NATURAL NAT URAL DISASTE DISASTER R
IN PARTIAL PARTIAL FULFILMENT OF THE REQUIREMENT UNDER SEMESTER BASED CREDIT & GRADING SYSTEM FOR POST GRADUATESEMESTER II
Program under a!u"#$ o !ommer!e MASTER OF COMMERCE %EENING'
SYDENHAM COLLEGE OF COMMERCE & ECONOMICS SUBMITTED BY( A)ASH M TO)E ROLL NO( *+ PRO,ECT GUIDE(
Dr- Tu.aram P Gad/a0e (M.com, B.ed, M.Phil, Ph.D.)
SYDENHAM COLLEGE OF COMMERCE & ECONOMICS
+1234+12*
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DECLARATION
I Mr. A)ASH M TO)E the student of M.Com- I (Evening) 2 ND Semester (20142015) here!" de#$%re th%t I h%ve #om&$eted the &ro'e#t on NATURAL . *he inform%tion su!mitted is true %nd origin%$ to the !est of m" DISASTER . +no,$edge.
Sign%ture of student A)ASH M TO)E
/o$$ No 52
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DECLARATION
I Mr. A)ASH M TO)E the student of M.Com- I (Evening) 2 ND Semester (20142015) here!" de#$%re th%t I h%ve #om&$eted the &ro'e#t on NATURAL . *he inform%tion su!mitted is true %nd origin%$ to the !est of m" DISASTER . +no,$edge.
Sign%ture of student A)ASH M TO)E
/o$$ No 52
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CERTIFICATE
*his is to #ertif" th%t Mr. A)ASH M TO)E of M.Com 4I (Evening) Semester-2 (2014-2015) h%s su##essfu$$" #om&$eted the ro'e#t on NAT NATURAL URAL DISASTER DISAST ER under the guid%n#e of Dr. *u+%r%m %dh%ve
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ro' ro'e# e#tt uid uide e
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Inte Intern rn%$ %$ E%m E%min iner er
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Ete Etern rn%$ %$ E%m E%min iner er
D*E D*E CE
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AC)NO5LEDGEMENT
I ,ou$d first$" $i+e to th%n+ the UNIERSITY OF MUMBAI for giving us the $i!ert" of #hoosing su#h to&i# ,hi#h ,i$$ !e !enefited to us in future. I ,ou$d $i+e to th%n+s the Pr6n!67a" o S$den/am Co""ege Dr. nn%s%he! 6hemn%r for giving me the o&&ortunit" to stud" in this esteemed #o$$ege %nd doing the #ourse of ##ount%n#". ##ount%n#". I ,ou$d $i+e to e&ress m" sin#ere gr%titude %nd th%n+s to Dr. *u+%r%m %dh%ve ,ho is m" &ro'e#t guide %s he h%s !een the guiding $ight for this &ro'e#t %nd h%s %$so &rovided me ,ith the !est of m" +no,$edge %dvi#e %nd en#our%gement ,hi#h ,hi#h he$&ed me in su##essfu$ #om&$etion #om&$etion of m" &ro'e#t. M" #o$$e%gues %nd s&e#i%$$" m" &%rents ,ho h%ve %$so su&&orted %nd en#our%ged me the su##ess of this &ro'e#t to the $%rge etent is %$so dedi#%ted to them.
I would also like to thank all those who have helped me and whom I have fo!otten to mention in this space
SIN*7/E 89 S*7DEN*
NATURAL DISASTERS
Introduction
"he de#nition of natual natual disastes disastes is an$ catastophi catastophic c event that is caused %$ natue o the natual pocesses of &
the eath. "he seveit$ of a disaste is measued in lives lost, economic loss, and the a%ilit$ of the population to e%uild. 'vents that occu in unpopulated aeas ae not consideed disastes. o a ood on an uninha%ited island would not count as a disaste, %ut a ood in a populated aea is called a natual disaste. *ll natual disastes cause loss in some wa$. Dependin! on the seveit$, lives can %e lost in an$ num%e of disastes. +allin! %uildin!s o tees, feein! to death, %ein! washed awa$, o heat stoke ae -ust some of the deadl$ eects. ome disastes cause moe loss of life than othes, and population densit$ aects the death count as well. "hen thee is loss of popet$, which aects people/s livin! 0uates, tanspotation, livelihood, and means to live. +ields satuated in salt wate afte tsunamis take $eas to !ow cops a!ain. omes desto$ed %$ oods, huicanes, c$clones, landslides and avalanches, a volcanic euption, o an eath0uake ae often %e$ond epai o take a lot of time to %ecome liva%le a!ain. Pesonal eects, memoa%ilia, vehicles, and documents also take a hit afte man$ natual disastes. "he natual disastes that eall$ aect people woldwide tend to %ecome moe intense as the $eas !o on. +e0uenc$ of eath0uakes, me!a stoms, and heat waves has !one up considea%l$ in the last few decades. eav$ population in aeas that !et hit %$ oods, c$clones, and huicanes has meant that moe lives ae lost. In some
aeas, the population has !otten somewhat pepaed fo the eventualit$ of disastes and sheltes ae %uilt fo huicanes and tonadoes. oweve, loss of popet$ is still a po%lem, and pedictin! man$ natual disastes isn/t eas$. cientists, !eolo!ists, and stom watches wok had to pedict ma-o disastes and avet as much dama!e as possi%le. ith all the technolo!$ availa%le, it/s %ecome easie to pedict ma-o stoms, %liads, c$clones, and othe weathe elated natual disastes. But thee ae still natual disastes that come up athe une4pectedl$, such as eath0uakes, wild#es, landslides, o even volcanic euptions. ometimes, a time of wanin! is thee, %ut it/s often ve$ shot with catastophic esults. *eas that ae not used to disastes aected %$ ash oods o sudden hail stoms can %e aected in an e4teme wa$. oweve, despite the man$ natual disastes the wold ove, mankind has shown amain! esilience. hen an aea o count$ is %adl$ aected %$ a natual disaste, the eaction is alwa$s one of solidait$ and aid is 0uick to come. "hee ae o!aniations set up with the pima$ !oal of %ein! pepaed fo natual disastes. "hese !oups wok on !lo%al and local scale escue wok. *side fom those who have chosen to make disaste elief thei life5 wok, when disastes hit, it/s the individuals who step in who help to make a dieence. Man$ people talk a%out when a disaste has hit and thei nei!h%os and count$men have come to aid, often to 6
thei own loss. People will step in and donate items, time, and skills in ode to help those aected %$ a natual disaste. 7ele%ities will often do what the$ can to aise mone$ thou!h concets, phone maathons, and visitin! aected aeas with aid. People have also shown that the$ can e%uild, lives can %e emade o stat ove. "auma is a %i! afte eect of natual disastes and !ettin! counselin! has %een the focus of aid8to heal emotionall$ as well as ph$sicall$. It/s clea that natual disastes ae a pat of life as we know it. oweve, science is makin! it moe possi%le to pedict, aid is faste at comin!, and people ae leanin! how to e%uild in safe aeas.
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WILDFIRE What Is A Wildfre?
ild#es ae some of the wost t$pes of natual disastes to hit an$ pat of the wold. oweve, the wild#es ae uncontolla%le and contolled also and usuall$ stat up in aeas which ae in the wildeness. ome call these wild#es o efe to them as a foest #e, %ush #e, %ush #e and man$ othe names. oweve, whateve the$ ae efeed as, the$ ae dan!eous and unpedicta%le also. oweve, a wild#e does die fom othe t$pes of #e %ecause of its shee sie. 've$ #e is deadl$ %ut a wild#e is e4temel$ dan!eous and is anothe step up fom othe t$pes of #e. "he sie of a wild#e can %e e4taodina$ and is ve$ di:cult to contol also even with doens of #e #!htes wokin! on the #es. "he speed of a #e can %e 0uite fast also; and it does even have the a%ilit$ to -ump !aps. "hese !aps such as ives and even oads, the #e can actuall$ -ump to avoid <
this !ap which is e4taodina$ and somethin! which most othe #es cannot achieve. =n almost eve$ continent, with the e4ception of *ntactica, wild#es occu. "he$ ae mostl$ found in *ustalia and in fact, *ustalia does have e!ula occuences of wild#es and it is due to the summes %ein! e4temel$ hot and lon!e than most othe counties. "he +ou >isks "he$ ae !oin! to pose a hu!e isk on human life as well as popet$ and landscape also. "hese wild#es can occu at an$ !iven time of the $ea %ut moe often in the hotte months such as spin! and summe. "hee ae actuall$ fou main isks which can stat a wild#e. ?i!htnin! is a hu!e cause of #es statin! %ut thee ae also spontaneous com%ustion, spaks fom ock falls and even a volcano euptin! can all cause a wild#e statin!. "hese thin!s mi!ht not alwa$s occu eve$ da$ of the week %ut when the$ do, the$ can %e tei%le and cause a lot of dama!e includin! statin! a wild#e. +o the most pat, asonists ae to %lame; this and accidents ae some of the othe isks conti%uted with the %eakouts of a wild#e. oweve, in some occasions, these #es can %e small and e4tin!uished if the #e is cau!ht 0uickl$ and dealt with 0uickl$ also. "his is the case fo most wild#es and it is di:cult to deal with the #e even if thee ae doens of #e #!htes wokin! to stop it. ome wild#es occu in foest aeas and in some cases, d$ land. It can %e ve$ eas$ to stat a #e up in these
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aeas %ecause the$ ae man$ fuel souces to consume also.
The Properties o reatin! a Wildfre
ild#e can %e a devastatin! and tei%le natual disaste to occu. "hese uncontolled %laes can %e fuelled %$ almost eve$thin! includin! the wind, d$ unde%ush and even %$ popet$. "he wild#es can desto$ eve$thin! that is in path within minutes, seconds possi%l$ %ecause these can !et so out of contol and so wild. *coss the wold thee have %een thousand dieent wild#es that stetch vast and !et out of contol. Millions of aces of land have %een desto$ed %ecause of the wild#es. * wild#e howeve can move at !eat speeds, it can in fact %e almost fouteen miles an hou; and it can %un home, %ush, tees and even livin! people and animals alike. *n$thin! in its path can %e desto$ed. "he 7onditions fo a ild#e tatin! •
=4$!en
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+uel
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eat ouce
"hese ae the 3 in!edients fo a wild#e statin! and %unin!. =f couse, eve$thin! needs o4$!en and #es especiall$ needs o4$!en to %un continuousl$ and the$ also need fuel. *n$thin! which is amma%le, an$ 1A
mateial which is amma%le that is, can %e used as fuel. "his can %e an$thin! fom homes, !ass, %ush, tees; almost an$thin! that can %e %uned can %e used as fuel. If thee is a !eate fuel load, then the #e will intensif$. oweve, thee is also a need fo a heat souce. "his helps to spak the #e and %in! the tempeatues up to a tei%le heat and if it does each a cetain point, it could i!nite a #e. * heat souce could %e thin!s such as %unin! camp#es, hot winds, ci!aettes %ein! left in a d$ aea o even li!htnin!. ometimes, the sun can oe enou!h heat to stat a wild#e.
hockin!l$, most wild#es ae !oin! to %e stated %$ eve$ da$ people and not often natue. oweve, that doesn/t mean to sa$ natue doesn/t have a helpin! hand in the statin! of a #e. If the weathe is d$ and if thee has %een a ecent dou!ht then it can all conti%ute to a wild#e statin! and it does happen moe and moe toda$. If the !ound does d$ up then cops can actuall$ %ecome a fuel souce and if thee ae ston! winds then it can make the #e out of contol. inds can also spead the 11
#e ve$ 0uickl$ indeed and with hot tempeatues fomin! it can conti%ute to com%ustion. *ll of these thin!s can ceate #es and it can %e done %$ %oth human hand and %$ Mothe atue also. It can %e a com%ination of %oth, %ecause if thee is a dou!ht and an aea has %ecome 0uite d$, then it takes one human act to i!nite the ames. It can %e an asonist, an accident with a ci!aette o even a camp#e. * wild#e can even stat %ecause of a downed powe line; and it -ust takes a second fo i!nition and anothe minute fo the #e to %ecome out of contol. ometimes, these wild#es can last onl$ a shot peiod of time and sometimes it can %e weeks and desto$ hundeds of land in the pocess.
T"RNAD" INTRODUCTION
Man$ people have seen the movie C"wiste and have !otten a elativel$ !ood idea a%out what a tonado is, %ut 12
what eall$ is consideed a tonadoE hat makes up a tonadoE h$ does a tonado happenE ow do I potect m$self fom a tonado in case thee is one in m$ aeaE If these ae 0uestions that $ou ae inteested in knowin! the answe to, keep eadin! on, as this e4cept will answe all the 0uestions $ou have a%out tonadoes. What is a Tornado?
"onadoes ae destuctive columns of ai that otate and have contact %etween eath/s suface and a cumulonim%us cloud. In unusual cases, tonadoes can make contact with eath/s suface and cumulus clouds. "wistes, o c$clones ae othe names fo what is fomall$ known as a tonado. "onadoes tend to come in man$ dieent shapes and sies, %ut most of the time the$ look like a condensation funnel, with a naow end that touches eath/s suface and !ets wide as it !oes hi!he up. 7ontainin! mostl$ de%is and dust, most tonadoes usuall$ have a wind speed of 11A miles pe hou o less and ae a%out 2A feet in width, tavelin! usuall$ a few miles %efoe the$ deplete. "he wost tonadoes can e4ceed wind speeds of 3AA miles pe hou and move fo moe than 1AA kilometes %efoe dissipatin!.
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T#pes o Tornadoes
"hee ae a few dieent t$pes of tonadoes that ae classi#ed %$ speci#c chaacteistics. "hese tonadoes include the landspout, the multiple vote4 tonadoes, and the watespout. =the less common tonado5like phenomena that e4ist ae the !ustnado, the dust devil, and the #e whil. 'ach one of these tonadoes has its own cetain chaacteistics that sepaate it fom the othes. It is impotant to know what kind of tonado $ou ae dealin! with as the$ have thei own amounts of dama!e that the$ can cause. Multiple Fote4 "onado Multiple5vote4 tonadoes ae speci#c t$pes of tonadoes that have two o moe columns spinnin! in the ai that otate aound the same cente. "his can occu in almost an$ ciculation, %ut is usuall$ seen in intense tonadoes. "hese sepaate votices cause small aeas of heavie dama!e alon! the cental tonado path. "his an appaent phenomenon fom a satellite tonado, which is weake and foms ve$ nea a la!e, dua%le tonado that is contained within the same mesoc$clone. 'ven thou!h the satellite tonado appeas to o%it the %i!!e tonado, it is a distinct ciculation, and is much moe acute in sie than the main funnel. atespout "onado "he ational eathe evice de#nes a watespout similal$ to a landspout tonado, %ut ove a %od$ of wate. 1&
"hese t$pes of tonadoes ae not as sevee as land tonadoes, %ut ae much moe common. "he$ can %e compaed to dust devils and landspouts due to simila chaacteistics. atespouts fom fom the %ases of cetain t$pes of clouds ove topical and su%topical %odies of wate and have athe weak winds with smooth walls that usuall$ tavel 0uite slowl$. "hese kinds of tonadoes usuall$ occu in the +loida est and in the noth e!ion of the *diatic ea. "onado watespouts ae much moe dua%le tonadoes of wate and ae fomed ove wate close in compaison to mesoc$clonictonadoes that coss ove %odies of wate. "he$ can %e much moe intense and live lon!e than weathe watespouts that ae fai since the$ ae fomed fom sevee thundestoms. ?andspout ?andspouts, also fomall$ known as dust5tu%e tonadoes ae not in association with mesoc$clones. "he name deives fom its simila featues to a fai weathe watespout, %ut on land. ?andspouts and watespouts ae simila %ecause the$ ae %oth weak, ae shot lived, and also have a small, unwinkled condensation funnel which most of the time doesn/t make it to the top. ?andspouts make a cloud of dust when the$ make contact with the eath/s suface %ecause the dieent mechanics fom tue mesofom tonadoes. "hese t$pes of tonadoes ae t$picall$ weake than taditional tonadoes, %ut can still cause destuction %ecause the$ can ceate ston! winds. imila 7iculations to "onadoes 1
$ustnado
*lso known as a !ust font tonado, a !ustnado is small, and has vetical swill fom a !ust font o down%ust. Gustnadoes ae still %ein! 0uestioned as to if the$ ae actuall$ tonadoes considein! the$ don/t connect with a cloud %ase. Gustnadoes fom when fast movin! cold, outows of ai ceate a thundestom and ae %lown thou!h a mass of immo%ile, humid ai close to the outow %ounda$. "he$ ae t$picall$ known fo causin! small aeas of heav$ otational wind dama!e in the middle of stai!ht5line wind dama!e. Dust De%il
Dust devils ae vetical swilin! columns of ai. "he$ fom unde clea skies and ae as ston! as the weakest tonadoes. Dust devils fom when ston! convective updafts fom close to eath/s suface on hot da$s. 'ven thou!h these foms of dust and wind ae simila to tonadoes, the$ ae not consideed tonadoes due to thei fomin! duin! fai weathe and the$ ae not associated with clouds. Dust Devils can still cause immense dama!e, hints the name. Fire Whirls
+ie whils ae small, tonado5like ciculations that occu nea wild#es. "he onl$ time these phenomena ae consideed tonadoes is when the$ connect to a 16
p$ocumulus o othe cumulifom cloud. +ie whils can inict seious dama!e. Stea& De%il
team devils ae otatin! updafts that consist of steam o smoke. "hese ae ve$ ae phenomena. moke issued fom a powe plant/s smokestack is usuall$ the cause of a steam devil. If cold ai passes ove wam wate then a steam devil can occu at that point as well. Popula Misconceptions a%out "onadoes ome people %elieve that if $ou open the windows to $ou house, it will pevent a tonado fom doin! ma4imum dama!e %ecause thee is a la!e dop in atmospheic pessue. ome %elieve tests show that this will cause moe dama!e to the house. 'ithe wa$, a ston! enou!h tonado can desto$ a house easil$ with o without the windows open. *nothe common misconception is that people %elieve that the$ ae potected fom tonadoes o that tonadoes won/t aect thei aea if it/s not a at, fam o deset5like suface. "hou!h some aeas ae moe suscepti%le to tonadoes than othes, no aea is completel$ e4empt fom havin! an encounte with a tonado. Pecautions to "ake if Hou/e 've in a "onado 'ven thou!h tonadoes can happen instantl$, thee ae safet$ methods that $ou can use to potect $ouself fom uncetain possi%le outcomes. Pepain! fo a tonado 19
%efoe it actuall$ stikes, such as havin! a safe oom in the house that has no windows like a closet o a %athoom can help in case $ou do come acoss a tonado. Man$ tonado5pone aeas have %uildin!s with stom cellas that save thousands of lives. eathe adios can also help $ou #nd out if thee is a tonado alet in $ou aea, which can help $ou %ette, pepae fo the wost case scenaio. "hese ae -ust a few safet$ tips that can help $ou suvive thou!h a tonado. "hee ae dieent t$pes of tonados that can inict dieent amounts of dama!e. nowin! the %asic infomation a%out these dieent kinds of tonadoes can help $ou %ette pepae fo a disaste in $ou hometown. ?ookin! at the cloud connected to a tonado is a 0uick wa$ to identif$ what kind of tonado it is, and that will %e a !eat %ene#t. >emem%e, alwa$s sta$ awa$ fom windowsJ
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TSUNA'I INTR"DUTI"N
* "sunami is a seies of !i!antic wate waves that causes a su!e of wate onto land. "hese su!es can each hei!hts up to 1AA feet. "he massive hei!ht of the su!es can lead to devastatin! eects when it cashes ove land. It can occu in la!e lakes %ut mainl$ occus in seas. ee ae some tems that ae associated with tsunamisK Tide( "he tem Ltide/ efes to the altenate isin! and fallin! of the sea level at shoes. Seis&ic )a%es( eismic waves of ene!$ that tavel thou!h the 'ath/s cust la$es o plates, and ae a esult of an eath0uake o a volcano euption which can lead to causin! tsunamis. Sur!e( * su!e of wate is a ston! swellin! volume of wate. Earth*ua+e( * sudden and violent movement of a potion of the eath/s cust, and the seies of vi%ations that follow. Earth,s crust( "his is the solid thin la$e that coves the outside of the eath. Is the solid la$e upon which we live. "o put it in pespective, think of it as the skin on the outside of an apple. Plate( * plate is a section of the eaths cust. Plates slide alon! eithe %eside, ove o unde each othe, causin! fiction and pessue %etween the plates. 1@
Teletsuna&i( * tsunami which causes dama!e a lon! distance awa$ fom the souce has %een !iven the name Lteletsunami/. "hese t$pes of tsunamis ae not poduced %$ hoiontal motions, %ut %$ vetical motions in the sea%ed.
"sunami waves ae caused %$ la!e undewate eath0uakes whee thee ae tectonic plate %oundaies. "he$ can also %e caused %$ volcano euption unde the ocean o lake. 'ven !iant landslides have %een known to cause la!e tidal waves o tsunamis in the past. "ectonic plates ae sections of the eath/s cust that move a!ainst each othe. hen the pessue of the tectonic plate at the ocean oo eleases pessue, it causes the wate a%ove to ceate a seies of ollin! waves which will %uild up to cause moe tu%ulent and fast movin! waves. "hese waves will tun into one la!e wave and will eventuall$ esult in a tsunami. "sunamis do not appea as a %eakin! wave. Initiall$ it ma$ esem%le a tide that is isin! apidl$. "sunamis !eneall$ consist of a seies of waves with peiods an!in! fom minutes to hous, aivin! in what can %e called a Cwave tain. "he Paci#c >in! of +ie *lmost
in! of +ie/. "his is due to the amount of eath0uake and volcanic activit$ in the aea, which occu due to the tectonic shifts in the eath/s plates.
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"sunamis can each speeds up to AA miles pe hou, acin! acoss the sea. "hat is a%out as fast as a -et planeJ "sunamis can tavel the entie len!th of the Paci#c =cean in less than a da$. "hee is vituall$ no ene!$ lost alon! the wa$ due to thei e4temel$ lon! wavelen!ths. "he fomation of a "sunami hen tsunamis %e!in to fom, the$ onl$ appea a foot of so hi!h in the deep ocean. "his makes them impossi%le to distin!uish. "he close the$ !et to the shoeline and ente shallowe wate, thei ene!$ and hei!ht !ow to dastic measues. "he speed and momentum inceases due to the top of the waves movin! faste that the %ottom does. "he lowest point unde the wave usuall$ eaches the shoe #st. hen it eaches the shoe, it poduces what is desci%ed as the Lvacuum eect/, which sucks the coastal wate into the sea and !ives the opposite eect of a tsunami. hen this occus, the sea oo is left completel$ wateless and the seaoo is totall$ e4posed. "his is the #st si!n a tsunami is a%out to hit. "he ne4t sta!e causes the most seious and devastatin! eects. *%out #ve to ten minutes afte the wate eteats, the tsunami will hit. "his !ives people little time to escape the wath of the tsunami; howeve the wanin! can save lives. hen a tsunami hits it is impotant fo people to emem%e that the dan!e ma$ not have passed with the #st wave o two. "he afteshock of eath0uakes can cause moe waves to occu, sometimes even hous afte the initial wave hits. "he %est defense a!ainst an$ tsunami is eal$ wanin! that allows people to seek hi!he !ound.
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Paci#c coastal counties ae some of the most "sunami pone aeas in the wold. ee is a list of some of the counties who have %een aected o that could %e aected %$ tsunamisK •
apan
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Nnited tates
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Me4ico
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Philippines
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>ussia
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'cuado
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7hina
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7hile
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Papua ew Guinea
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Maldives
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Indonesia
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Ital$
Po%lems caused %$ "sunamis "sunamis can cause !eat loss of life and a seious decease in population. Downin! is the most popula cause of death when a tsunami hits. ee ae some dan!es it can cause to the envionment.
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•
•
•
•
•
hipwecks can %e left ashoe when tsunamis hit. "his can cause ma-o pollution and can take time and mone$ to emove. *nimals can %e washed up to shoe and die. "he$ can also ood the lands nea the shoe. "his leaves cops dama!ed and the communit$ can sue fom a lack of food and wok. ome people mi!ht left %e tapped unde %uildin!s fo lon! peiods of time while seach and escue teams attempt to !et a hold on the situation. "he dama!e can %e so !eat that people often die while tapped. "sunamis can cause economic decline as the$ have to spend a lot of mone$ e%uildin! the houses and estoin! the oi!inal landscape. *s the devastation can occu in ve$ poo counties, thee is usuall$ not %e enou!h help o mone$ to completel$ e%uild entie livelihoods.
ton!est "sunami in histo$ =ne of the most well known and ecent incidence of a tsunami was in Indonesia, on the 26th of Decem%e 2AA&. * @.3 ma!nitude eath0uake ti!!eed a seies of !iant tsunamis alon! the coasts of most landmasses that %odeed the Indian =cean. "his was also one of the la!est eath0uakes ecoded. It killed ove 23A,AAA people in fouteen dieent counties. It was ecoded as one was one of the wost natual disastes in histo$. Indonesia was hit the hadest and i ?anka, "hailand and India also sueed !eatl$. 23
Due to the distances involved, the disastous tsunami took %etween #fteen minutes and seven hous to each the all the dieent coastlines. "he tsunami took seven hous to hit omalia. umata, and Indonesian island was hit ve$ 0uickl$ especiall$ in the nothen e!ions. "he east coast of India and i ?anka wee hit somewhee %etween @A minutes to two and a half hous late. "hailand was hit aound two hous late despite the fact that it was close to the epicente"he eason fo this is %ecause the wate was moe shallow in the *ndaman ea, which is o the westen coast. "he eath0uake which caused the tsunami aected man$ counties even %e$ond outheast *sia. "hese othe counties included i ?anka, India, Mala$sia, "hailand, M$anma, the Maldives, e$chelles, omalia, "anania and outh *fica. *ustalia and 'uope had a la!e num%e of thei citiens in the e!ion at the time of the disaste, alon! with man$ othe counties. "hee wee &3 wedish people and 3@ Geman people lost in the disaste.
2&
T-UNDERST"R' hat Is * "hundestomE "hundestoms ae some of the most fi!htenin! and poweful stoms to hit the wold. * thundestom can %e known as a li!htnin! stom, a thundeshowe o even an electical stom. * thundestom is one of the most poweful stoms to hit and it foms when the weathe is tu%ulent. "his is when the wind picks up !eatl$ and ain is pesent, thou!h this doesn/t alwa$s need to %e pesent. oweve, li!htnin! and the noise of thunde ceates the thundestoms and if thee ae cetain t$pes of clouds in the sk$ O cumulonim%us, then it could esult in thundestoms. =n most occasions, thundestoms will %in! on heav$ ain falls and ston! winds. oweve, these ae the most common t$pes of weathe associated with thundestoms %ut thee ae othe t$pes of weathe that can accompan$ a thundestom. "hin!s such as hail, sleet and snow ae all common factos to pesent itself duin! a thundestom. ome thundestoms can otate, if the$ ae 0uite sevee, then the$ can ceate supecells which ae some of the wost thundestoms. ow "hundestoms *e *e 7eatedE * thundestom can %e ceated %ecause of a shap o apid su!e of moist and wam ai. oweve, as the wam and moist ai moves upwads into the ai, it will cool down and condenses. hen the ai does this, the ai will fom new cumulonim%us clouds. "hese cumulonim%us 2
clouds can in fact each hu!e hei!hts of almost 2A kilometes, sometimes much moe than that. =nce the ai eaches a cetain point, at the dew point, ice and wate doplets ae !oin! to fom and stat fallin! towads the eath and the eath/s suface. It falls fom a la!e distance; howeve, once the doplets fall, the$ will %e la!e %ecause the$ -oin up with othe doplets. =nce the doplets ae fallin!, the$ will ceate a new downdaft of the ai which will spead out vastl$ acoss the suface. "his ceates winds O ston! winds which coincide with thundestoms. •
ail
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>ain
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ton! inds
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now
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leet
hee 7an "hundestom +omE * thundestom can %e fomed o ceated in almost an$ location aound the wold. "hou!h, the counties that ae mid latitude O this is when the ai is moist and wam %ut comes into contact with cool ai. "hundestoms can fom an$whee if the ai is wam and moist and comes into coole ai. "hou!h, most thundestoms can %e ve$ sevee and can cause a lot of dama!e to landscapes and populated aeas also. "hou!h, most dama!e that comes fom a thundestom is due to the la!e hailstones which fall with the stom and 26
the down %ust winds. "hou!h, on occasion, thee have %een ash oods to cause a lot of dama!e. "hou!h, with some thundestom fomations, the$ can %e ve$ ston! o O supe cells as the$ can also %e known as, and cause wate spouts and even tonadoes. "hee ae some instances which ae not !oin! to %e too sevee and won/t %e an$thin! moe than a small ain showe. ome thundestom cells which ae ston!e than avea!e stoms can %e #ft$ times the ene!$ of an a %om%.
"he Dieent "$pes of "hundestoms "hee ae howeve fou dieent t$pes of thundestoms includin!; 1. upecells which ae the most poweful thundestoms availa%le 2. * sin!le cell which ae smalle and not too sevee 3. * multi cell cluste which is ston!e than a sin!le cell stom &. Multi cell lines which ae -ust %elow a supe cell "he supe cells ae the ston!est of thundestoms that fom; and if the thundestoms ae pesent in the topics, it could conti%ute to huicanes. oweve, thee ae also d$ thundestoms which don/t cause an$ ain, hail o snow fall, %ut the$ can cause wild#e out%eaks. "his happens %ecause of the li!htnin! that occus; thee mi!ht 29
not %e an$ hail o ain %ut li!htnin! still occus and causes wild#es. Man$ weathe o%seves use thin!s such as weathe stations and weathe ada to help keep a close e$e ove pendin! weathe stoms includin! thunde. Inteestin! thou!h, it has %een known fo some thundestoms, can %e ceated on %oth Fenus and upite and not -ust hee on 'ath. "he 7$cle of a "hundestom "he c$cle of a thundestom #stl$ stats o with wam ai. "he wam ai needs to have a lowe densit$ than coole ai %ecause the ai will stat to ise actuall$ within the cool ai. hen this happens, clouds will stat to fom and the$ will %ecome a little wame %ecause inside the clouds, it will now ca$ moistue. "he moistue will condense and when it does, it will elease ene!$ out; howeve, what this does is to cool the ai of the condensed ai %ut the suoundin! ai will sta$ the same. If thee is insta%ilit$ in the atmosphee then it will ceate cumulonim%us clouds and that helps to ceate thunde and li!htnin!. oweve, fo thundestoms to fom, the$ need moistue, unsta%le ai mass and a liftin! foce such as heat to ceate a thundestom. "hee ae dieent sta!es to ceate a thundestom. "hee is the developin! sta!e, then the matue sta! and #nall$ the dissipation sta!e. "hou!h, the thundestoms can va$ fom sie %ut fo the avea!e stom, it is aound 2& kilometes. "he peiod of time in which the thundestoms can develop is an$thin! fom thit$ minutes. 2<
hen the thundestom hits the cumulus sta!e, o the developin! sta!e; a mass of moistue will %e taken up towads the atmosphee. hen the moistue !oes into the ai, the wind will %e foced upwads into the atmosphee and will help to develop the thundestom. oweve, the moistue will stat coolin! and this will fom wate dops %ecause of the cool tempeatues at a hi!h altitude. ith the matue sta!e, the ai which is now wam will ise futhe up and will continue to do so until it cannot ise an$ futhe and the ai %ecomes at its wamest point. hen it eaches this point, the ai will %e foced out a vast aea and will stat to ceate an anvil shape ceatin! the cumulonim%us clouds. "he wate dops will then stat to !ow la!e %ecause the$ will -oin up with one anothe. "he$ will now %e heavie and la!e and will stat to feee into ice paticles. "hou!h, as the ice falls, it will %ecome, o athe melt, into ain. ith the #nal o dissipatin! sta!e, the thundestom is ceated. * downdaft will wok up and hit the !ound 0uickl$ and spead out vastl$ also. "his can %e known as a down%ust and the cool ai will then cut the inow and stop the thundestom also. "he thundestom will dissipate. "he supe cell stoms ae the %i!!est and the most sevee stoms to hit. "his is when the supe cell stoms have dieent up and down dafts causin! the supe cell. It can stetch out to a vast aea and can cause a lot of devastation and dama!e. hen the supe cells ae
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ceated, it will mean that the stoms will %e accompanied with sevee weathe.
S"LAR FLARES
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"he de#nition of a sola ae is a ve$ sudden, intense, and fast chan!e in %i!htness. "hese e4plosions o e-ections happen at dieent intensities and fe0uencies, fom seveal pe da$ to one eve$ week. "hee ae times when the sun !ives of ve$ few o low5intensit$ aes, duin! its minimum sta!e of the c$cle. "he sola aes will !ain in intensit$ until the hei!ht of the c$cle.
hat causes sola aesE hen ma!netic ene!$ %uilds up in the sola atmosphee and needs to %e eleased, a sola ae occus. In a t$pical ae, thee ae thee sta!esK
1. "he elease of ma!netic ene!$ is activated in the #st sta!e8the pecuso sta!e. In this sta!e, soft 45 a$ emission will %e detected. 2. In the impulsive sta!e, electons and potons ae acceleated to ene!ies well ove 1 MeF (1 million electon volts). ad 45a$s, adio waves, and !amma a$s ae emitted duin! this sta!e. 3. "he deca$ sta!e is the thid and #nal sta!e. Duin! this sta!e, the slow %uild up and deca$ of soft 45a$s ae detected.
"he sta!es of sola aes va$ in len!th and thee is no elia%le wa$ to pedict thei intensit$ o duation. *n$ of
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these sta!es can take as little as a few seconds to as much as an hou in len!th. 'ven thou!h sola aes will t$picall$ happen on aeas of the sun whee the ma!netic #elds ae hi!he, it/s still not entiel$ clea what causes the aes to happen. cientists ae still unsue as to how the ma!netic ene!$ is tansfomed, o what causes the acceleation of the paticles. ow sola aes ae detected ola aes cannot %e seen %$ the naked e$e and this shouldn/t %e attempted. pecialied instuments ae used to detect the aes. =ptical telescopes can %e used to see aes. "hee ae also adio telescopes which captue the wavelen!ths of sola aes. pace telescopes ae also used to captue ima!es of aes and tansmit the data to eath. hile most sola aes !o undetected %$ most people, the ston!e aes have %een known to knock out communications and electical s$stems. ola aes ae what cause the auoa %oealis and the auoa austalis. "hese %eautiful li!ht shows ae the esult of ene!etic paticles in the ma!netosphee. Dan!es of sola aes Because thee is no wa$ to pedict sola aes, the !eatest dan!e is to astonauts in space. "he adiation fom the aes can aect an$ astonauts outside of thei ships much faste and ston!e than an$one on eath. "he sola ae with the la!est concentation of potons (diectl$ measued to date) happened on anua$ 2A, 2AA. *t the time, astonauts had onl$ 1 minutes to !et to shelte. 32
=the po%lems caused %$ sola aes include the o%ital deca$ of low5o%itin! satellites, intefeence with shot5 wave adio communication, and dama!e to spacecaft electonics. In !eneal, the sola winds caused %$ sola aes can aect the eath/s ma!netosphee and ceate adiation haads fo astonauts, cosmonauts, and spacecaft. +amous sola aes "he #st sola ae to %e o%seved was also the most poweful ae eve detected. =n eptem%e 1, 1<@, a Bitish astonome, >ichad 7ain!ton and an o%seve, >ichad od!son epoted the me!a ae. In this event, the ae was visi%le to the naked e$e and caused %oealis to %e seen as fa as awaii and 7u%a. "he ae set tele!aph wies on #e and left a tace of nitates and %e$llium51A, which can still %e measued toda$ in Geenland. *s ecentl$ as 2AA3, the la!est moden5time ae was detected and measued. Because it satuated the devices used to detect the intensit$ of sola aes, it/s possi%le that the classi#cation of the ae is much hi!he than ecoded. "his sola ae ena%led astonomes to set the %a hi!he, knowin! that the aes can !et that much ston!e.
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FL""D hat is a +loodE "he de#nition of a ood is land coveed %$ wate that is not usuall$ coveed %$ wate. "his means that an$ time a ive, lake, o othe %od$ of wate oveows its %anks, it/s technicall$ oodin!. oweve, most people think of the moe catastophic t$pes of oods, as those ae the t$pe that cause widespead dama!e and loss of life. Nnless a ood causes some kind of #nancial dama!e o loss of life to humans o livestock, it/s not consideed a si!ni#cant ood. "hee ae a num%e of causes fo oods, and the most common wanin! is that oods can happen an$whee it ains. ust %ecause an aea has no histo$ of oodin! doesn/t mean it can/t %e ooded at some point. ome oods have happened in aeas whee thee has %een no oodin! fo hundeds of $eas, while some oodin! happens on a $eal$ %asis in some aeas and counties. In !eneal, oodin! is had to pepae fo, thou!h ood
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maps ae dawn up and in some cases, measues ae taken to pevent heav$ oodin! in the futue.
Floodin! causes
+loods cause so much dama!e %ecause the$/e unpedicta%le and man$ thin!s can cause oods. "hee ae ash oods, which happen 0uickl$ and ush thou!h. "hen thee ae slow oods which %uild up ove a peiod of time. 'ithe wa$, it/s ve$ had to pedict e4actl$ how much dama!e will %e done, how to %est stop the ow, and most of all, how to pevent it fom happenin! a!ain.
Thou!h there are &ore causes or .oods/ these are the &ost co&&on
Oeav$ ainfallK +loodin! fom ainfall !eneall$ happens when moe ain falls than the soil, ives, and steams can a%so%. "illed #elds %ecome swamps, ceatin! a mudd$ ood which moves la!e amounts of sediment. hen ives and steams can no lon!e hold wate, the$ stat to ood thei %anks as the wate is caied futhe down to the ne4t %od$ of wate. oil that is soaked can no lon!e a%so% wate and if the ives ae alead$ full, the wate continues to %uild up. =ften, oodin! happens on foen o concete !ound and the ain cannot %e a%so%ed. =ften, the %uild up of wate and de%is can #ll up !uttes and daina!e pipes makin! it had fo the ood wates to ow feel$ into the %od$ of wate. 3
OMeltin! snow and iceK Because snow and ice coves la!e patches of !ound, as it melts, it satuates the !ound as it ows into ives and steams. "he ives ae often thawin! as well, makin! fo a hi!he level of wate as it is. 7om%ine the meltin! with the ains that usuall$ come in spin!, and oodin! is likel$. 'speciall$ duin! lon!, hash wintes, snow and ice can %uild up, makin! fo a la!e amount of wate needin! to dain out in a elativel$ shot amount of time. ODestuctionK "hee ae seveal catastophic causes fo ash oods. "hese ae often caused %$ a dam o levee %eakin! and causin! hu!e amounts of wate to come ushin! down onto the plains. "he destuction of a dam o levee is often %ou!ht on %$ anothe natual disaste, such as a huicane, c$clone, o eath0uake. hen a dam o levee can/t hold the wate %ack an$moe, wate that is meant to %e stoed o held %ack suddenl$ cashes down on whateve is in its wa$, often causin! incedi%le dama!e in its wake. =the natual disastes that can cause oods ae eath0uakes o volcanic euptions which %in! tsunamis. uicanes and c$clones often cause oodin! as the la!e amounts of wate can/t %e a%so%ed o the fast winds cause waves to cash and ood coastal aeas. O>ive o%stuctionsK "hee ae times when development means chan!in! the natual couse of ives. In ode to clea land fo cops o housin!, ives ae C!uided thou!h a dieent couse, often ceatin! conditions fo oodin!. In man$ aeas whee this happens e!ulal$, the 36
ives ae !iven %ack the land, so that e4ta wate can ow easil$. oweve, thee ae othe times when a ive !ets %locked %$ la!e sections of ice, de%is, o landslides. "he %uildup of wate aound these aeas can cause oodin! and then ash oods if the o%stuction !ives wa$. Fe$ ael$ animal ha%itats, such as %eave dams can cause ive oodin!. Flood da&a!es
Because so much of the dama!e inicted %$ oods has lon!5lastin! conse0uences, oods ae amon! the moe catastophic of natual disastes. ate can cause pemanent dama!e and cleanup afte a ood includes !ettin! id of hu!e amounts of mud, de%is, and even livestock cacasses. "hee is often loss of life as a esult of heav$ oodin!, causin! emotional tauma fo those who have !one thou!h it. 'ven if people have not %een diectl$ aected %$ the loss of life, losin! popet$, houses, o land can cause ph$siolo!ical dama!e. 'speciall$ if the people aected ae una%le to e%uild due to the houses %ein! too %adl$ dama!e, fam land %ein! inundated with salt wate, o lack of esouces to e%uild, man$ #nd the ecove$ to %e moe than -ust ph$sical. Dama!e to popet$ duin! oodin! is often e4tensive. Fehicles should not %e diven thou!h ooded aeas, %ut often the$ ae cau!ht unawae, ceatin! the need fo eplacement o e4tensive epais. ouses that have %een 39
ooded mildl$ mi!ht suvive with -ust a !ood cleanin!, %ut %i! oods often ende homes unliva%le without massive epais o estuctuin!. Man$ pesonal items ae lost foeve, such as pape documents, photo!aphs, clothin!, and household items. +unitue and woodwok ae often dama!ed %e$ond epai and must %e eplaced entiel$. In sevee oods, communication s$stems can fail due to lines %ein! %oken. Powe is often hindeed if powe !eneatos and tansmission is in some wa$ desto$ed o dama!ed. Gettin! powe estoed afte a ood is challen!in! as wate tansmits electicit$ and can hut an$one standin! in wate. If sewa!e o wate s$stems ae compomised duin! oodin!, wate supplies can %e contaminated. "his can esult in wate%one diseases such as t$phoid o cholea amon! othes. ?and that has %e satuated often cannot !ow new cops fo some time. If the wate was saline, such as in oodin! nea the sea, land will not %e a%le to %e cultivated fo some $eas. ?oss of livestock can also esult in fames losin! thei livelihood and needin! to stat ove with $oun! animals means losin! the po#t that would have come duin! that time. *n$ livelihood that depends on famin! o anchin! can %e seiousl$ aected %$ oods as fams and anches often need to %e nea a %od$ of wate in ode to live. Preparation
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ome pecautions can %e taken, such as ceatin! ood maps and wokin! with natue to pevent e4cessive oodin!. In some aeas levees have %een %uilt, %ut these ae not entiel$ ood poof. Moden advancements in ood pediction ena%les people to %e moe pepaed. "hese pedictions won/t %e a%le to pevent the oods, %ut ena%le people and livestock to !et to safet$ in time. +lood wanin!s ae taken ve$ seiousl$ as lives depend on it.
EART-0UA1E 'ath0uakes, tem%los, 0uakes, temosK "hese names ae used to desci%e the sudden elease of ene!$ in the eath/s cust causin! movement. +istl$, lets !et to know some tems that ae associated with eath0uakesK Earth*ua+e( * sudden and violent movement of a potion of the eath/s cust, and the seies of vi%ations that follow. Earths crust( "his is the solid thin la$e that coves the outside of the eath. "o put it in pespective, think of it as the skin on the outside of an apple.
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Plate( * plate is a section of the eaths cust. Plates slide alon! eithe %eside, ove o unde each othe, causin! fiction and pessue %etween the plates. 'a!nitude( "he amount of ene!$ eleased duin! an eath0uake, which is computed fom the measuement of seismic waves. Fault( "he !apin! hole which can occu as a esult of an eath0uake. "his hole can %e the sie of a small cack to the sie of an ol$mpic swimmin! pool o la!e. Fault 2ones( hee !iant ock sla%s that ae made up of the eaths cust collide and slide a!ainst each othe e!ulal$, causin! the land to %e unsta%le. Seis&ic )a%es( "hese waves ae the vi%ations and movement that tavel fom the eath0uake fault at ve$ hi!h speeds. "he vi%ations of these waves ae what cause the most destuction duin! the eath0uakes.
"his !i!antic elease of ene!$ ceates what ae known as Lseismic waves/. "hese waves cause the one of the most teif$in! and destuctive acts of natue on the planet. "hese natual phenomena ae sudden, violent shakes of the eath that ae caused %$ the %eakin! and movin! of the ock in the eaths cust as it eleases stained ene!$ that has %uilt up ove a lon! peiod of time. 'ath0uakes occu when the ene!$ has %uilt up so lon! that is snaps and cause smashin! and cashin! unde the eaths suface and %etween the plates. "he Lseismic activit$/ of an aea holds efes to the fe0uenc$, t$pe and sie of eath0uakes that ae e4peienced ove a peiod of time. +e0uenc$ means the sten!th of the eath0uake. &A
'easure&ents o earth*ua+es
Measuement of eath0uakes ae measued usin! eadin!s fom instuments called seismometes. cientists use the Lma!nitude atin!/ to measue eath0uakes. "his atin! measues the sten!th of the seismic waves and the peiod of time the$ lasted fo. *n eath0uake measuin! %etween 3 and on the ma!nitude atin! is consideed nomal. hen the$ ae %etween 3 and thee usuall$ is not too much dama!e done, %ut the temos can %e felt in the !ound. hen the ma!nitude atin! is %etween the num%es and 9, this is e!aded as modeate to ston!. 'ath0uakes of this ma!nitude do not cause a hu!e amount of dama!e o loss of lives, %ut can leave some destuction in its tail, like cacks in the !ound, landslides. Ma-o eath0uakes ae ated %etween 9 and <, and < o moe is a seiousl$ la!e natual disaste. "he la!est eath0uake eve ecoded was sli!htl$ ove @ on the ma!nitude atin!. "his eath0uake occued in nothen apan in 2A11, killin! hundeds of people and desto$s %uildin!s within the aea. "his eath0uake also caused a 23 foot tsunami and was followed %$ moe than #ft$ afteshocks. 'ath0uakes can cause man$ other natural disasters once the$ stike, hee ae thei names and a %ief desciption of eachK •
Tsuna&i O *e !iant sea waves that ae poduced %$ the sudden violent movement of the eaths plates of volcanos unde the wate. "he time peiods of these waves can last up to an hou, causin! massive devastation as seen in i ?anka in 2AA&. &1
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Fires O +ies can %e caused when eath0uakes dama!e electical powe stations o !as lines. "hese #es can %e impossi%le to stop sometimes. In 1@A6 in an +ancisco, #e caused %$ an eath0uake killed moe people than the eath0uake itself. Landslides and a%alanches O 'ath0uakes can poduce unsta%le slopes which can lead to the movin! of the !ound, which is called a landslide. ?andslides can cause seve dama!e afte an eath0uake occus, fo e4ample it can cash down homes, cas of even people. Floods 3 * ood is an oveow of wate that eaches land. "his occus when a lake, dam o ive oveows due to the movement of land due to an eath0uake o landslide. +loods can have devastatin! eects on teain, animal life and human life. -u&an and ani&al death 3 =f couse, eath0uake can cause sevee in-u$ and loss of life fo %oth humans and animals. Popeties can also sue, and the collapse of %uildin!s ae e4pected when hi!hl$ measued eath0uakes occu. "he aftemath of an eath0uake can cause disease and lack of %asic necessities fo people.
onclusion
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atual disastes, howeve poweful and sudden the$ ma$ %e, ae not incapa%le of %ein! !uaded a!ainst. "he moden technolo!$ has !iven enou!h !ad!ets to people fo foecastin!, and lessenin! if not totall$ peventin! heav$ dama!es inicted upon %$ the natual disastes. =nl$ e0uiement is that people must take inteest in !ettin! as much awaeness as possi%le a%out the safe!uad measues. It is also impotant to see that we do not conti%ute to natual disastes %$ pollutin! the envionment and %$ not livin! in esonance with natue. atual disastes wee few and ae in the past, %ut has %ecome moe fe0uent and devastatin! ecentl$. "his is mainl$ due to the Moden man indul!in! in all sots of pactices which ae a!ainst natual laws. e human %ein!s must lean how to espect atue and should not meddle with the foces of atue. If we do, it will %in! calamit$ soone o late. "his is one lesson that we have not leant so fa. 'ven the moden scientist is sometimes %lind to this idea . If $ou want to cut down the foests and %uild houses, thee will %e famine. It ains too much in some othe pat of the count$ o !lo%e esultin! in oods. 7limate chan!es happen in the nomal couse, %ut when we tinke with atue we see that climate chan!es ae unusual and monsoon advances ealie than nomal o late than nomal months and this esults in disaste a!ain. 'ven the plants stat !ivin! !ains, pulses o fuits out of couse and the 0ualit$ of the poducts ae !eatl$ aected. Man sues a!ain.
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