Natural hazards

In general, drought is defined as an extended period - a season, a year, or several years - of deficient rainfall relative to the statistical multi-year average for a region.…
Earthquakes occur as a result of seismic action, where two tectonic plates interact, causing friction which inevitably causes one of the plates to slip, creating a thrust force…
An epidemic is defined as the occurrence of an illness or health-related event that is unusually large or unexpected. Epidemics are commonly caused by a disease of infectious or…
Changes in temperature extremes tend to follow mean temperature changes in many parts of the world. IPCC indicate that cold extreme cold extremes warm faster than warm extremes by…
A simple definition of flooding is: water where it is not wanted. Another, more comprehensive definition of a flood is: A general and temporary condition of partial or…
Mass movements are massive failures of slope masses including rock, debris, soils and snow/ice (Parkash, National Institute of Disaster Management, New Delhi). These mass…
Sinkholes are defined as a depression or hole in the surface of the earth due to the erosion of the underlying ground layer. Such sinkholes develop over time with a diameter…
“Tsunami” is a Japanese word in which “tsu” means harbor and “nami” means wave. Thus the word means “harbor wave”. Tsunami is a series of waves that can travel at speeds averaging…
A volcano is a mountain opening downwards to the reservoir of molten rock towards the surface of earth. Volcanoes are made by the accrual of igneous products. As the pressure from…
A wildfire is an unplanned, unwanted wild land fire (including unauthorized human-caused fires). Vegetation fires are caused by slash/burn land clearing, clearing of plantations…