Abstract
The world of hazards and disasters is enormous in its expanse, bewildering in its variety, spectacular in its appearance, masterly in its teachings, and overwhelming in its consequences. The chapter takes the readers on to a conducted tour of a biblical array of hazards and disasters like volcanoes, earthquakes, tsunamis, landslides, lightning, thunderstorms, tornadoes, blizzards, cyclones, floods, famines, and fires. Kaleidoscopic in range, rich in substance, entrancing in style, simple and lucid in presentation, and profound in message, the chapter aims to make every date with disasters a learning opportunity and every lesson from disasters a saving grace.
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- 1.
Quoted in Nicholas (1995).
- 2.
Pacific Ocean is also the home of nearly 85 % of the volcanoes. The tsunami count in the Pacific Ocean during the period 1900–1970 reached 180 and the present count may well exceed 800. Nine of these struck landmasses throughout the Pacific and 35 of them caused limited damage locally.
- 3.
Source Wikipedia.
- 4.
It is situated on the right bank of river Kali, in the district of Pithoragarh of the Kumaon Himalaya in India bordering Nepal.
- 5.
There are only ten survivors of the Malpa tragedy including the eyewitness, an officer of the Border Roads Organization of the Government of India.
- 6.
Source Excerpt from an interview of Bachendri Pal, the first Indian woman to climb Mount Everest with Holly placed on the net by Adventure Divas, India.
- 7.
See Popescue (1984), p. 94.
- 8.
See Terzaghi (1950), pp. 83–123.
- 9.
See Popescue (1984), p. 86.
- 10.
Quotation from one of the speeches of G. S. Mandal.
- 11.
See Lal and Ram (2009), pp. 39–50.
- 12.
See Express News Service (2005).
- 13.
See Bhatia (2008).
- 14.
Shakespeare. Romeo and Juliet (II-ii, 1–2).
- 15.
Cartoonist: Murad Ali Baig, published in Swagat Magazine of January 2001, reproduced with the permission of the Editor-in-chief of Media Transasia.
- 16.
The term flood comes from the old English word flod.
- 17.
The Souris River flows from Canada into North Dakota in horse shoe shape, flowing back to Canada eventually connecting with Red River tributary. Flooding in it is, therefore, affected by water release from Canadian reservoirs, excessive snow melt, and heavy rainfall upstream.
- 18.
See World Bank and United Nations (2010).
- 19.
Before formation of Bangladesh.
- 20.
See Aykroyd (1975).
- 21.
See World Bank and United Nations (2010).
- 22.
See Ripley (2008), p. 124.
- 23.
See Ripley (2008), p. 148.
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Bhandari, R.K. (2014). The World of Hazards and Disasters. In: Disaster Education and Management. Springer, New Delhi. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-81-322-1566-0_3
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