OVERVIEW OF NATURAL DISASTERS (Meno's … · OVERVIEW OF NATURAL DISASTERS ... It is indeed the case that by studying mega-disasters, ... hurricane centers or tsunami institutes

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OVERVIEW OF NATURAL DISASTERS"How will you cope with a problem when you don't know what the problem will be" (Meno's Paradox)

Disasters occur when natural, technical, or human-induced phenomena impact on vulnerablesocio-economic systems. By definition, a disaster can only occur in a constructed or builtenvironment where human activity has taken place. In other words, a disaster cannot occur in anuninhabited area that has never been touched by humans, or as Loretti (2000) puts it: "if peopleare not involved, there is no disaster." There is some controversy between sociologists and non-sociologists over whether research ought to focus on people first or the source of the disaster first(this being mostly a theoretical debate in the emergency management field), but it is generallyaccepted that the study of disaster sheds light on important processes of social order and cohesion. Disaster reduction is a moral imperative because communities suffer and people suffer. There areimportant socio-economic benefits from disaster reduction, not the least of which are opportunitiesto reduce the development gap between rich and poor nations. These objectives, in addition to anyglobal perspective which conceives of the planet as victim, means that a disaster anywhere is adisaster everywhere. Also, of course, mega-disasters hold the potential for having "WMD-likeeffects" around the world. The best way to understand disasters is to read descriptions of them,and/or look at pictures. We've provided some pictures, but in addition, the reader's attention isdirected to the many hyperlinks in this lecture which provide valuable reading, and of specialsignificance in this regard are those disasters which hold "classic" status and/or hold records inmore than one category. It is indeed the case that by studying mega-disasters, one can learn a lotabout plain, ordinary disasters.

Other than obtaining a good, solid, contextual background of individual disasters, the studentshould also be concerned with the categorization problem in this field. It may seem academic, butthere is a need for serious theoretical work over issues as to whether "lumping" or "splitting" isbetter for categorizing different kinds of disasters, for analytical and hypothesis testing purposes. There are many ways to categorize different kinds of disasters. One way is provided by Alexander(2002) as follows:

Natural disasters are naturally occurring, and examples are earthquake, volcanic eruption,

hurricane, tornado, ice storm, flood, flashflood, landslide, wildfire, insect infestation, and disease

outbreaks. These kinds of disasters may be further subclassified as meteorological, oceanographic

(tsunami or sea storm), hydrological, or biological events.

Technological disasters are those associated with technological advances, and examples are

explosives, unexploded ordnance, toxic spills, emissions of radio-isotopes, and transportation

accidents. Other examples include: hazmat incidents involving carcinogens, mutagens, or heavy

metals; dangerous processes such as structural failure of devices and machines or installations and

plants, such as bridges, dams, mines, power plants, pipelines, high rise buildings, vehicles, and

trains

Social disasters are incidents primarily involving social unrest, and examples are hijacking, riots,

demonstrations, crowd rushes, and stampedes, although terrorist incidents as well as bombings,

shootings, and hostage taking tend to be classified in this category

Another way of classifying disasters is to distinguish between natural ("Acts of God") andaccidental (man-made). This is the method used by Hough (2004) in his global security approach,and it will be the one used here. It is customary in the field of security studies to have an almostexclusive focus on accidental disasters because they are the most preventable. It is also customaryfor security studies to argue that safety ought to be more securitized. However, natural disasters



are also preventable if the right machines are in place and working, but this technological "fix"presupposes a "vertical" approach to the problem. The reader might remember or know fromprevious discussions in health security about "horizontal" versus "vertical" approaches. In anutshell, a horizontal approach tries to address the root, broad causes of a problem, and a verticalapproach tries to zero in on the specific manifestations of a problem. In disaster security, asopposed to health security, one is more likely to find vertical approaches taken, as evident by theexistence of specialized agencies and organizations which zero in on just one type of disaster, likehurricane centers or tsunami institutes. The field is very specialized.

The study of accidental disasters exposes as much, if not more, insight into the failings of socio-political institutions as natural disasters. The study of both is important because as "classic"disasters such as the Titanic disaster, the Chernobyl meltdown, and the Bhopal disaster haveshown, unforeseen dangers almost always result from a combination of human and machinefallibility. Even "horizontalists" in the global security field believe the socio-political aspects ofglobal disaster management can be adequately addressed in technical ways. Nature's contribution,in this sense, can be seen as contributing to an understanding of the deep, structural deficiencies insocieties which make a disaster a disaster. For example, the field is inundated by research efforts toconstruct rating systems and early warning programs. These systems and programs are notdiscussed here, nor is the topic of nascent (emerging) international disaster law. Those topics arebest left for other discussions in other lectures in other courses, and for now, it is simply suggestedthe reader take a look at the global ISDR organization or the sub-global EADRCC for an overviewof efforts toward better coordinated warning systems and programs.

THE TOP TEN NATURAL DISASTERS

1. Windstorms are the #1 natural disaster (this listreflecting a rank order in terms of global death rates). InNorth America, windstorms are called hurricanes. In East Asia,they are called typhoons. Elsewhere, they are calledcyclones. All three terms are words for the same phenomenon. A windstorm which occurs inland is called a tornado, andtornadoes do not really have any "season," but may have atropical component in their causality, like the other three types.Hurricanes do spawn tornadoes. The deadliest part of awindstorm is usually the storm surge, associated with suddenflooding, but in Florida, building codes require protectionagainst 140 mph winds because of deadly wind borne debris(codes require 100 mph elsewhere). A massive windstorm killed300,000 people in Bangladesh during 1970. Some of the world'sdeadliest tornados have also happened in Bangladesh, but thedeadliest tornado outbreak of all was the 1974 Super Outbreakacross the midwestern United States. Among other windstorms,the costliest was Hurricane Katrina of 2005, and the deadliestone was the Great Hurricane of 1780, followed by HurricaneMitch of 1998. Indigenous trees help protect againstwindstorms as do structures with more integrity thanmanufactured homes. Most windstorm prediction uses theperfect-prog (perfect prognosis) approach which basically



assesses whether a wind passes a certain threshold three times.There is no way to predict a tornado, and the US has more ofthem than any country in the world. Hurricane prediction is alittle more advanced, but two different sciences are involved,one for probability of occurrence and another for tracking. Theindustry recovery standard is 95% power restoration after twoweeks.

2. Floods are the #2 killer globally. They often occur assecondary effects of other disasters, but regardless of how theyhappen, drowning is the main cause of death. It can be saidthere are two kinds of floods: flash floods (where the capacityof the ground to hold water is exceeded); and riverine floods(where a body of water comes to burst its banks). It's a closecall, but riverine floods tend to be the most dangerous. Theworst floods in living memory are the 2007 South Asianfloods, which affected (and are still affecting) India, Nepal,Bhutan, and Bangladesh. The primary thrust of any goodfloodplain management ought to be to guide developmentaway from high-flood-risk areas, but far too many real estatedevelopers succumb to consumer demand for waterfrontproperty. Coastal barriers as a first line of defense helpprotect not only the mainland but aquatic wildlife. Forprotection of cities, reservoirs usually help, but nothing beatsthe unusual and ingenious flood control of the Netherlands.Discharge from rivers and streams due to abnormal rainfallor melting snow are primarily the American problem, and theAmerican solution is to rely on historical hazard maps of 10-year, 50-year, and 100-year floodplains.

3. Earthquakes are the #3 killer globally. They occur alongfault lines of the earth's tectonic plates with locationspredicted fairly well, but scale and timing not entirelypredictable. An earthquake is the type of disaster whichclearly reveals the vulnerability of socio-political institutions. The deadliest phase of an earthquake often occurs during theaftershocks, which is usually when the so-called "knock-oneffects" (incidental or secondary effects) take place, like fires,falling buildings, landslides, and liquefaction (soil takes on theproperties of heavy liquid). With the possible exception offlooding, earthquakes have been the most funded object ofgovernment research and funding (Baer et al. 2005). Thenation of China holds the record for the deadliestearthquakes, most of which occurred hundreds of years agowith the most recent being the 1976 Tangshan earthquake. Interms of both lethality and magnitude, the 2004 Indian Oceanearthquake holds records, along with the 2010 Haiti



earthquake. Worst-case scenario: a massive sea floor

earthquake unleashes a vast amount of methane frozen deep

beneath the ocean floor, releasing massive vapor clouds which

could auto-ignite in the earth's atmosphere in a gigantic fuel-

air explosion. Earthquake recovery needs to go big and go

fast since 3 days after is the critical point for saving lives.

There is quite a bit of pseudoscience which exists on the topic

of earthquakes.

4. Avalanches are the #4 natural disaster. There are

many causes of avalanches, but they often occur as what

disaster managers call a "knock-on effect" from another

disaster (like a rainstorm). However, they also occur quite

frequently by themselves for no reason other than the

apparent force of gravity. It should not be thought that snow

avalanches are the most dangerous, since the ones that have

historically killed the most people have involved ice, mud, or

debris. Most of the world's deadliest avalanches have

occurred in Peru, but deadly snow avalanches occur with

some regularity in the Austrian and Swiss Alps. In snow

country, an avalanche can take one of three forms: loose

snow; slab; or slush; and the kind which causes the most

fatality is the slab, which consists of a strong, stiff layer of

snow; i.e., a snowpack; which is exactly what many winter

sports enthusiasts are drawn to.

5. Extreme temperatures (heat waves & cold waves) are

the #5 natural disaster. A heat wave is generally considered by

meteorologists to be any three-day stretch or more of 90-

degree or higher temperatures, with or without high humidity.

Heat waves kill mostly through strokes, and like cold waves,

through hypothermia. Accidents increase. It depends upon

where one lives as to whether heat or cold is more prevalent.

In Europe and the United States, more people are killed by

cold waves than heat waves (the 2007 European heat wave

being exceptional). Some countries, like India, have both cold

and heat waves regularly. A heat wave can lead to drought,

which is a recurring problem. Although the National Weather

Service says heat causes more deaths than hurricanes,

tornadoes, lightning and floods combined, cold can be a big

killer. The cost of cold overwhelms everything else, and it

needs to be taken seriously because too many people take it in

stride and call it snaps, dips, or freezes. Supposedly it would

take a freakish event like the "1816 Year Without Summer"

to wake people up to the real danger of cold waves. Cold wave

warnings need to be more than the obligatory school closings

and announcements of crop failure or risks to pets/livestock.



6. Tsunamis (pronounced tsu' na me) are the #6 natural

disaster. These are sea waves that stretch out about 100 miles

and travel great distances very fast. They are often impossible

to detect because sometimes the surface only shows the wave

to be a foot or two high. Earthquakes, landslides, and

volcanic eruptions often trigger tsunamis. The

aforementioned 2004 Indian Ocean earthquake spawned the

world's deadliest tsunami. The death toll from a tsunami is

not a pretty sight. About all you can do is try to tag and bag

the bodies in temporary mortuaries and keep ice and sheets

over them to cut down on decomposition and infection.

Tsunamies are distinct from a related phenomenon called

"rogue waves" (also called freak, monster, or extreme waves)

which spontaneously appear in the deep ocean during

perfectly clear waters. Whereas rogue waves are often the

likely cause of the sudden, inexplicable disappearance of

ocean-going vessels, tsunamies mostly cause on-shore

damage. Rogue waves rise to about 100 feet in height, which

is about the same height at the typical crest of a tsunami,

unless of course, one is talking about a so-called

"megatsunami" which rises over 300 feet, and there have only

been three of them in recorded history. A number of tsunami

warning centers exist worldwide, but people don't often abide

by their warnings because of so many false alarms.

7. Volcanic eruptions are the #7 natural disaster. A

volcano can kill in many different ways, ranging from the lava

itself to the hot, poisonous gases emitted. Volcanoes also

sometimes spew out large objects at high speed. There are 16

so-called "Decade Volcanoes" which merit attention for

historical reasons and their proximity to populated areas. The

deadliest volcano in the 20th century was the Mount Pelée

eruption in Martinique during 1902. The 21st century may

very well see the supervolcano under Yellowstone Park erupt

since it is overdue. Volcanoes emit a number of things which

are hazardous to humans and planets in general. Besides the

lava, pyroclastic flows (fast-moving clouds of hot gas), and

flying rocks, a significant number of poisonous aerosol gases

are emitted by volcanoes. Gas emissions from volcanoes are a

major contributor to acid rain. Volcanic eruptions can also

create new land where there was none before, and in extreme

cases, like with one of Jupiter's moons, there is so much

volcanic activity that the surface of that moon is continually

reshaping. The European Space Agency is making great

strides with an eruption warning system called InSAR

(Interferometric Synthetic Aperture Radar).



8. Forest fires are the #8 natural disaster. They occur

when a combination of conditions are right, such as drought

and high wind. Two countries are particularly prone to forest

fires: Australia and the United States, but fires also occur

fairly regularly in Europe, Indonesia, and Greece. Although

modern science holds that fires are a natural part of the

ecosystem in most wildlife areas, it is suspected that up to 80%

of forest fires may ultimately be of man-made origin, and in

fact, authorities suspect that terrorists may have been behind

the 2007 Greek forest fires. Clearly, some areas suffer from

too much fire, and in any event, fire does not always have

positive benefits. Only the US and Canada have fire prediction

systems, and both are imperfect, each based on monitoring a

different set of weather conditions, ground moisture, and

atmospheric stability.

9. Insect swarms are the #9 natural disaster. Scientists

who analyze fossil records suspect that long ago, insects ruled

the earth and devoured everything in their path. An

"explosion" (or swarm) involves a vast increase in the number

of insect pests, the most common pests being locusts,

mosquitoes, butterflies, moths, beetles, bugs, bees, and

dragonflies. No one knows the exact reason for such events,

but rising global temperatures are implicated. Insect

populations increase when temperatures rise rapidly.

Warmer weather in northern climates leads to insect

migration up from the tropics. Insects migrate in search of

food, and rising CO2 levels in the atmosphere make leaves less

nutritious because they contain less proteins, so consequently,

insects are forced to eat more to acquire the nutrients they

need. The photo at right is of the Canary Islands (off the NW

coast of Africa) which in 2004 was invaded by an estimated

100 million hungry locusts, prompting authorities to order

massive evacuations. In many countries, locusts are the

primary cause of starvation, and worldwide, bee stings and

spider bites kill more people every year than non-insect bites,

such as snakes which kill about 90,000 people a year.

10. Asteroid impacts are the #10 natural disaster. Sure, the

big impact events only happen about every 14,000 years, and the

planet killers only come around every 300 million years, but stuff

falling out of the sky happens all the time (most of it from nature).

500 meteorites strike the Earth's surface every year. At least ten,

big near-misses from big asteroids have occurred during 1994-

2007. A large object striking Earth would inject huge quantities of

dust into the stratosphere, depress temperatures around the globe,



and lead to massive crop loss and the possible breakdown ofsociety. The death toll might be in the billions. Outer space, itturns out, is pretty crowded with a lot of junk. NASA and groupslike the Catalina Sky Survey estimate that there are at least 900"Potentially Hazardous Asteroids" out there threatening earth atpresent. In addition, there are an estimated 7000 "Near EarthObjects" traveling about in space. Even a near-miss is significantbecause it almost always creates some degree of electromagneticinterference in the Earth's magnetosphere, sometimes triggeringnatural disasters, firestorms, and unknown effects. Advancewarning may be zero in some cases.

A FOCUS ON FLOODING

Arguably, the most preventable disaster is flooding, and coastal flooding at that. With coastalflooding, you have to calculate rising sea levels (mostly due to polar ice cap melting), look at howthose higher sea levels would interact with surges from a storm or tsunami, and then project thepopulation growth for coastal cities. That is exactly how the OECD (Office for Economic Co-operation and Development) does it, as explained in their 2007 report (Nicholls et al. 2007). Here'sa top ten list of countries, cities, and populations most likely to be catastrophically affected byflooding by 2070 (which is when the sea levels will rise by at least three feet):

India Calcutta 14,000,000India Bombay 12,000,000

Bangladesh Dhaka 12,000,000China Guangzhou (Canton) 11,000,000

Vietnam Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon) 10,000,000China Shanghai 6,000,000

Thailand Bangkok 6,000,000Myanmar (Burma) Rangoon 5,000,000

USA Miami 5,000,000Egypt Alexandria 5,000,000

The list goes on for a total of about 20 cities that will be mostly underwater by 2070, including alot more cities in China, Bangladesh, Vietnam, and some major cities in Africa (Lagos, Abidjan),Japan (Tokyo), Indonesia (Jakarta), and the USA (New York City, Newark, New Orleans, VirginiaBeach, Tampa, and Wilmington). Most of these cities are growing rapidly and not enoughpreventive measures are being taken. For example, high-rise construction keeps going on in Miamibut absolutely no efforts are going into spatial planning or the building of sea walls or floodgates. In New Orleans (after Hurricane Katrina), the USA rebuilt the levees with more solid material, but



didn't raise the height (hopefully, the three new pumping stations will help that city out). Cities in

China, Asia, and Africa simply don't have the money to invest in preventive measures. Japan has

extended its sea walls (similar to the way the Dutch have expanded the dykes in the Netherlands),

but the USA has done little to nothing (with New York hoping its underground tunnels will help).

Current emergency management for coastal flooding consists solely of evacuation planning, and

there will be whole lot of people to evacuate.

ACCIDENTAL DISASTERS

There's a lot more to disasters than natural disasters. Accidents will happen. Some have

variable degrees of "malice aforethought," but the most common mental states are recklessness and

negligence. For classification purposes, these kinds of disaster will be discussed below in five (5)

categories: transportation; structural; industrial; scientific; and personal injury.

Transportation accidents most often involve airlines, ferries, boats, railways, and roads. The

worst airline disaster in history was the 1977 Tenerife collision in the Canary Islands when two,

fully-loaded 747s taxied into one another on the runway. The worst ferry disaster (and deadliest

transport disaster, and worst peace-time maritime disaster in history) was the 1987 MV Doña Pazincident in the Philippines when an overcrowded ferry boat struck a oil tanker, burst into flames,

sank immediately, and only 21 of 4,000+ passengers could hold their breath long enough

underwater to swim to safety. The whole thing happened so fast there was no time to launch

lifeboats. By contrast, the NTSB reported in 2006 that nearly 90% of American transportation

deaths involved recreational boats, personal automobiles, and (non-commercial) planes. Railway

and road disasters have one thing in common -- many incidents tend to involve tunnels. Tunnels

are built in various ways, and are some of the most costliest megaprojects. The main danger inside

a tunnel is fire, which is exactly what happened during the world's worst tunnel disaster, the Salang

Tunnel Fire of 1982 in Afghanistan. Not enough information is known about what happened, but a

Russian munitions truck is suspected as being involved. Estimates are that over 2,000 people died,

mostly Afghanis. The incident stands as the world's deadliest tunnel incident.

Structural accidents generally involve bridge or building collapse, although there is a long history

of death tolls from fires (in churches and theatres during the 19th and early 20th century and

nightclubs during the late 20th century). Sports stadiums are also known to collapse. Probably the

most well-known venue in this category involves Mecca, where millions of Muslims make the

pilgrimage every year during the month of Hajj (see Incidents during the Hajj) to visit the Masjid

al-Haram. All sorts of accidents happen there. In 1990, a pedestrian tunnel collapsed, killing 1,426

pilgrims. In 1998, the one and only, two-story bridge to the "stoning of the devil" station collapsed,

and even though the Saudis built a reinforced, four-story bridge, there have been several

stampedes and people crushed to death since at the exact same area, the Jamarat Bridge. Almost

every year since 2001, hundreds of pilgrims die in Mecca from congested conditions and inadequate

structural facilities. The Saudis themselves often suffer from disease outbreaks afterward. In 2006,

a fairly new, four story hostel in Mecca collapsed for no apparent reason at all, and the death toll is

unknown since the Saudis have not released those numbers.

Industrial accidents (like the aforementioned classical disasters at Bhopal and Chernobyl)

generally involve the chemical or petroleum industries. Bhopal was a chemical leak, and at least

one writer (Weir 1987) has coined the term "Bhopal syndrome" to refer to the many unreported

cases of chemical plant "leaks" around the world. According to this line of research, investigators

often uncover chemical plants surreptitiously burning off hazardous waste at night, especially in



underdeveloped countries. These uncovered incidents are called "less visible disasters," as opposedto the more visible complaints and regulations that arise from, say, an asbestos scare (see AsbestosAround the World). With petroleum spills, most people are familiar with the well-known ExxonValdez Oil Spill of 1989, which still results in opposition to drilling in the Arctic National WildlifeRefuge (ANWR), but major oil spills (like major nightclub fires) happen almost every year, theindustry, however, having ways to define what amounts to a "major" spill based on things likecolor and sheen (see Oil Spill). Industrial accidents seem to occur in bunches. For example, in1984, three (3) major industrial disasters took place in India, Brazil, and Mexico, all at about thesame time. Government concern over the spillover effects from industrial disasters began shortlyafter the 1976 Seveso Incident.

Scientific accidents are mindboggling, especially when they involve bio-medical research or top-secret atomic research which can go horribly wrong. People will always fear Grey Goo (biologicalnanotechnology), genemod organisms, and artificial intelligence projects which make up most ofthe dangerous bio-medical research, but atomic experiments, often hailed as the grandest ofpursuits, may be the most dangerous. For example, take supercollider research which involvessending particle beams in opposite directions along a lengthy underground circular track andaccelerating them to near light speed while directing the particles with superconducting magnets topoints where they are likely to collide. Such colllisions unleash all sorts of dark matter, strangematter, extra dimensions, and Planck-size subatomic particles. One of the particles scientists hopeto find is the so-called "God particle" also known as the Higgs Boson. Very little is understoodabout the physics surrounding this particle, and the Higgs field or ocean that is supposed to exist, isnot well-known at all. No one can observe Planck-sized particles directly today, if ever. One canonly trust that the physicists diddling with such things have some idea of how dangerous their workis. Personal injury accidents are a leading cause of death, but thankfully, the International LaborOrganization (ILO) has helped see progress made in worker safety. While only about a half millionpeople are killed every year in accidents on the job, over a million people a year are killed whiletravelling to and from their jobs (Hough 2004). Road traffic fatality rates are high in any country. It's safer to go to work by rail than by personal vehicle. Car crashes or car accidents kill anestimated 1.2 million people worldwide each year, and injure about forty times this number. Thesecond leading cause of death via personal injury involves cooking accidents (this excludes firearmsfrom consideration), and little is known about this phenomenon, but it appears to be due fromeither inattention (in the developed world) to stoves or a combustible rise in ambient temperaturein congregated kitchen areas (in the developing world). People also somehow drown in their homesor while boating, so much so that in 2002, a first ever World Congress on Drowning was held inAmsterdam.

TRENDS AND ISSUES WITH DISASTERS

It largely goes undisputed that natural disasters have increased in number in recent decades. The charity group, Oxfam, in 2007 reported that disasters have quadrupled in the last twodecades. The world suffered about 120 natural disasters per year in the early 1980s, and currentlysuffers about 500 per year. The number of people affected by extreme natural disasters hasincreased by almost 70 percent (from 174 million a year between 1985 to 1994 to 254 million peoplea year between 1995 to 2004). Likewise, floods and wind-storms have increased from 60 events in1980 to 240 a year in 2007, with flooding up six-fold. However, the number of geothermal events,such as earthquakes and volcanic eruptions, has barely changed.



There are many reasons for the increased number of disasters beyond the crazy notion that theweather is somehow out to get us. One, it may very well be that better reporting is the ultimatecause of the increase. A lot more organizations and people are devoted to recording anddocumenting disasters than before. Two, the world has seen an increase in population, and alongwith this increase, there is a growing tendency for people to move to coastal areas, and buildresidences in high danger areas. The continual building of structures next to foreseeable dangers(like building high schools next to highways, or glass skyscrapers on top of earthquake zones) willlikely only stop when society gets tired of all the premises liability lawsuits every year. A premisesliability lawsuit basically holds an establishment liable for defects in construction, maintenance,and inadequate security. Premises security lawsuits are among the fastest growing segment ofpersonal injury lawsuits, second only to the general negligence (slip-and-fall) cases commonlybrought against landlords (Kaminsky 1995). Thousands of self-styled security experts make theirliving every year testifying as forensic experts in cases of premises liability.

Only a few architectural building codes have been upgraded since 9/11 to better prepare for thenext attack by nature or man (Wible 2006). The construction industry (which drives almost 80% ofthe U.S. economy) is well-known for its tendency to allow for "acceptable risk." However, codechanges have been most prominently made in standoff distances and other factors having to dowith blast impact and progressive collapse, particularly when the structure in question holds areasonable expectation of being a terrorist primary or "trophy" target. Yet even in a post-Katrinaage, most Americans have yet to buy into the idea that there are some self-protective measures theycan take by themselves, beforehand. It is unknown how extensive this consumer refusal to be self-protective is globally.

The insurance industry is in an interesting situation when it comes to natural disasters. Insurance disputes are common after any large-scale disasters, and insurance laws vary from stateto state as to whether or not a policyholder can claim bad faith when it comes to adjustment in thefield and the timeliness of responding to claims. Some insurers advance funds to a claimant; butothers don't. Losses caused by wind, fire, looting and vandalism are generally covered, while lossescaused by flooding are generally not. However, in many disasters, the primary damage may becaused by wind and/or wind-driven rain (instead of the flood), so if a covered peril causes anexcluded peril, then coverage may be available. Otherwise, if one of the primary causes is anexcluded peril (e.g., the fine print in an insurance contract), there is no "concurrent" causationdespite a legal finding of "proximate" causation. Hence, a claimant can win in court, but still losethe insurance settlement. Additional issues include the fact that many businesses file additionalbusiness interruption claims (caused by the unwillingness or inability of civil authorities to repairthe road or infrastructure to the business quick enough). Property owners are also known forinflating their claims in numerous ways, such as with lost valuable papers and records.

NATIONAL SECURITY IMPLICATIONS

Many nations have a tendency to place key installations and facilities in disaster-prone areas. Inthe United States, for example, the Tampa Bay site of MacDill Air Force Base and the U.S. CentralCommand (CENTCOM) is extremely vulnerable to hurricane damage. Tampa Bay could be thenext New Orleans. Other military assets located in Florida are also vulnerable to extreme weatherevents, such as the U.S. Southern Command (SOUTHCOM) in Miami, and in 1992, HurricaneAndrew did such damage to Homestead Air Force Base in Miami that it never reopened. In 2004,damage from Hurricane Ivan kept Pensacola Naval Air Station closed for almost a year. The



Caribbean nations are especially vulnerable to disasters, and a mega-disaster there could meanmassive evacuations and migration. In a similar vein, South Asia and Africa are prone to manydisasters that tax the capabilities of many nations to provide humanitarian aid.

In addition, disasters (as well as climate change) open the door for old rivalries between nationsto re-emerge. It is sometimes said that two things have caused war over the years -- religion andresources. As a recent example, in 2007, as soon as people became aware that melting Arctic icewould create a new (and profitable) northern sea route over over Canada and Russia, the Russianslaid claim to the North Pole as well as Northwest passage rights. The Canadians claim it is theirs;and the Americans claim the new-found waters are international waters. While a war over theNorth Pole isn't likely, the point is that geographic changes wrought by disasters can promptinternational conflict. The U.S. is not on strong ground here, having never ratified the Law of theSea Treaty; hence the United States risks not being party to any adjudicating body which willdetermine which countries have rights to the Arctic's new-found waters.

INTERNET RESOURCES21st Century Structural Collapse TimelineClimate Change and National Security (pdf)Disaster Pages of Dr. G. Pararas-CarayannisIFRC World Disaster ReportsInternational Federation of Red Cross & Red Crescent Societie (IFRC)NATO Euro-Atlantic Disaster Response Coordinator CentreThe Disaster Center Home PageUN International Strategy for Disaster Reduction (ISDR)Wikipedia Master List of Disasters

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Not an official webpage of APSU, copyright restrictions apply, see Megalinks in Criminal Justice

O'Connor, T. (2014). "Natural Disasters," MegaLinks in Criminal Justice. Retrieved from

http://www.drtomoconnor.com/2010/2010lect07.htm.

Documents

OVERVIEW OF NATURAL DISASTERS (Meno's … · OVERVIEW OF NATURAL DISASTERS ... It is indeed the case that by studying mega-disasters, ... hurricane centers or tsunami institutes