Natural Hazards Flashcards
What are the different types of hazards?
1) A hazard is something that’s a potential threat to human life or property.
2) Natural hazards are caused by natural processes e.g. a lava flow from a volcanic eruption.
3) Natural hazards can be divided into three types:
> Geophysical hazards (caused by land processes)- these include earthquakes, volcanic eruptions, landslides and tsunamis.
Atmospheric hazards (caused by climatic processes) - these include tropical cyclones, storms, droughts, extremes of hot or cold weather and wildfires.
Hydrological hazards (caused by water movement) - these include floods and avalanches.
How do people’s circumstances affect their perception of hazards?
People’s perception of hazards is affected by their economic, social and cultural backgrounds.
For example:
> Wealth- richer people may be able to afford to move to areas that are less prone or build their homes to withstand hazards.
> Religion- some people view hazards as an act of God, sent to punish people.
> Education- People with education may have a better understanding of the risks of hazards, which will enable them to reduce risks.
> Past experience- people who live in hazard-prone areas may have experienced them before, giving them a view of the outcome.
> Personality- some people fear hazards and others might think they are exciting.
What are some responses to a hazard?
> People might try to prevent a hazard or reduce its magnitude. For some hazards (volcanoes) this is impossible however for others e.g. floods, by building sea defences.
> people buy insurance on their house to help them with a disaster if it occurs.
> People might try to reduce the impacts of a hazard. This could be by prediction- working out when and where a hazard will occur. This allows people to respond to it quickly enough.
> Governments may coordinate responses to a hazard to manage it effectively.
> Some people believe that hazards cannot be avoided, so they must just be accepted- this is fatalism.
How is the Park Model represented in stages?
The park model shows the different phases of response to a hazard:
1) Pre-disaster- before the event, the situation is normal.
2) Disruption- During and directly after the hazard, there is the destruction of the property, loss of life etc. before people begin to respond.
3) Relief- in the aftermath of the event, rescue efforts focus on saving people and preventing further damage.
4) Rehabilitation- once the immediate impacts are under control, people start to resolve longer-term problems, e.g. providing temporary shelter and aid for those affected.
5) Reconstruction- this involves rebuilding permanent houses/infrastructure.
What are the four phases of the management cycle?
1) Mitigation- this aims to minimize the impacts of future disasters. For example, building flood defenses or adding fire-resistant roofs to buildings in areas prone to volcanic eruptions.
2) Preparedness- this is about planning how to respond to a hazard, e.g. making sure there are warning systems in place or educating people on how to evacuate quickly if there was a cyclone.
3) Response- this is how people react when a disaster occurs, e.g. emergency services rescuing people who have been trapped or evacuating them from a danger zone.
4) Recovery- this is about getting the affected area back to normal, e.g. repairing or rebuilding houses and restoring services such as medical care and electricity.
