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DISASTER FACTS & FIGURES Both natural and man-made disasters are becoming more common all around the world. El Nino and La Nina events impact billions of people since these climate extremes disrupt jet streams and regions of high and low pressure. These disruptions can potentially increase or decrease weather-related disasters such as extreme heat and cold, floods, hurricanes and thunderstorms. According to the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration’s Pacific Marine Environmental Laboratory Tropical Atmosphere Ocean project, El Nino happens when tropical Pacific Ocean trade winds die out and ocean temperatures become unusually warm. La Nina occurs when the trade winds blow unusually hard and sea temperatures become colder than normal. These warm and cold phases are referred to as El Nino/Southern Oscillation, or ENSO, which has a period of roughly 3-7 years. Although ENSO originates in the tropical Pacific system, it has effects on patterns of weather all over the world.’ El Nino (warm episodes) occur about every 4-5 years and can last up to 12 to 18 months. La Nina (cold episodes) conditions recur every few years and typically last 9 to 12 months but can persist for as long as 2 years. There are also periods where the system is neither warm nor cold (called neutral conditions). Even though there is still much to learn about these systems and their impacts on the global community, ENSO forecasts can help individuals, businesses, and governments prepare for these events. To learn more about NOAA c Pacific Marine Environmental Laboratory Tropical Atmosphere Ocean project visit www.pmel.noaa.gov/tao In addition to the climate extremes mentioned above, some key elements in the increasing numbers of worldwide disasters include: • Global warming and cooling, earth’s crust moving, etc. • Larger cities are sprawling into high-risk zones • World population is nearly 6 billion and growing causing global water consumption to increase • Humans damaging our natural resources (e.g. pollution, destroying rain forests, coral reefs, wetlands, etc.) The World Meteorlogical Organization has released evidence that the 1990s were the warmest decade globally since instrumental measurements started in the 1 860s with 1998 still being the warmest year on record. GENERAL FACTS & FIGURES ON DISASTERS There are many unknowns but as our violent planet’s surface continues to shift and move it will continue to alter sea levels, food and water supplies and climate conditions around the world. According to the Worldwatch Institute, 10 million people died as a result of natural catastrophes in the 20th century. The costs of weather-related disasters in just the United States alone average $1 billion per week! Year after year it appears the most frequent natural disasters are windstorms and floods, which combined usually account for 80%-90% of the worldwide economic losses. Every year hundreds of millions of people worldwide are evacuated or driven from their homes due to natural disasters. According to Munich Re Group, (a German reinsurance company that monitors worldwide natural disasters) the following summarizes major losses around the world:
* Includes estimated tsunami victims as of March 2005. Please note the above figures do not include economic losses caused by smaller natural disasters that occur daily around the world. Also note, the 2004 tsunami potentially killed more people in that one major event than the previous 6 years combined. This dramatic statistic proves how devastating disasters can be in highly populated areas. Now let’s look at some facts and figures on specific types of disasters to get a better understanding of how they impact the world. FACTS & FIGURES BY TYPE OF DISASTER Avalanches, Landslides & Mudflows Statistics show there are about 1 million snow avalanches worldwide each year. Flooding in Venezuela triggered landslides and mudflows that washed away entire villages and mountain slopes claiming more than 30,000 lives in 1999. Peru experienced one of their worst landslide disasters when a 3-million- ton block of ice split from a melting glacier creating a destructive wave of ice, mud and rocks that traveled 10 miles (16 km) in just 7 minutes killing more than 4,000 people. Earthquakes The U.S. Geological Survey estimates there are 500,000 detectable earth quakes in the world each year -- only 100,000 are felt and 100 cause damage. The world’s deadliest earthquake on record hit central China in 1557 killing an estimated 830,000 people. Scientists are finding the Cascadia Subduction zone along the Northwest coastline (from southern British Columbia to Northern California) could produce mega-quakes similar to the 9.0 that rocked Indonesia late-2004. Some of the strongest earthquakes in U.S. history (est 7.9-8.2) occurred on the New Madrid fault (general area between St. Louis and Memphis) back in 1811-1812. This area still experiences about 200 earthquakes a year. Two of the most violent earthquakes in North America were in British Columbia’s Queen Charlotte Island (8.3) and in Anchorage Alaska (9.2). Aftershocks may be felt for several days, weeks, months or even years depending on the force of a major earthquake. Extreme Heat According to NOAA’s National Climatic Data Center, 80% of the contiguous United States was in moderate-to-extreme drought back in July 1934. Today less than half a billion people live in water-stressed countries but projections indicate by 2025 that number could increase to 3 billion! Fire At least 80% of all fire deaths occur in residences -- meaning homes, apartments, condos and mobile homes. Fire kills more Americans every year than all natural disasters combined and careless smoking is the leading cause of fire deaths. More forests burned in 1997 than at any time in recorded history. According to a report issued by the World Wide Fund for Nature, 80% of those fires were set deliberately to clear land for planting or development. Floods The year 2000 floods in Mozambique left nearly 1 million people homeless and affected hundreds of thousands of people again in 2001. More than 90% of declared disasters include flooding. The Worldwatch Institute reports 13 of the world’s 19 megacities (cities with over 10 million people) are in coastal zones -- and 2 billion (or 1 in 3) people live within 60 miles (100 km) of a coastline. Flash floods can cause walls of water reaching heights of 20 feet (6 m). Hailstorms In 1991, Calgary Alberta experienced the worst hailstorm in Canadian history when a 30-minute storm caused about $400 million in damage. On May 22, 1986 an unusual killer hailstorm in China’s Sichuan Province left 9,000 people injured and 100 dead. The largest known hailstone ever measured in the U.S. was found in Aurora, Nebraska on June 22, 2003 with a record 7-inch (17.78 cm) diameter and a circumference of 18.75 inches (over 47 cm)! Hazardous Materials As many as 500,000 products pose physical or health hazards and can be defined as “hazardous materials” and over 1,000 new synthetic chemicals are introduced each year. Each year about 400 million metric tons of hazardous wastes are generated worldwide. According to FEMA, varying quantities of hazardous materials are manufactured, used, or stored at an estimated 4.5 million facilities in the U.S. Hurricanes, Cyclones & Typhoons Japan, China, the Philippines and other parts of Southeast and East Asia average about 20 typhoons a year. An average of 5 hurricanes strike the U.S. each year and over 75 million Americans live in hurricane areas. Nine out of 10 hurricane deaths are due to storm surge (a rise in the sea level caused by strong winds). Storm surges can get up to 20 feet (6 m) high and 50 miles (80 km) wide! One of the worst cyclone disasters in recorded history struck Bangladesh and India killing between 500,000 and 1 million people back in 1970. Nuclear Power Plants / Nuclear Incident The most immediate danger from an accident at a nuclear power plant is exposure to high levels of radiation. Winds and weather could possibly impact people up to 200 miles (320 km) away from the accident site. The April 1986 explosion at Ukraine’s Chernobyl nuclear power plant burned for 10 days releasing about 5% of the radioactive reactor core into the atmosphere exposing millions of people to varying doses of radiation. According to the World Nuclear Association, about 20 million packages of all sizes containing radioactive materials are routinely transported world wide annually on public roads, railways and ships in secure containers. There has never been any accident in which a Type-B container with highly radioactive material has been breached or has leaked. Terrorism According to the International Atomic Energy Agency, there have been over 650 confirmed incidents of illicit trafficking in nuclear and radioactive materials worldwide since 1993. Nearly 100 such incidents occurred in 2004 alone, 11 of which involved nuclear material. The U.S. Department of Defense estimates that as many as 26 nations may possess chemical agents and/or weapons and an additional 12 may be seeking to develop them. (Per FEMA web site as of October 22, 2004) The Central Intelligence Agency reports that at least 10 countries are believed to possess or be conducting research on biological agents for weaponization. (Per FEM4 web site as of October 22, 2004) Thunderstorms & Lightning On average, the U.S. has 100,000 thunderstorms each year. At any given moment, nearly 1,800 thunderstorms can be in progress over the face of the earth! It is a myth that lightning never strikes the same place twice -- it often strikes the same site several times in the course of one storm. Tornadoes The U.S. has more tornadoes than any other place in the world and averages 1,200 tornado sightings each year. According to NOAA 2004 had a record 1 717 tornado reports in the U.S. In 1974, during a 21-hour period, 148 tornadoes ripped through 13 states and 1 province between Alabama and Ontario, Canada killing 315 people. Tornadoes can last for several seconds or more than an hour, but most last less than 10 minutes. A waterspout is a tornado over water but isn’t recorded until it hits land. The force of a tornado can strip asphalt chunks off roads, rip clothes off people and pluck feathers off chickens. Tsunamis A tsunami is a series of huge, destructive waves usually caused by an earthquake, volcanic eruption, landslide or meteorite. A tsunami is NOT a tidal wave it has nothing to do with the tides! The 2004 seaquake-generated tsunami that slammed 12 countries in the Indian Ocean is the deadliest on record with the death toll exceeding 280,000 people. (Per WHO web site as of April 10, 2005) The West Coast / Alaska Tsunami Warning Center reports a 1958 landslide-generated tsunami in Lituya Bay, Alaska produced a 1,722 foot (525 m) wave! Volcanoes More than 65 active or potentially active volcanoes exist in the U.S. and over 40 of them are in Alaska! According to the Smithsonian Institution’s Global Volcanism Program, about 1,300 volcanoes have erupted in the last 10,000 years and should be considered “historically active”. This does include the large number of eruptions from an estimated 1 million young volcanoes on the ocean’s floor which pump out roughly 3/4 of the lava reaching the earth’s surface. The “Ring of Fire” that encircles the Pacific Ocean has about 600 historically active volcanoes. Volcanic eruptions can hurl hot rocks easily 20 miles (32 km) or more. An erupting volcano can also trigger tsunamis, flash floods, lightning, earthquakes, rock falls, landslides and mudflows. Winter Storms / Extreme Cold The leading cause of death during winter storms is from automobile or other transportation accidents. Cold weather puts an added strain on the heart. Exhaustion or heart attacks caused by overexertion (like shoveling snow or pushing a car) are the second most likely cause of winter storm-related deaths. The risk of hypothermia is greatest among elderly persons who literally “freeze to death” in their own homes. The Canadian ice storm of 1998 created an economic loss of almost $3 billion with massive power outages affecting over 4 million people! PREV: Introduction © CRSociety.net |