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Understanding Disasters and Hazards

A disaster is defined as a sudden, calamitous event that causes widespread damage and loss of life and exceeds a community's ability to cope. Though often natural in origin, disasters can also be caused by human actions or events. Disasters seriously disrupt society and result in human, material, and economic losses. They can include both natural hazards like earthquakes, floods, and wildfires, as well as technological and man-made hazards such as industrial and transport accidents. Looking ahead, challenges like climate change, rapid urbanization, poverty, and pandemics are expected to increase the frequency, complexity, and severity of disasters.

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Stephen Mark Garcellano Dalisay
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7 views1 page

Understanding Disasters and Hazards

A disaster is defined as a sudden, calamitous event that causes widespread damage and loss of life and exceeds a community's ability to cope. Though often natural in origin, disasters can also be caused by human actions or events. Disasters seriously disrupt society and result in human, material, and economic losses. They can include both natural hazards like earthquakes, floods, and wildfires, as well as technological and man-made hazards such as industrial and transport accidents. Looking ahead, challenges like climate change, rapid urbanization, poverty, and pandemics are expected to increase the frequency, complexity, and severity of disasters.

Uploaded by

Stephen Mark Garcellano Dalisay
Copyright
© All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
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Download as DOCX, PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd

DISASTER | a sudden event, such as an accident or a natural catastrophe, that causes great

damage or loss of life.


an event or fact that has unfortunate consequences
A disaster is a sudden, calamitous event that seriously disrupts the functioning of a community or
society and causes human, material, and economic or environmental losses that exceed the
community’s or society’s ability to cope using its own resources. Though often caused by nature,
disasters can have human origins.

CITIZENSHIP | the position or status of being a citizen of a particular country.

the state of being vested with the rights, privileges, and duties of a citizen.
the character of an individual viewed as a member of society; behavior in terms of the duties,
obligations, and functions of a citizen:
en·vi·ron·ment | the surroundings or conditions in which a person, animal, or plant lives or
operates.
the natural world, as a whole or in a particular geographical area, especially as affected by
human activity.
Natural hazards are naturally occurring physical phenomena caused either by rapid or slow onset
events which can be geophysical (earthquakes,landslides, tsunamis and volcanic
activity), hydrological (avalanchesand floods), climatological (extreme
temperatures, drought and wildfires), meteorological (cyclones and storms/wave
surges) or biological (disease epidemics and insect/animal plagues).
Technological or man-made hazards (complex
emergencies/conflicts, famine, displaced populations, industrial
accidents and transport accidents) are events that are caused by humans and occur in or
close to human settlements. This can include environmental degradation, pollution and
[Link] or man-made hazards (complex emergencies/conflicts, famine, displaced
populations, industrial accidents and transport accidents)

climate change, unplanned-


There are a range of challenges, such as
urbanization, under-development/poverty as well as the threat of pandemics, that
will shape humanitarian assistance in the future. These aggravating factors will result in increased
frequency, complexity and severity of disasters.

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