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98-498: Its aims are to develop disaster prediction research, risk management , post-crisis analysis and rehabilitation. The Agreement supports the development of specialised scientific and technical centres on both sides of the Mediterranean . Many of the research activities are organised through a network of these centres. It also includes a European Alert System , which is an earthquake disaster alert and rapid response system, run by

196-598: A god or gods are angry with women's independent, freethinking behavior, such as dressing 'immodestly', having sex or abortions. For example, Hindutva party Hindu Makkal Katchi and others blamed women's struggle for the right to enter the Sabarimala temple for the August 2018 Kerala floods , purportedly inflicted by the angry god Ayyappan . During and after natural disasters, routine health behaviors become interrupted. In addition, health care systems may have broken down as

294-495: A ground blizzard . Blizzards can impact local economic activities, especially in regions where snowfall is rare. The Great Blizzard of 1888 affected the United States, when many tons of wheat crops were destroyed. In Asia, the 1972 Iran blizzard and the 2008 Afghanistan blizzard , were the deadliest blizzards in history; in the former, an area the size of Wisconsin was entirely buried in snow. The 1993 Superstorm originated in

392-601: A microorganism , virus or toxin (from a biological source) that can affect health . Many biological hazards are associated with food, including certain viruses , parasites , fungi , bacteria , and plant and seafood toxins . Pathogenic Campylobacter and Salmonella are common foodborne biological hazards. The hazards from these bacteria can be avoided through risk mitigation steps such as proper handling, storing , and cooking of food. Diseases can be enhanced by human factors such as poor sanitation or by processes such as urbanization . A chemical can be considered

490-672: A society are floods , droughts , earthquakes , tropical cyclones , lightning strikes , volcanic activity and wildfires . Technological and anthropogenic hazards include, for example, structural collapses , transport accidents , accidental or intentional explosions , and release of toxic materials. The term climate hazard is used in the context of climate change . These are hazards that stem from climate-related events and can be associated with global warming , such as wildfires, floods, droughts, sea level rise . Climate hazards can combine with other hazards and result in compound event losses (see also loss and damage ). For example,

588-732: A tsunami occurred near Fukushima, Japan and spread through the Pacific Ocean. Some of the 18 natural hazards included in the National Risk Index of FEMA now have a higher probability of occurring, and at higher intensity, due to the effects of climate change . This applies to heat waves, droughts, wildfire and coastal flooding. A heat wave is a period of unusually and excessively hot weather. Heat waves are rare and require specific combinations of weather events to take place, and may include temperature inversions , katabatic winds , or other phenomena. The worst heat wave in recent history

686-544: A vulnerable community . It results from the combination of the hazard and the exposure of a vulnerable society. Nowadays it is hard to distinguish between natural and human-made disasters. The term natural disaster was already challenged in 1976. Human choices in architecture, fire risk, and resource management can cause or worsen natural disasters. Climate change also affects how often disasters due to extreme weather hazards happen. These " climate hazards " are floods, heat waves, wildfires, tropical cyclones, and

784-438: A vulnerable population . A natural disaster is the highly harmful impact on a society or community following a natural hazard event. The term " disaster " itself is defined as follows: "Disasters are serious disruptions to the functioning of a community that exceed its capacity to cope using its own resources. Disasters can be caused by natural, man-made and technological hazards , as well as various factors that influence

882-461: A bottleneck in human evolution, and killed three-quarters of all plant life in the northern hemisphere. However, there is considerable debate regarding the veracity of this theory. The main danger from a supervolcano is the immense cloud of ash, which has a disastrous global effect on climate and temperature for many years. A tsunami (plural: tsunamis or tsunami; from Japanese: 津波, lit. "harbour wave"; English pronunciation: /tsuːˈnɑːmi/), also known as

980-475: A central role in the existence of natural hazards because "it is only when people and their possessions get in the way of natural processes that hazard exists". A natural hazard can be considered as a geophysical event when it occurs in extremes and a human factor is involved that may present a risk. There may be an acceptable variation of magnitude which can vary from the estimated normal or average range with upper and lower limits or thresholds. In these extremes,

1078-467: A cloud (generally after cooling) and settle thickly in nearby locations. When mixed with water, this forms a concrete-like material. In sufficient quantities, ash may cause roofs to collapse under its weight. Even small quantities will harm humans if inhaled – it has the consistency of ground glass and therefore causes laceration to the throat and lungs. Volcanic ash can also cause abrasion damage to moving machinery such as engines. The main killer of humans in

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1176-435: A community that exceed its capacity to cope using its own resources. Disasters can be caused by natural, man-made and technological hazards, as well as various factors that influence the exposure and vulnerability of a community." The US Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) explains the relationship between natural disasters and natural hazards as follows: "Natural hazards and natural disasters are related but are not

1274-525: A consequence of human-induced climate change . A tornado is a violent and dangerous rotating column of air that is in contact with both the surface of the Earth and a cumulonimbus cloud , or, in rare cases, the base of a cumulus cloud . It is also referred to as a twister or a cyclone , although the word cyclone is used in meteorology in a wider sense to refer to any closed low pressure circulation. Tornadoes come in many shapes and sizes but typically take

1372-552: A cumulative biological effect, while others are metabolically eliminated over time. Other chemical hazards may depend on concentration or total quantity for their effects. Some harmful chemicals occur naturally in certain geological formations, such as arsenic . Other chemicals include products with commercial uses, such as agricultural and industrial chemicals, as well as products developed for home use. A variety of chemical hazards have been identified. However, every year companies produce more new chemicals to fill new needs or to take

1470-407: A few kilometers before dissipating. The most extreme tornadoes can attain wind speeds of more than 480 km/h (300 mph), stretch more than 3 km (2 mi) across, and stay on the ground for perhaps more than 100 km (60 mi). Blizzards are severe winter storms characterized by heavy snow and strong winds. When high winds stir up snow that has already fallen, it is known as

1568-540: A hazard if by its intrinsic properties it can cause harm or danger to humans, property, or the environment. Health hazards associated with chemicals are dependent on the dose or amount of the chemical. For example, iodine in the form of potassium iodate is used to produce iodised salt . When applied at a rate of 20  mg of potassium iodate per 1000 mg of table salt, the chemical is beneficial in preventing goitre , while iodine intakes of 1200–9500  mg in one dose has been known to cause death. Some chemicals have

1666-485: A mechanical hazard. Hazard identification of new machines and/or industrial processes occurs at various stages in the design of the new machine or process. These hazard identification studies focus mainly on deviations from the intended use or design and the harm that may occur as a result of these deviations. These studies are regulated by various agencies such as the Occupational Safety and Health Administration and

1764-423: A natural phenomenon, earthquakes can sometimes be induced by human interventions, such as injection wells , large underground nuclear explosions , excavation of mines , or reservoirs . Anthropogenic hazards, or human-induced hazards, are "induced entirely or predominantly by human activities and choices". These can be societal, technological or environmental hazards . Technological hazards are created by

1862-420: A result of the disaster, further reducing access to contraceptives. Unprotected intercourse during this time can lead to increased rates of childbirth, unintended pregnancies and sexually transmitted infections (STIs). Pregnant women are one of the groups disproportionately affected by natural disasters. Inadequate nutrition, little access to clean water, lack of health-care services and psychological stress in

1960-411: A row of temperatures exceeding 40 °C (104 °F), with some regional areas sweltering through much higher temperatures. A flood is an overflow of water that 'submerges' land. The EU Floods Directive defines a flood as a temporary covering of land that is usually dry with water. In the sense of 'flowing water', the word may also be applied to the inflow of the tides . Flooding may result from

2058-405: A seismic sea wave or tidal wave, is a series of waves in a water body caused by the displacement of a large volume of water, generally in an ocean or a large lake. Tsunamis can be caused by undersea earthquakes such as the 2004 Boxing Day tsunami , or by landslides such as the one in 1958 at Lituya Bay, Alaska , or by volcanic eruptions such as the ancient eruption of Santorini . On March 11, 2011,

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2156-450: A short warning time and are short-lived. Slow onset events can also be very damaging, for example drought is a natural hazards that develops slowly, sometimes over years. A natural disaster may cause loss of life, injury or other health impacts, property damage, loss of livelihoods and services, social and economic disruption, or environmental damage. Globally, the total number of deaths from natural disasters has been reduced by 75% over

2254-559: A slope prone to failure. In many cases, the landslide is triggered by a specific event (such as a heavy rainfall , an earthquake , a slope cut to build a road, and many others), although this is not always identifiable. An avalanche is a rapid flow of snow down a slope , such as a hill or mountain. Avalanches can be triggered spontaneously, by factors such as increased precipitation or snowpack weakening, or by external means such as humans, other animals, and earthquakes . Primarily composed of flowing snow and air, large avalanches have

2352-556: A threat to humans and property, as well as wildlife . One example for a notable wildfire is the 1871 Peshtigo Fire in the United States, which killed at least 1700 people. Another one is the 2009 Victorian bushfires in Australia (collectively known as " Black Saturday bushfires "). In that year, a summer heat wave in Victoria, Australia, created conditions which fueled the massive bushfires in 2009. Melbourne experienced three days in

2450-704: A variety of measures have been taken to limit human exposure to these microorganisms through food safety, good personal hygiene, and education. The potential for new biological hazards also exists through the discovery of new microorganisms and the development of new genetically modified (GM) organisms. The use of new GM organisms is regulated by various governmental agencies. The US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) controls GM plants that produce or resist pesticides (i.e. Bt corn and Roundup ready crops ). The US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) regulates GM plants that will be used as food or for medicinal purposes. Biological hazards can include medical waste or samples of

2548-567: A variety of negative effects on non-target organisms. DDT can build up, or bioaccumulate, in birds, resulting in thinner-than-normal eggshells, which can break in the nest. The organochlorine pesticide dieldrin has been linked to Parkinson's disease . Corrosive chemicals like sulfuric acid , which is found in car batteries and research laboratories, can cause severe skin burns. Many other chemicals used in industrial and laboratory settings can cause respiratory, digestive, or nervous system problems if they are inhaled, ingested, or absorbed through

2646-518: A wide range of ground movements, such as rockfalls , mudflows , shallow or deep-seated slope failures and debris flows . Landslides occur in a variety of environments, characterized by either steep or gentle slope gradients, from mountain ranges to coastal cliffs or even underwater, in which case they are called submarine landslides . Gravity is the primary driving force for a landslide to occur, but there are other factors affecting slope stability that produce specific conditions that make

2744-662: Is a depression or hole in the ground caused by some form of collapse of the surface layer. When natural erosion, human mining or underground excavation makes the ground too weak to support the structures built on it, the ground can collapse and produce a sinkhole . Coastal erosion is a physical process by which shorelines in coastal areas around the world shift and change, primarily in response to waves and currents that can be influenced by tides and storm surge. Coastal erosion can result from long-term processes (see also beach evolution ) as well as from episodic events such as tropical cyclones or other severe storm events. Coastal erosion

2842-765: Is a potential source of harm . Substances, events, or circumstances can constitute hazards when their nature would potentially allow them to cause damage to health, life, property, or any other interest of value. The probability of that harm being realized in a specific incident , combined with the magnitude of potential harm, make up its risk . This term is often used synonymously in colloquial speech. Hazards can be classified in several ways which are not mutually exclusive. They can be classified by causing actor (for example, natural or anthropogenic ), by physical nature (e.g. biological or chemical ) or by type of damage (e.g., health hazard or environmental hazard ). Examples of natural disasters with highly harmful impacts on

2940-815: Is a result of a natural hazard impacting a vulnerable community . But disasters can be avoided. Earthquakes, droughts, floods, storms, and other events lead to disasters because of human action and inaction. Poor land and policy planning and deregulation can create worse conditions. They often involve development activities that ignore or fail to reduce the disaster risks . Nature alone is blamed for disasters even when disasters result from failures in development. Disasters also result from failure of societies to prepare. Examples for such failures include inadequate building norms, marginalization of people, inequities, overexploitation of resources, extreme urban sprawl and climate change . Defining disasters as solely natural events has serious implications when it comes to understanding

3038-411: Is an extreme geophysical event that is capable of causing a disaster. 'Extreme' in this case means a substantial variation in either the positive or the negative direction from the normal trend; flood disasters can result from exceptionally high precipitation and river discharge, and drought is caused by exceptionally low values. The fundamental determinants of hazard and the risk of such hazards occurring

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3136-437: Is because modern technological living uses certain toxic or poisonous materials in the electronics and chemical industries. Which, when they are in use or transported, are usually safely contained or encapsulated and packaged to avoid any exposure. In the waste stream, the waste products exterior or encapsulation breaks or degrades and there is a release and exposure to hazardous materials into the environment, for people working in

3234-427: Is called the seismic focus . The point directly above the focus on the surface is called the epicenter . Earthquakes by themselves rarely kill people or wildlife – it is usually the secondary events that they trigger, such as building collapse, fires, tsunamis and volcanic eruptions, that cause death. Many of these can possibly be avoided by better construction, safety systems, early warning and planning. A sinkhole

3332-419: Is listed here as a climate hazard is because "warming temperatures may result in higher evapotranspiration , in turn leading to drier soils". Waterborne diseases are also connected to climate hazards. Climate hazards can combine with other hazards and result in compound event losses (see also loss and damage ). For example, the climate hazard of heat can combine with the hazard of poor air quality. Or

3430-561: Is no recycling facility, plastics have flooded the camps' streets and surroundings. In contrast, the Azraq camp in Jordan for refugees from Syria has waste management services; of 20.7 tonnes of waste produced per day, 15% is recyclable. Because of the social, political and cultural context of many places throughout the world, women are often disproportionately affected by disaster. In the 2004 Indian Ocean tsunami, more women died than men, partly due to

3528-512: Is one of the most significant coastal hazards. It forms a threat to infrastructure, capital assets and property. Volcanoes can cause widespread destruction and consequent disaster in several ways. One hazard is the volcanic eruption itself, with the force of the explosion and falling rocks able to cause harm. Lava may also be released during the eruption of a volcano; as it leaves the volcano, it can destroy buildings, plants and animals due to its extreme heat. In addition, volcanic ash may form

3626-624: Is referred to as a "typhoon"; a "cyclone" occurs in the South Pacific and Indian Ocean. The deadliest hurricane ever was the 1970 Bhola cyclone ; the deadliest Atlantic hurricane was the Great Hurricane of 1780 , which devastated Martinique, St. Eustatius and Barbados. Another notable hurricane is Hurricane Katrina , which devastated the Gulf Coast of the United States in 2005. Hurricanes may become more intense and produce more heavy rainfall as

3724-474: Is the most important driver of economic losses. However, part of these are also due to human-induced climate change . During emergencies such as natural disasters and armed conflicts more waste may be produced, while waste management is given low priority compared with other services. Existing waste management services and infrastructures can be disrupted, leaving communities with unmanaged waste and increased littering. Under these circumstances human health and

3822-480: Is timing, location, magnitude and frequency. For example, magnitudes of earthquakes are measured on the Richter scale from 1 to 10, whereby each increment of 1 indicates a tenfold increase in severity. The magnitude-frequency rule states that over a significant period of time many small events and a few large ones will occur. Hurricanes and typhoons on the other hand occur between 5 degrees and 25 degrees north and south of

3920-508: Is used in the context of climate change , for example in the IPCC Sixth Assessment Report . These are hazards that stem from climate-related events such as wildfires , floods, droughts, sea level rise . Climate hazards in the context of water include: Increased temperatures, changes in rainfall patterns between the wet and dry season (increased rainfall variability) and sea level rise. The reason why increasing temperatures

4018-526: The Japanese Ministry of the Environment . Some of this waste, mostly plastic and styrofoam washed up on the coasts of Canada and the United States in late 2011. Along the west coast of the United States, this increased the amount of litter by a factor of 10 and may have transported alien species. Storms are also important generators of plastic litter. A study by Lo et al. (2020) reported a 100% increase in

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4116-491: The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration . Engineering hazards occur when human structures fail (e.g. building or structural collapse , bridge failures , dam failures ) or the materials used in their construction prove to be hazardous. Societal hazards can arise from civil disorders , explosive remnants of war , violence , crowd accidents , financial crises , etc. However,

4214-665: The Spitak Earthquake ). The Asia-Pacific region is the world's most disaster prone region. A person in Asia-Pacific is five times more likely to be hit by a natural disaster than someone living in other regions. Between 1995 and 2015, the greatest number of natural disasters occurred in America, China and India. In 2012, there were 905 natural disasters worldwide, 93% of which were weather-related disasters. Overall costs were US$ 170 billion and insured losses $ 70 billion. 2012

4312-473: The United Nations Office for Disaster Risk Reduction (UNDRR) Hazard Definition & Classification Review (Sendai Framework 2015 - 2030) specifically excludes armed conflict from the anthropogenic hazard category, as these hazards are already recognised under international humanitarian law. In managing waste many hazardous materials are put in the domestic and commercial waste stream . In part this

4410-647: The World Health Organization , UNOCHA , UNESCO and the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies . Armenia, Azerbaijan, Georgia and Monaco joined the Agreement before they joined the Council of Europe. Italy was a member of the Agreement from 1987 to 2002. Israel was also a member until 1996. The Agreement organises a ministerial session every two or three years, which sets

4508-433: The likelihood or probability of a given hazard of a given level causing a particular level of loss of damage. The elements of risk are populations, communities, the built environment , the natural environment , economic activities and services which are under threat of disaster in a given area. Another definition of risk is "the probable frequency and probable magnitude of future losses". This definition also focuses on

4606-614: The Agora building. Early Warning Systems for Natural Disaster Reduction (International IDNDR-conference on Early Warning Systems for the Reduction of Natural Disasters, held at the GeoForschungsZentrum in Potsdam, Germany from 7–11 September 1998). Published by Springer, 2003, ISBN   3-540-67962-6 , ISBN   978-3-540-67962-2 Natural disaster A natural disaster is

4704-522: The EUR-OPA treaty (as of September 2011) are Albania, Armenia, Azerbaijan, Belgium, Bulgaria, Croatia, Cyprus, France, Georgia, Greece, Luxembourg, Macedonia, Malta, Moldova, Monaco, Portugal, Romania, Russia, San Marino, Serbia, Spain, Turkey and Ukraine. Council of Europe non-members party to EUR-OPA are Algeria, Lebanon and Morocco. Participating international organisations include the European Union ,

4802-549: The FDA regulates new chemicals used in foods or as drugs. The potential hazards of these chemicals can be identified by performing a variety of tests before the authorization of usage. The number of tests required and the extent to which the chemicals are tested varies, depending on the desired usage of the chemical. Chemicals designed as new drugs must undergo more rigorous tests than those used as pesticides. Pesticides, which are normally used to control unwanted insects and plants, may cause

4900-759: The Gulf of Mexico and traveled north, causing damage in 26 American states as well as in Canada and leading to more than 300 deaths. Hail is precipitation in the form of ice that does not melt before it hits the ground. Hailstorms are produced by thunderstorms. Hailstones usually measure between 5 and 150 mm ( 1 ⁄ 4 and 6 in) in diameter. These can damage the location in which they fall. Hailstorms can be especially devastating to farm fields, ruining crops and damaging equipment. A particularly damaging hailstorm hit Munich , Germany, on July 12, 1984, causing about $ 2 billion in insurance claims. Hazard A hazard

4998-416: The National Risk Index of FEMA: avalanche , coastal flooding , cold wave , drought , earthquake , hail , heat wave , tropical cyclone , ice storm , landslide , lightning , riverine flooding, strong wind, tornado , tsunami , volcanic activity , wildfire , winter weather. In addition, there are also dust storms . The term natural disaster has been called a misnomer already in 1976. A disaster

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5096-596: The Strasbourg secretariat in cooperation with the European-Mediterranean Seismological Centre. The agreement is known as an "open" agreement, States do not have to be member States of the Council of Europe in order to join. As of September 2011, 23 Council of Europe member States and 3 Non-member States of the Council of Europe are party to the agreement. Several International organisations also participate. Council of Europe member States party to

5194-453: The aftermath of the disaster can lead to a significant increase in maternal morbidity and mortality. Furthermore, shortage of healthcare resources during this time can convert even routine obstetric complications into emergencies. Once a vulnerable population has experienced a disaster, the community can take many years to repair and that repair period can lead to further vulnerability. The disastrous consequences of natural disaster also affect

5292-542: The amount of microplastics on beaches surveyed following a typhoon in Hong Kong in 2018. A significant amount of plastic waste can be produced during disaster relief operations. Following the 2010 earthquake in Haiti , the generation of waste from relief operations was referred to as a "second disaster". The United States military reported that millions of water bottles and styrofoam food packages were distributed although there

5390-453: The capability to capture and move ice, rocks, and trees. An earthquake is the result of a sudden release of energy in the Earth's crust that creates seismic waves . At the Earth's surface, earthquakes manifest themselves by vibration, shaking, and sometimes displacement of the ground. Earthquakes are caused by slippage within geological faults . The underground point of origin of the earthquake

5488-434: The causes of a disaster and the distribution of political and financial responsibility in disaster risk reduction , disaster management , compensation, insurance and disaster prevention. Using natural to describe disasters misleads people to think the devastating results are inevitable, out of our control, and are simply part of a natural process. Hazards (earthquakes, hurricanes, pandemics, drought etc.) are inevitable, but

5586-400: The center of the Earth consists of molten material at very high temperatures which would be a severe hazard if contact was made with the core. However, there is no feasible way of making contact with the core, therefore the center of the Earth currently poses no hazard. The frequency and severity of hazards are important aspects for risk management . Hazards may also be assessed in relation to

5684-664: The classification methods is by specifying the origin of the hazard. One key concept in identifying a hazard is the presence of stored energy that, when released, can cause damage. The stored energy can occur in many forms: chemical, mechanical, thermal, radioactive, electrical, etc. The United Nations Office for Disaster Risk Reduction (UNDRR) explains that "each hazard is characterized by its location, intensity or magnitude, frequency and probability". A distinction can also be made between rapid-onset natural hazards, technological hazards, and social hazards, which are described as being of sudden occurrence and relatively short duration, and

5782-420: The climate hazard flooding can combine with poor water quality. Climate scientists have pointed out that climate hazards affect different groups of people differently, depending on their climate change vulnerability : There are "factors that make people and groups vulnerable (e.g., poverty, uneven power structures, disadvantage and discrimination due to, for example, social location and the intersectionality or

5880-399: The climate hazard of heat can combine with the hazard of poor air quality. Or the climate hazard flooding can combine with poor water quality. In physics terms, common theme across many forms of hazards is the presence of energy that can cause damage, as it can happen with chemical energy , mechanical energy or thermal energy . This damage can affect different valuable interests, and

5978-463: The consequences of longer-term environmental degradation such as desertification and drought. Hazards may be grouped according to their characteristics. These factors are related to geophysical events, which are not process specific: Damage to valuable human interests can occur due to phenomena and processes of the natural environment . Natural disasters such as earthquakes , floods , volcanoes and tsunami have threatened people, society,

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6076-602: The country. As a result, many desalination plants were built for the first time ( see list ). In 2011, the State of Texas lived under a drought emergency declaration for the entire calendar year and suffered severe economic losses. The drought caused the Bastrop fires. Wildfires are large fires which often start in wildland areas. Common causes include lightning and drought but wildfires may also be started by human negligence or arson . They can spread to populated areas and thus be

6174-410: The damage is depends on how well people are prepared for disasters and how strong the buildings, roads, and other structures are. Scholars have been saying that the term natural disaster is unsuitable and should be abandoned. Instead, the simpler term disaster could be used. At the same time the type of hazard would be specified. A disaster happens when a natural or human-made hazard impacts

6272-464: The damage typically associated with storms, such as winds, hail and flooding, the lightning itself can damage buildings, ignite fires and kill by direct contact. Most deaths from lightning occur in the poorer countries of the Americas and Asia, where lightning is common and adobe mud brick housing provides little protection. Typhoon , cyclone , cyclonic storm and hurricane are different names for

6370-493: The environment are often negatively impacted. Natural disasters (e.g. earthquakes, tsunamis, hurricanes) have the potential to generate a significant amount of waste within a short period. Waste management systems can be out of action or curtailed, often requiring considerable time and funding to restore. For example, the tsunami in Japan in 2011 produced huge amounts of debris: estimates of 5 million tonnes of waste were reported by

6468-460: The environment. Risk is the probability that exposure to a hazard will lead to a negative consequence, or more simply, a hazard poses no risk if there is no exposure to that hazard. Risk is a combination of hazard, exposure and vulnerability . For example in terms of water security : examples of hazards are droughts, floods and decline in water quality . Bad infrastructure and bad governance lead to high exposure to risk. Risk can be defined as

6566-399: The equator, tending to be seasonal phenomena that are thus largely recurrent in time and predictable in location due to the specific climate variables necessary for their formation. The terms hazard and risk are often used interchangeably. However, in terms of risk assessment , these are two very distinct terms. A hazard is an agent that can cause harm or damage to humans, property, or

6664-628: The event that it significantly harms a community. An example of the distinction between a natural hazard and a disaster is that an earthquake is the hazard which caused the 1906 San Francisco earthquake disaster. A natural hazard is a natural phenomenon that might have a negative effect on humans and other animals , or the environment . Natural hazard events can be classified into two broad categories: geophysical and biological . Natural hazards can be provoked or affected by anthropogenic processes , e.g. land-use change , drainage and construction. There are 18 natural hazards included in

6762-439: The exposure and vulnerability of a community." The US Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) explains the relationship between natural disasters and natural hazards as follows: "Natural hazards and natural disasters are related but are not the same. A natural hazard is the threat of an event that will likely have a negative impact. A natural disaster is the negative impact following an actual occurrence of natural hazard in

6860-555: The fact that fewer women knew how to swim. During and after a natural disaster, women are at increased risk of being affected by gender based violence and are increasingly vulnerable to sexual violence. Disrupted police enforcement, lax regulations, and displacement all contribute to increased risk of gender based violence and sexual assault. In addition to LGBT people and immigrants , women are also disproportionately victimized by religion-based scapegoating for natural disasters: fanatical religious leaders or adherents may claim that

6958-441: The form of a visible condensation funnel , the narrow end of which touches the Earth and is often encircled by a cloud of debris and dust . Tornadoes can occur one at a time, or can occur in large tornado outbreaks associated with supercells or in other large areas of thunderstorm development. Most tornadoes have wind speeds of less than 180 km/h (110 mph), are approximately 75 m (250 ft) across, and travel

7056-409: The immediate surroundings of a volcanic eruption is pyroclastic flows , consisting of a cloud of hot ash which builds up in the air above the volcano and rushes down the slopes when the eruption no longer supports the lifting of the gases. It is believed that Pompeii was destroyed by a pyroclastic flow. A lahar is a volcanic mudflow or landslide. The 1953 Tangiwai disaster was caused by a lahar, as

7154-441: The impact that they have. In defining hazard Keith Smith argues that what may be defined as the hazard is only a hazard if there is the presence of humans to make it a hazard. In this regard, human sensitivity to environmental hazards is a combination of both physical exposure (natural and/or technological events at a location related to their statistical variability) and human vulnerability (about social and economic tolerance of

7252-408: The impact they have on society is not. Thus, the term natural disaster is unsuitable and should be abandoned in favor of the simpler term disaster , while also specifying the category (or type) of hazard. As of 2019, the countries with the highest share of disability-adjusted life years ( DALY ) lost due to natural disasters are Bahamas , Haiti , Zimbabwe and Armenia (probably mainly due to

7350-410: The last 100 years, due to the increased development of countries, increased preparedness, better education, better methods, and aid from international organizations. Since the global population has grown over the same time period, the decrease in number of deaths per capita is larger, dropping to 6% of the original amount. The death rate from natural disasters is highest in developing countries due to

7448-405: The like. Some things can make natural disasters worse. Examples are inadequate building norms, marginalization of people and poor choices on land use planning . Many developing countries do not have proper disaster risk reduction systems. This makes them more vulnerable to natural disasters than high income countries . An adverse event only becomes a disaster if it occurs in an area with

7546-496: The lower quality of building construction, infrastructure, and medical facilities. Global economic losses due to extreme weather, climate and water events are increasing. Costs have increased sevenfold from the 1970s to the 2010s. Direct losses from disasters have averaged above US$ 330 billion annually between 2015 and 2021. Socio-economic factors have contributed to this trend of increasing losses, such as population growth and increased wealth. This shows that increased exposure

7644-525: The mental health of affected communities, often leading to post-traumatic symptoms. These increased emotional experiences can be supported through collective processing, leading to resilience and increased community engagement. Disasters stress government capacity, as the government tries to conduct routine as well as emergency operations. Some theorists of voting behavior propose that citizens update information about government effectiveness based on their response to disasters, which affects their vote choice in

7742-688: The natural environment, and the built environment , particularly more vulnerable people, throughout history, and in some cases, on a day-to-day basis. According to the Red Cross , each year 130,000 people are killed, 90,000 are injured and 140 million are affected by unique events known as natural disasters. Potentially dangerous phenomena which are natural or predominantly natural (for example, exceptions are intentional floods ) can be classified in these categories: Natural hazards can be influenced by human actions in different ways and to varying degrees, e.g. land-use change, drainage and construction. Humans play

7840-504: The natural occurrence may become an event that presents a risk to the environment or people. For example, above-average wind speeds resulting in a tropical depression or hurricane according to intensity measures on the Saffir–Simpson scale will provide an extreme natural event that may be considered a hazard. Tsunamis can be caused by geophysical hazards, such as in the 2004 Indian Ocean earthquake and tsunami . Although generally

7938-569: The next election. Indeed, some evidence, based on data from the United States, reveals that incumbent parties can lose votes if citizens perceives them as responsible for a poor disaster response or gain votes based on perceptions of well-executed relief work. The latter study also finds, however, that voters do not reward incumbent parties for disaster preparedness , which may end up affecting government incentives to invest in such preparedness. Landslides , also known as landslips, or rockslides, are several forms of mass wasting that may include

8036-661: The overlapping and compounding risks from ethnicity or racial discrimination, gender, age, or disability, etc.)". Biological hazards, also known as biohazards, originate in biological processes of living organisms and pose threats to the health of humans, the security of property, or the environment. Biological hazards include pathogenic microorganisms , such as viruses and bacteria , epidemics , pandemics , parasites , pests , animal attacks , venomous animals , biological toxins and foodborne illnesses . For example, naturally occurring bacteria such as Escherichia coli and Salmonella are well known pathogens , and

8134-615: The place of older, less effective chemicals. Laws, such as the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act and the Toxic Substances Control Act in the US, require protection of human health and the environment for any new chemical introduced. In the US, the EPA regulates new chemicals that may have environmental impacts (i.e., pesticides or chemicals released during a manufacturing process), while

8232-444: The possibility of failure associated with human technology (including emerging technologies ), which can also impact the economy , health and national security . For example, technological hazards can arise from the following events: A mechanical hazard is any hazard involving a machine or industrial process. Motor vehicles, aircraft, and air bags pose mechanical hazards. Compressed gases or liquids can also be considered

8330-552: The priorities for activities. The latest of these, the 11th session, took place on 31 October 2006 in Marrakech on the theme "Protecting societies from disasters through preparedness and prevention: a political priority". A network of permanent correspondents meets regularly between these sessions to coordinate the activities. The Agreement functions with a small secretariat, based at the Council of Europe headquarters in Strasbourg in

8428-456: The probability of future loss whereby the degree of vulnerability to hazard represents the level of risk on a particular population or environment. The threats posed by a hazard are: Hazards can be classified in several ways. These categories are not mutually exclusive which means that one hazard can fall into several categories. For example, water pollution with toxic chemicals is an anthropogenic hazard as well as an environmental hazard. One of

8526-412: The same location). An example of the distinction between a natural hazard and a disaster is that an earthquake is the hazard which caused the 1906 San Francisco earthquake disaster. A natural disaster is the highly harmful impact on a society or community following a natural hazard event. The term " disaster " itself is defined as follows: "Disasters are serious disruptions to the functioning of

8624-518: The same phenomenon: a tropical storm that forms over an ocean. It is caused by evaporated water that comes off of the ocean and becomes a storm . It is characterized by strong winds, heavy rainfall and thunderstorms. The determining factor on which term is used is based on where the storm originates. In the Atlantic and Northeast Pacific, the term "hurricane" is used; in the Northwest Pacific, it

8722-500: The same. A natural hazard is the threat of an event that will likely have a negative impact. A natural disaster is the negative impact following an actual occurrence of natural hazard in the event that it significantly harms a community. Disaster can take various forms, including hurricane, volcano , tsunami, earthquake, drought , famine , plague , disease, rail crash , car crash , tornado , deforestation , flooding, toxic release, and spills ( oil , chemicals ). A disaster hazard

8820-418: The severity of the associated risk varies. A hazard is defined as "the potential occurrence of a natural or human-induced physical event or trend that may cause loss of life, injury, or other health impacts, as well as damage and loss to property, infrastructure , livelihoods, service provision, ecosystems and environmental resources." A hazard only exists if there is a pathway to exposure. As an example,

8918-517: The skin. The negative effects of other chemicals, such as alcohol and nicotine , have been well documented. Organohalogens are a family of synthetic organic molecules which all contain atoms of one of the halogens . Such materials include PCBs , Dioxins , DDT , Freon and many others. Although considered harmless when first produced, many of these compounds are now known to have profound physiological effects on many organisms including man. Many are also fat soluble and become concentrated through

9016-542: The very harmful impact on a society or community after a natural hazard event. Some examples of natural hazard events include avalanches , droughts , earthquakes , floods , heat waves , landslides , tropical cyclones , volcanic activity and wildfires . Additional natural hazards include blizzards , dust storms , firestorms , hails , ice storms , sinkholes , thunderstorms , tornadoes and tsunamis . A natural disaster can cause loss of life or damage property . It typically causes economic damage. How bad

9114-510: The volume of a body of water, such as a river or lake , becoming higher than usual, causing some of the water to escape its usual boundaries. While the size of a lake or other body of water will vary with seasonal changes in precipitation and snow melt, a flood is not considered significant unless the water covers land used by humans, such as a village, city or other inhabited area, roads or expanses of farmland. Severe storms, dust clouds and volcanic eruptions can generate lightning . Apart from

9212-524: The waste disposal industry, those living around sites used for waste disposal or landfill and the general environment surrounding such sites. There are different ways to group hazards by origin. The definition by UNDRR states: "Hazards may be natural, anthropogenic or socionatural in origin." The socionatural hazards are those that are "associated with a combination of natural and anthropogenic factors, including environmental degradation and climate change ". The term climate hazard or climatic hazard

9310-710: Was a moderate year. 45% were meteorological (storms), 36% were hydrological (floods), 12% were climatological (heat waves, cold waves, droughts, wildfires) and 7% were geophysical events (earthquakes and volcanic eruptions). Between 1980 and 2011 geophysical events accounted for 14% of all natural catastrophes. Developing countries often have ineffective communication systems as well as insufficient support for disaster risk reduction and emergency management . This makes them more vulnerable to natural disasters than high income countries . Natural hazards occur across different time scales as well as area scales. Tornadoes and flash floods are rapid onset events, meaning they occur with

9408-749: Was no operational waste management system. Over 700,000 plastic tarpaulins and 100,000 tents were required for emergency shelters. The increase in plastic waste, combined with poor disposal practices, resulted in open drainage channels being blocked, increasing the risk of disease . Conflicts can result in large-scale displacement of communities. People living under these conditions are often provided with minimal waste management facilities. Burn pits are widely used to dispose of mixed wastes, including plastics. Air pollution can lead to respiratory and other illnesses. For example, Sahrawi refugees have been living in five camps near Tindouf, Algeria for nearly 45 years. As waste collection services are underfunded and there

9506-467: Was the European Heat Wave of 2003 . The 2010 Northern Hemisphere summer resulted in severe heat waves which killed over 2,000 people. The heat caused hundreds of wildfires which led to widespread air pollution and burned thousands of square kilometers of forest. Well-known historical droughts include the 1997–2009 Millennium Drought in Australia which led to a water supply crisis across much of

9604-533: Was the 1985 Armero tragedy in which the town of Armero was buried and an estimated 23,000 people were killed. Volcanoes rated at 8 (the highest level) on the volcanic explosivity index are known as supervolcanoes . According to the Toba catastrophe theory , 75,000 to 80,000 years ago, a supervolcanic eruption at what is now Lake Toba in Sumatra reduced the human population to 10,000 or even 1,000 breeding pairs, creating

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