruption only has effect to the immediate surrounding while a secondary eruption causes a widespread effect. A secondary eruption is a subsequent of the primary eruption. An example of primary eruption was observed in DRC Congo in 2002 while an example of a secondary eruption is the Krakatoa eruption.
The 2004 Tsunami resulted to the death of over 225,000 people while the 2011 Tohoku earthquake killed about 18,000 people. Before these two disasters, Krakatoa eruption stood as the most serious disaster to ever happen but if it was written today, it won’t have so much recognition as the two above. This is because of the damage they caused despite the huge preparation of such an event.