Disasters
Prepared by
Shylaja -Environmental Management, Facilitator
The incidents
that cause Drastic change in Destruction to
significant environment livelihood
physical damage
Damage
Cause injury and
Happen suddenly infrastructure and
death
property
Disasters Earthquakes
Natural Floods
Cyclones
Droughts
Volcanoes
Forest Fires
Avalanches
Fires
Man made Nuclear disaster
Chemical disaster
Biological disaster
Terror attacks
Travel related disasters
Hazard Vs Disaster
•Don’t confuse hazard with disaster
•Hazard is a dangerous situation or
event that poses a threat to humans
•Hazard may lead to disaster
Disaster prone areas
• Seismology
Study of Earthquakes
Earthquake
Earthquake zones in India
Causes of Earthquake
Effects of Earthquake
• Sudden • Collision of 2 • Heavy toll on life • Entire
violent • Seismologists floating and property Himalayan
movement • Seismographs plates of • Extensive belt
of a portion • Richter scale rock. damage to (boundary
of the • Vibrations between the
• houses Eurasian and
Earth’s pass • bridges Indian
crust. through to
• dams plates)
• Epicenter the Earth’s
surface • rail lines • Seismic zone
• Power lines V
• Communication • Kutch in
networks Gujarat
• May trigger • Ganga
• Landslides Brahmaputr
• Avalanches a basin
• Tsunamis • Seismic
Zone IV
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8QNigxTN384 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GcNVpMZlIDo
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DEXme00cNZU
•Tsunamis are giant
waves caused by
What are earthquakes or
tsunamis? volcanic eruptions
under the sea.
The story of tsunami 30 m high
26
Decemb
waves er 2004
Epicenter –
Indian 300,000
ocean near people
Sumatra, died
Indonesia
Entire 9.15 on
planet Richter
vibrated scale
Waves Biggest
900 ever in
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=j9JDzBTwiig kmph history
Epicenter and area affected by tsunami
Tsunami
affects the
environment
Impact of tsunami on ecosystem
Biodiversity Plantations
01 Animals and plants were 04 Rice, mango and banana
affected plantations were destroyed
Agriculture Industrial chemicals
02 Salt water infiltration made 05 Spread of chemicals from
soil sterile industries
Aquifers and wells Sewage waste
03 Invaded by sea, sand and 06 Destruction of collectors
earth through porous rocks and treatment plants
Nature's help in disaster
Coral Reefs Coral reefs buffers
01 The Surin island chain off
shorelines against waves,
Thailand coast. storms, and floods.
Mangrove forest Mangroves reducing the height
02 In Pichavaram and and energy of wind and swell
Muthupet waves passing through them.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9jni98YDvf8
Casuarina trees Casuarina trees acts as
03 barriers and prevent
Tamilnadu coast erosion by sea.
Animals can sense a tsunami
https://thewonderofscience.com/phenomenon/2018/7/8/elephants-warn-tourists-of-tsunami
Floods
Sudden influx of water
Mostly caused due to
overflowing of rivers in the
monsoon
Riverine flood
Heavy monsoon rains
Breach in a dam
Very high tides due to cyclones
Causes of Flood
Change in the course of the river
Sudden melting of glaciers
Cloud burst
Loss of life and property
Fertile top soil is removed
Massive disruption to normal life
Effects of floods
Agricultural lands are destroyed
Shortage of drinking water
Rise in water borne diseases
Cyclones
Low pressure areas that
occur over warm oceans in
tropical and temperate
regions.
Cyclones are accompanied by
• Heavy rain
• Huge waves
• Powerful winds
• Storm surges
Swirling circular or oval
atmospheric disturbances
https://youtu.be/PV6cy1MXWxY
Cyclone formation in Arabian sea Cyclone formation in Bay of Bengal
Droughts
Insufficient rainfall for prolonged periods
Shortage of water
Causes of Drought
Misuse of ground water
Deforestation
Unscientific agricultural practices
Crop failure
Shortage of food and fodder
Fall in water table
Impacts of Droughts Epidemics
Human suffering
Migration
Forest fires
• https://www.e-education.psu.edu/earth103/node/903
Man Made Disasters
Man Made disasters are crisis
caused by a human act.
• Huge loss of
Unintentional life and
Man made
Leading to
property
disasters • Adverse
Intentional impact on
economy
Fire
Causes of fire
Faulty
Matches/
Poor wiring electrical Gas leak
cigarettes
equipment
Home
Recreational area
Hospitals
Offices
Crowded place
No.of casualities
increases
Few exit points
Nuclear disaster
• Caused by use of
nuclear weapons.
• Nuclear weapons
are WMD.
• Weapons of mass
destruction
Nuclear disaster
Major attacks
Adverse effect
• Exposure to radiation • Hiroshima and Nagasaki
leaves people crippled in World War II
for life • ‘Little boy ‘and ‘ Fat
• Explosion can blind man’
humans if seen by naked • 1 lakh people died and 1
eye. lakh injured.
• May cause cancer • Chernobyl Disaster
• 12,000 Ukrainians died.
Chemical and Biological disaster
Chemical and Biological disaster
Biological disaster
Chemical disaster
• Disaster caused by • Germs developed in
accidental release lab and released in
of toxic chemicals air to kill a large
or gases into the number of people.
environment. • Can cause epidemic
• Bhopal gas tragedy. and kill thousands
• Leakage of highly of people.
toxic gas Methyl
isocyanate
• 2500 people dead.
Terror attacks
• In the event of terror strike
• Use of explosives, guns, chemical
or biological weapon.
Reasons
• Caused misdirected elements who
think that social , political or
religious goals can be achieved by
killing.
Damage
• Hijack planes
• Destroy public infrastructure
Major attack
• 9/11 World trade center USA
• 13/DEC/2001 Parliament attack, India
• 26/NOV/2008 Mumbai attack
Travel related disasters
Air
crashes
Capsizing Travel related Train
boats/
ships disasters collision
Train
derailment
Equipment failure
Loss of radar transmissions
Failure of brakes
Causes
Human error [Diver falling asleep, Missing
railway signal, Negligence]
Fuel leakage
Natural phenomenon[ Earthquake,
landslide,Storm]
Thank you
