What is the difference between natural hazards, disasters, and catastrophes?
A natural hazard is a an event or process that occurs naturally and has the potential to harm humans. Although this may be a natural occurrence, it can be deemed dangerous due to the harm it cam bring to humans. An example of a natural hazard can be an earthquake. Earthquakes can occur daily with a magnitude range anywhere from a 2 to a 10. A magnitude of 2 or smaller can occur hundreds of times a day and can go unnoticed by humans whereas a magnitude of 7 or higher can occur roughly once a year and can bring hundreds to thousands of deaths (IRIS, Incorporated Research Institutions for Seismology).
A disaster is a natural hazard that occurs in a smaller more confined area over a small amount of time. In order for an event to be called a disaster, it must first meet a few requirements. For example, the event must cause at least 10 or more deaths and must affect a minimum of 100 unfortunate people. A state of emergency must also be declared. This means that the government can suspend or alter the way it would normally function in order to step in and provide assistance as well as set up damage control procedures (Chaney, Eric, 2015).
A catastrophe is the largest of these events which causes a great financial burden to the area it has effected, and which can often take years for that area to recover. An example of a catastrophe that has occurred right here in the Unites States is Hurricane Katrina. With an estimated death count of about 2,000 people and caused over 1 Billions Dollars in damages. Hurricane Katrina occurred in August of 2005 and effected those all along the Gulf Coast and New Orleans, Louisiana. The area is still recovering today (Zimmerman, Kim 2015).
Sources:
Chaney, Eric. “What Is a State of Emergency, and Why Is One Declared?” The Weather Channel, 2 Oct. 2015, weather.com/news/weather/news/what-is-a-state-of-emergency. Accessed 28 Aug. 2017.
“How Often Do Earthquakes Occur?- Incorporated Research Institutions for Seismology.” IRIS, National Science Foundation, www.iris.edu/hq/inclass/fact-sheet/how_often_do_earthquakes_occur. Accessed 28 Aug. 2017.
Zimmermann, Kim Ann. “Hurricane Katrina: Facts, Damage & Aftermath.” LiveScience, Purch, 27 Aug. 2015, www.livescience.com/22522-hurricane-katrina-facts.html. Accessed 28 Aug. 2017.
