9.0 - Hazards intro

define hazard

process/phenomenon which can cause human, economic, and environmental losses

define disaster

serious large scale disruption caused by a hazardous event, resulting in human, economic, and environmental losses

define exposure

presence of people, infrastructure and assets in hazard-prone areas

define vulnerability

susceptibility of a population to the impacts of a hazard

e.g. how prepared they are and how much exposure they have

define risk (with hazard risk equation)

probability that a hazard will cause harm

risk = hazard x exposure x vulnerability

how can pop density increase hazard risk + EXAMPLE

usually, increased pop density means increased hazard risk

• more people and buildings exposed

• increased vulnerability

  • emergency services stressed

  • slower evacuation

how can pop density decrease hazard risk + EXAMPLE

when hazard mitigation is well developed it lowers hazard risk

• hazard awareness, alerts more effectively disseminated

• better funding for more resilient buildings