Natural Disasters 1

geophysical/geological

associated with the solid earth

hydrological

associated with water on or under land

maritime/coastal

associated with water and their shores

meteorological

associated with weather

climatological

associated with atmospheric conditions over a longer period of time

extraterrestrial

coming from outside of earth

name all realms of physical natural disasters

geophysical/geological, hydrological, maritime/coastal, meteorological, climatological, extraterrestrial

geophysical/geological hazards include:

Earthquakes, landslides, volcanic eruptions, ground subsidence

hydrological hazards include

Floods, water depletion, river erosion

maritime/coastal hazards include

Storm waves, tsunamis, coastal erosion, currents, storm surge

meteorlogical hazards include

Thunderstorms, tornadoes, hail, ice storms, hurricanes, mid latitude cyclones, drought, blizzards

climatological hazards include

Cold waves, heat waves, drought, climate change

extraterrestrial hazards include

Meteorite impacts, solar storms

Between ____ and ____ people are affected by disasters every year on average

150 and 200 million

which disasters cause the most deaths?

meteorological, hydrological, and climatological

Preparation

evacuations, extra emergency personnel are brought in, shelters are set up

Response

rescue survivors, treat the injured, provide emergency shelter and security, and try to prevent a secondary disaster.

Recovery

cleaning up, finding or building longer term shelter, re establishing health care systems, and providing essential services

Restoration

rebuilding damaged buildings and infrastructure, may take months to years

stages of disaster relief?

preparation, disaster, response, recovery, restoration

Anthropogenic hazard

one produced by the activities of people. Explosives, insecticides, smoking, etc 

Natural hazard

exists independently of people but has the potential to harm people or property 

Socio-natural disasters

disasters which have characteristics that are both anthropogenic and natural.

Natural disaster

a serious disruption of the functioning of a community or society involving widespread human, material, economic, or environmental losses and impacts, which exceeds the ability of the affected community or society to cope using its own resources.

Rapid onset disaster

begins quickly, before people have had time to evacuate; most are of short duration 

Slow onset disaster

may take days or weeks to develop; most last for a while

Stealth disasters/creeping disasters

take so long to develop that we may not even notice their onset for weeks or decades.

Primary disaster

casualties and destruction resulting directly from the natural hazardous event itself.

Secondary disaster

a hazardous event triggered by a primary disaster

Tertiary disaster

a disaster that follows a secondary disaster. They are typically long term and concerned with long term socioeconomic struggles related to the prior two disasters.

Chronic health disaster

a type of stealth disaster that causes chronic health issues

Modified Mercalli Intensity Scale

geologists use it to classify earthquakes based on the damage sustained and the perception of the ground shaking by witnesses

Moment Magnitude Scale

geologists use it to classify earthquakes based on the amount of energy an earthquake released regardless of its consequences

Saffir-Simpson Scale

assigns a hurricane to a category based on its maximum sustained wind velocity

Enhanced Fujita Scale

classifies tornadoes based on the types of vegetation and man made structures a tornado destroys

Recurrence Interval (RI)

average time between successive hazardous events of a given size. Related to AP with the equation AP = 1/RI

Annual Probability (AP)

A number which indicates the likelihood that an event will happen any given year. Related to RI with the equation AP = 1/RI.

Annual Probability equation

AP = 1 / RI

Exposure

the potential casualties and potential economic losses and social disruption that a community could face due to its proximity to a natural hazard.

Vulnerability

the characteristics of a community which determine its ability to cope with a hazardous event.

Risk

the probability that an individual/community will be subject to injury or loss due to a hazardous event.

Risk is determined by what factors?

annual probability, exposure, vulnerability