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Naturaldisaster
FromWikipedia,thefreeencyclopedia

FortheAnathemaalbum,seeANaturalDisaster.Forthesongs,seeNaturalDisaster(PlainWhiteT's
song)andNaturalDisaster(Examplesong).
Anaturaldisasterisamajoradverseeventresultingfromnatural
processesoftheEarthexamplesincludefloods,volcaniceruptions,
earthquakes,tsunamis,andothergeologicprocesses.Anatural
disastercancauselossoflifeorpropertydamage,[1]andtypically
leavessomeeconomicdamageinitswake,theseverityofwhich
dependsontheaffectedpopulation'sresilience,orabilityto
recover.[2]
Anadverseeventwillnotrisetothelevelofadisasterifitoccursin
anareawithoutvulnerablepopulation.[3][4]Inavulnerablearea,
however,suchasSanFranciscoandNepal,anearthquakecanhave
disastrousconsequencesandleavelastingdamage,requiringyears
torepair.
In2012,therewere905naturaldisastersworldwide,93%ofwhich
wereweatherrelateddisasters.OverallcostswereUS$170billion
andinsuredlosses$70billion.2012wasamoderateyear.45%were
meteorological(storms),36%werehydrological(floods),12%were
climatological(heatwaves,coldwaves,droughts,wildfires)and7%
weregeophysicalevents(earthquakesandvolcaniceruptions).
Between1980and2011geophysicaleventsaccountedfor14%of
allnaturalcatastrophes.[5]

Aropetornadoinitsdissipating
stage,Tecumseh,Oklahoma.

Contents
1Geologicaldisasters
1.1Avalanchesandlandslides
1.2Earthquakes
1.3Sinkholes
1.4Volcaniceruptions
2Hydrologicaldisasters
2.1Floods
2.2Limniceruptions
2.3Tsunami
3Meteorologicaldisasters
3.1Blizzards
3.2Cyclonicstorms
3.2.1Tropicalcyclones
3.2.2Extratropicalcyclones
3.3Droughts
3.4Hailstorms

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3.4Hailstorms
3.5Heatwaves
3.6Tornadoes
4Wildfires
5Healthdisasters
5.1Epidemics
6Spacedisasters
6.1Impactevents
6.2Solarflare
7Protectionbyinternationallaw
8Seealso
9References
10Externallinks

Geologicaldisasters
Avalanchesandlandslides
Seealso:Listofavalanches
DuringWorldWarI,anestimated40,000to80,000soldiersdiedasaresultofavalanchesduringthe
mountaincampaignintheAlpsattheAustrianItalianfront.Manyoftheavalancheswerecausedby
artilleryfire.[6][7]

Earthquakes
Seealso:Listsofearthquakes
AnearthquakeistheresultofasuddenreleaseofenergyintheEarth'scrustthatcreatesseismicwaves.At
theEarth'ssurface,earthquakesmanifestthemselvesbyvibration,shakingandsometimesdisplacementof
theground.Earthquakesarecausedmostlybyslippagewithingeologicalfaults,butalsobyotherevents
suchasvolcanicactivity,landslides,mineblasts,andnucleartests.Theundergroundpointoforiginofthe
earthquakeiscalledthefocus.Thepointdirectlyabovethefocusonthesurfaceiscalledtheepicenter.
Earthquakesbythemselvesrarelykillpeopleorwildlife.Itisusuallythesecondaryeventsthattheytrigger,
suchasbuildingcollapse,fires,tsunamis(seismicseawaves)andvolcanoes,thatareactuallythehuman
disaster.Manyofthesecouldpossiblybeavoidedbybetterconstruction,safetysystems,earlywarningand
planning.

Sinkholes
Seealso:SinkholesNotableexamples
Whennaturalerosionorhumanminingmakesthegroundtooweaktosupportthestructuresbuiltonit,the
groundcancollapseandproduceasinkhole.Forexample,the2010GuatemalaCitysinkholewhichkilled
fifteenpeoplewascausedwhenheavyrainfromTropicalStormAgatha,divertedbyleakingpipesintoa
pumicebedrock,ledtothesuddencollapseofthegroundbeneathafactorybuilding.
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Volcaniceruptions
Mainarticles:ListoflargestvolcaniceruptionsandTypesofvolcaniceruptions
Volcanoescancausewidespreaddestructionandconsequentdisasterinseveralways.Theeffectsinclude
thevolcaniceruptionitself
thatmaycauseharm
followingtheexplosionof
thevolcanoorthefallof
rock.Second,lavamaybe
producedduringtheeruption
ofavolcano.Asitleavesthe
volcano,thelavadestroys
manybuildings,plantsand
animalsitencounters.Third,
Artist'simpressionofthevolcanic
volcanicashgenerally
eruptionsthatformedtheDeccan
meaningthecooledash
TrapsinIndia.
mayformacloud,andsettle
thicklyinnearbylocations.
Whenmixedwithwaterthis
formsaconcretelikematerial.Insufficientquantityashmaycause
roofstocollapseunderitsweightbutevensmallquantitieswill
harmhumansifinhaled.Sincetheashhastheconsistencyofground
glassitcausesabrasiondamagetomovingpartssuchasengines.
TheRedLake(Croatia).
Themainkillerofhumansintheimmediatesurroundingsofa
volcaniceruptionisthepyroclasticflows,whichconsistofacloud
ofhotvolcanicashwhichbuildsupintheairabovethevolcanoandrushesdowntheslopeswhenthe
eruptionnolongersupportstheliftingofthegases.ItisbelievedthatPompeiiwasdestroyedbya
pyroclasticflow.Alaharisavolcanicmudfloworlandslide.The1953Tangiwaidisasterwascausedbya
lahar,aswasthe1985ArmerotragedyinwhichthetownofArmerowasburiedandanestimated23,000
peoplewerekilled.
Aspecifictypeofvolcanoisthesupervolcano.AccordingtotheTobacatastrophetheory,75,000to80,000
yearsagoasupervolcaniceventatLakeTobareducedthehumanpopulationto10,000oreven1,000
breedingpairs,creatingabottleneckinhumanevolution.[8]Italsokilledthreequartersofallplantlifein
thenorthernhemisphere.Themaindangerfromasupervolcanoistheimmensecloudofash,whichhasa
disastrousglobaleffectonclimateandtemperatureformanyyears.

Hydrologicaldisasters
Itisaviolent,suddenanddestructivechangeeitherinqualityofearth'swaterorindistributionor
movementofwateronlandbelowthesurfaceorinatmosphere.

Floods
Seealso:Listoffloods
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Afloodisanoverflowofwaterthat"submerges"land.[9]TheEUFloodsDirectivedefinesafloodasa
temporarycoveringbywateroflandnotnormallycoveredbywater.[10]Inthesenseof"flowingwater",the
wordmayalsobeappliedtotheinflowofthetides.Floodingmayresultfromthevolumeofwaterwithina
bodyofwater,suchasariverorlake,whichoverflowscausingtheresultthatsomeofthewaterescapesits
usualboundaries.[11]Whilethesizeofalakeorotherbodyofwaterwillvarywithseasonalchangesin
precipitationandsnowmelt,itisnotasignificantfloodunlessthewatercoverslandusedbymanlikea
village,cityorotherinhabitedarea,roads,expansesoffarmland,
etc.

Limniceruptions
Mainarticle:Limniceruption
Alimniceruptionoccurswhenagas,usuallyCO2,suddenlyerupts
fromdeeplakewater,posingthethreatofsuffocatingwildlife,
TheLimpopoRiverduringthe2000
livestockandhumans.Suchaneruptionmayalsocausetsunamisin
Mozambiqueflood
thelakeastherisinggasdisplaceswater.Scientistsbelieve
landslides,volcanicactivity,orexplosionscantriggersuchan
eruption.Todate,onlytwolimniceruptionshavebeenobservedand
recorded.In1984,inCameroon,alimniceruptioninLakeMonouncausedthe
deathsof37nearbyresidents,andatnearbyLakeNyosin1986amuchlarger
eruptionkilledbetween1,700and1,800peoplebyasphyxiation.

Tsunami
Mainarticle:Tsunami
Atsunami(plural:tsunamisortsunamifromJapanese:,lit."harbour
wave"Englishpronunciation:/tsunmi/),alsoknownasaseismicseawave
orasatidalwave,isaseriesofwavesinawaterbodycausedbythe
displacementofalargevolumeofwater,generallyinanoceanoralargelake.
Tsunamiscanbecausedbyunderseaearthquakessuchasthe2004BoxingDay
tsunami,orbylandslidessuchastheonein1958atLituyaBay,Alaska,orby
volcaniceruptionssuchastheancienteruptionofSantorini.OnMarch11,
2011,atsunamioccurrednearFukushima,Japanandspreadthroughthe
Pacific.

Acowsuffocatedby
gasesafteralimnic
eruptionatLakeNyos

Meteorologicaldisasters
Mainarticle:Meteorologicaldisasters

Blizzards
Mainarticle:Blizzard

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Blizzardsareseverewinterstormscharacterizedbyheavysnowandstrongwinds.Whenhighwindsstirup
snowthathasalreadyfallen,itisknownasagroundblizzard.Blizzardscanimpactlocaleconomic
activities,especiallyinregionswheresnowfallisrare.TheGreatBlizzardof1888affectedtheUnited
States,whenmanytonsofwheatcropsweredestroyed,andinAsia,2008Afghanistanblizzardandthe
1972Iranblizzardwerealsosignificantevents.

Cyclonicstorms
Tropicalcyclones
Seealso:Listoftropicalcyclones
Cyclone,tropicalcyclone,hurricane,andtyphoonaredifferent
namesforthesamephenomenon,whichisacyclonicstormsystem
thatformsovertheoceans.Thedeadliesthurricaneeverwasthe
1970BholacyclonethedeadliestAtlantichurricanewastheGreat
Hurricaneof1780whichdevastatedMartinique,St.Eustatiusand
Barbados.AnothernotablehurricaneisHurricaneKatrina,which
devastatedtheGulfCoastoftheUnitedStatesin2005.

Youngsteerafterablizzard,March
1966

Extratropicalcyclones
Mainarticle:Extratropicalcyclone
Extratropicalcyclones,sometimescalledmidlatitudecyclones,areagroupofcyclonesdefinedassynoptic
scalelowpressureweathersystemsthatoccurinthemiddlelatitudesoftheEarth(outsidethetropics)not
havingtropicalcharacteristics,andareconnectedwithfrontsandhorizontalgradientsintemperatureand
dewpointotherwiseknownas"barocliniczones".Aswithtropicalcyclones,theyareknownbydifferent
namesindifferentregions(nor'easter,PacificNorthwestwindstorms,Europeanwindstorm,EastAsian
northwestPacificstorms,sudestada,andAustralianeastcoastcyclones).Themostintenseextratropical
cyclonescausewidespreaddisruptionanddamagetosociety,suchasthestormsurgeoftheNorthSeaflood
of1953whichkilled2251peopleintheNetherlandsandeasternEngland,theGreatStormof1987which
damagedsouthernEnglandandFrance,andtheColumbusDayStormof1962whichstruckthePacific
Northwest.

Droughts
Mainarticle:Drought
Droughtisunusualdrynessofsoil,resultingincropfailureand
shortageofwaterforotheruses,causedbysignificantlylower
rainfallthanaverageoveraprolongedperiod.Hotdrywinds,
shortageofwater,hightemperaturesandconsequentevaporationof
moisturefromthegroundcancontributetoconditionsofdrought.

AffectedareasinthewesternSahel
beltduringthe2012drought.

Wellknownhistoricaldroughtsincludethe19972009MilleniumDroughtinAustralialedtoawater
supplycrisisacrossmuchofthecountry.Asaresult,manydesalinationplantswerebuiltforthefirsttime
(seelist).In2011,theStateofTexaslivedunderadroughtemergencydeclarationfortheentirecalendar
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yearandsevereeconomiclosses.[12]ThedroughtcausedtheBastropfires.

Hailstorms
Mainarticle:Hail
Hailstormsarefallsofraindropsthatarriveasice,ratherthan
meltingbeforetheyhittheground.Aparticularlydamaging
hailstormhitMunich,Germany,onJuly12,1984,causingabout2
billiondollarsininsuranceclaims.

Heatwaves

Alargehailstone,about6cm(2.4in)
indiameter

Mainarticle:Heatwave
Aheatwaveisaperiodofunusuallyandexcessivelyhotweather.Theworstheatwaveinrecenthistory
wastheEuropeanHeatWaveof2003.AsummerheatwaveinVictoria,Australia,createdconditions
whichfuelledthemassivebushfiresin2009.Melbourneexperiencedthreedaysinarowoftemperatures
exceeding40C(104F)withsomeregionalareasswelteringthroughmuchhighertemperatures.The
bushfires,collectivelyknownas"BlackSaturday",werepartlytheactofarsonists.The2010Northern
Hemispheresummerresultedinsevereheatwaves,whichkilledover2,000people.Itresultedinhundreds
ofwildfireswhichcausingwidespreadairpollution,andburnedthousandsofsquaremilesofforest.

Tornadoes
Seealso:Listoftornadoesandtornadooutbreaks
Atornadoisaviolent,dangerous,rotatingcolumnofairthatisin
contactwithboththesurfaceoftheearthandacumulonimbuscloud
or,inrarecases,thebaseofacumuluscloud.Itisalsoreferredtoas
atwisteroracyclone,[13]althoughthewordcycloneisusedin
meteorologyinawidersense,torefertoanyclosedlowpressure
circulation.Tornadoescomeinmanyshapesandsizes,butare
Aclassicanvilshaped,andclearly
typicallyintheformofavisiblecondensationfunnel,whosenarrow
developedCumulonimbusincus
endtouchestheearthandisoftenencircledbyacloudofdebrisand
dust.Mosttornadoeshavewindspeedslessthan110milesperhour
(177km/h),areapproximately250feet(80m)across,andtravelafewmiles(severalkilometers)before
dissipating.Themostextremetornadoescanattainwindspeedsofmorethan300mph(480km/h),stretch
morethantwomiles(3km)across,andstayonthegroundfordozensofmiles(perhapsmorethan
100km).[14][15][16]

Wildfires
Seealso:Listofforestfires

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Wildfiresarelargefireswhichoftenstartinwildlandareas.Commoncausesincludelightninganddrought
butwildfiresmayalsobestartedbyhumannegligenceorarson.Theycanspreadtopopulatedareasandcan
thusbeathreattohumansandproperty,aswellaswildlife.Notablecasesofwildfireswerethe1871
PeshtigoFireintheUnitedStates,whichkilledatleast1700people,andthe2009Victorianbushfiresin
Australia.

Healthdisasters
Epidemics
Mainarticle:Listofepidemics
Anepidemicisanoutbreakofacontractiblediseasethatspreadsthroughahumanpopulation.Apandemic
isanepidemicwhosespreadisglobal.Therehavebeenmanyepidemicsthroughouthistory,suchasthe
BlackDeath.Inthelasthundredyears,significantpandemicsincludethe1918Spanishflupandemic
(killinganestimated50millionpeopleworldwide),the195758Asianflupandemic,andtheAIDS
pandemic,whichbeganin1959.The196869HongKongwaterflupandemic,the20023SARS
pandemic,andtheH1N1Influenza(SwineFlu)Pandemicin20092010werealsosignificantcases.

Spacedisasters
Seealso:Gammarayburst

Impactevents
Mainarticle:Impactevent
AsteroidsthatimpacttheEarthhaveledtoseveralmajorextinction
events,includingonethatcreatedtheChicxulubcrater64.9million
yearsagoandassociatedwiththedemiseofthedinosaurs.Scientists
estimatethatthelikelihoodofdeathforalivinghumanfromaglobal
impacteventiscomparabletodeathfromairlinercrash.Oneofthe
notableimpacteventsinmoderntimeswastheTunguskaeventinJune
1908.

Fallentreescausedbythe
Tunguskameteoroidofthe
TunguskaeventinJune1908.

Solarflare
Seealso:Solarstormof1859
Asolarflareisaphenomenonwherethesunsuddenlyreleasesagreatamountofsolarradiation,much
morethannormal.SomeknownsolarflaresincludetheX20eventonAugust16,1989,[17]andasimilar
flareonApril2,2001.[17]ThemostpowerfulflareeverrecordedoccurredonNovember4,2003(estimated
atbetweenX40andX45).[18]

Protectionbyinternationallaw
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Internationallaw,forexampleGenevaConventionsdefinesInternationalRedCrossandRedCrescent
MovementtheConventionontheRightsofPersonswithDisabilities,requiresthat"Statesshalltake,in
accordancewiththeirobligationsunderinternationallaw,includinginternationalhumanitarianlawand
internationalhumanrightslaw,allnecessarymeasurestoensuretheprotectionandsafetyofpersonswith
disabilitiesinsituationsofrisk,includingtheoccurrenceofnaturaldisaster."[19]AndfurtherUnitedNations
OfficefortheCoordinationofHumanitarianAffairsisformedbyGeneralAssemblyResolution44/182.
Peopledisplacedduetonaturaldisastersarecurrentlyprotectedunderinternationallaw(GuidingPrinciples
ofInternationalDisplacement,CampalaConventionof2009).[20]

Seealso
ActofGod
Civildefense
DisasterRiskReduction
Emergencymanagement
Environmentaldisaster
Environmentalemergency
Listofcountriesbynaturaldisasterrisk
Listofenvironmentaldisasters
Listofnaturaldisastersbydeathtoll
WorldConferenceonDisasterReduction

References
1. U.S.BillionDollarWeatherandClimateDisasters(http://www.ncdc.noaa.gov/billions)
2. G.Bankoff,G.Frerks,D.Hilhorst(eds.)(2003).MappingVulnerability:Disasters,DevelopmentandPeople.
ISBN1853839647.
3. D.Alexander(2002).PrinciplesofEmergencyplanningandManagement.Harpended:Terrapublishing.ISBN1
903544106.
4. B.Wisner,P.Blaikie,T.Cannon,andI.Davis(2004).AtRiskNaturalhazards,people'svulnerabilityand
disasters.Wiltshire:Routledge.ISBN0415252164.
5. NaturalCatastrophesin2012DominatedbyU.S.WeatherExtremes(http://www.worldwatch.org/natural
catastrophes2012dominatedusweatherextremes0)WorldwatchInstituteMay29,2013
6. LeeDavis(2008)."NaturalDisasters(http://books.google.com/books?
id=CRzMOYIuLJEC&pg=&dq&hl=en#v=onepage&q=&f=false)".InfobasePublishing.p.7.ISBN08160
70008
7. "Avalanche!"(http://www.worldwar1.com/itafront/avalan.htm).WorldWar1.com.Retrieved20150112.
8. Gibbons,Ann(19January2010)."HumanAncestorsWereanEndangeredSpecies"
(http://sciencenow.sciencemag.org/cgi/content/full/2010/119/2).ScienceNow.
9. MSNEncartaDictionary.Flood.(http://encarta.msn.com/encnet/features/dictionary/DictionaryResults.aspx?
refid=1861612277)Retrievedon20061228.Archived(http://www.webcitation.org/query?
id=1257023547055729)20091031.
10. Directive2007/60/ECChapter1Article2(http://eurlex.europa.eu/LexUriServ/LexUriServ.do?
uri=OJ:L:2007:288:0027:0034:EN:PDF)
11. GlossaryofMeteorology(June2000).Flood.(http://amsglossary.allenpress.com/glossary/search?id=flood1)
Retrievedon20090109.
12. BillionDollarWeatherandClimateDisasters:TableofEvents(http://www.ncdc.noaa.gov/billions/events)
13. merriamwebster.com(http://www.merriamwebster.com/dictionary/cyclone)
14. Wurman,Joshua(20080829)."DopplerOnWheels"(http://cswr.org/dow/DOW.htm).CenterforSevere
WeatherResearch.Retrieved20091213.
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15. "HallamNebraskaTornado"(http://www.crh.noaa.gov/oax/archive/hallam/hallam.php).NationalWeather
Service.NationalOceanicandAtmosphericAdministration.20051002.Retrieved20091115.
16. RogerEdwards(20060404)."TheOnlineTornadoFAQ"(http://www.spc.ncep.noaa.gov/faq/tornado/).
NationalWeatherService.NationalOceanicandAtmosphericAdministration.Retrieved20060908.
17. "SunUnleashesRecordSuperflare,EarthDodgesSolarBullet"
(http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2001/04/010404081121.htm).ScienceDaily.April4,2011.Retrieved
20110827.
18. "BiggestSolarFlareeverrecorded"
(https://web.archive.org/20110804064530/http://www.nasca.org.uk:80/Strange_Maps/solar/Solar_Flare/solar_flare
.html).NationalAssociationforScientificandCulturalAppreciation.2004.Archivedfromtheoriginal
(http://www.nasca.org.uk/Strange_Maps/solar/Solar_Flare/solar_flare.html)onAugust4,2011.Retrieved
20110827.
19. Article11oftheConventionontheRightsofPersonswithDisabilities
20. Terminski,Bogumil,TowardsRecognitionandProtectionofForcedEnvironmentalMigrantsinthePublic
InternationalLaw:RefugeeorIDPsUmbrella(December1,2011).PolicyStudiesOrganization(PSO)Summit,
December2011.

Externallinks
"NaturalDisastersNews"
Wikiquotehasquotations
(http://www.naturaldisastersnews.net).Ubyrisk.Worldwide
relatedto:Naturaldisasters
newssitefocusedonnaturaldisasters,mitigationandclimate
changesnews
"GlobalRiskIdentificationProgram(GRIP)"(http://www.gripweb.org).GRIP.
"WorldBank'sHazardRiskManagement"(http://go.worldbank.org/BCQUXRXOW0).WorldBank.
"DisasterNewsNetwork"(http://www.disasternews.net/).Retrieved20061105.USnewssite
focusedondisasterrelatednews.
"EMDATInternationalDisasterDatabase"(http://www.emdat.net).Retrieved20061105.Includes
countryprofiles,disasterprofilesandadisasterlist.
"GlobalDisasterAlertandCoordinationSystem"(http://www.gdacs.org).EuropeanCommissionand
UnitedNationswebsiteinitiative.
"NaturalDisasterandExtremeWeather.SearchableInformationCenter"
(http://site.ebrary.com/lib/disaster/home.action).Ebrary.
Retrievedfrom"https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Natural_disaster&oldid=679437286"
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