Stories about earthquakes and eruptions in Andean Patagonia

Stories about earthquakes and eruptions in Andean Patagonia

Author: Sandra Murriello – National University of Río Negro, Argentina

Co-authors:
Marí­a Elena Apa – CITECDE;UNRN
Bárbara Erak – CITECDE,UNRN
Mariano Núñez Freire – CITECDE,UNRN
Liliana Pierucci – CITECDE,UNRN
Carolina Salazar Marin – CITECDE,UNRN

Andean Patagonia, a tourist destination in Argentina and Chile, is a region with an important volcanic and seismic activity but the public policy about disasters prevention is weak as it was evidenced by the consequences of the last volcanic eruptions (Chaitén,2008; Puyehue, 2011; Calbuco, 2015). Besides, the consequences of these events, and the previous, are not well referenced in official regional history and they are also completely absent in the touristic information. In spite of this, people who lived seismic and/or volcanic events remember the facts with detail and have their own stories about the moment and its consequences. As we believe that this information is useful to prevent future disasters or to know what to do in an emergence situation, we are working on recovering experiences, memories and records by different strategies (inquiries, interviews, artistic interventions, etc.). These stories, in words, in pictures or in videos, are being posted in a virtual repository with free access that operates as a space of collective memory about earthquakes and volcanic eruptions in this region (www.volcanes.com.ar). It is necessary to say that there is no previous research about this topic in our country and that there is no other digital site to disseminate these vital experiences. This presentation aims to discuss the relevance of this kind of communication strategies (virtual spaces) to share different stories and visions about catastrophic events and its potential role in prevention.

The author has not yet submitted a copy of the full paper.

Presentation type: Show, tell and talk
Theme: Stories
Area of interest: Investigating science communication practices