Editing Natural disaster (section)

== Disasters caused by extreme weather hazards ==
Some of the 18 natural hazards included in the National Risk Index of FEMA<ref name=":3" /> now have a higher probability of occurring, and at higher intensity, due to the [[effects of climate change]]. This applies to heat waves, droughts, wildfire and coastal flooding.<ref>IPCC, 2022: [https://www.ipcc.ch/report/ar6/wg2/downloads/report/IPCC_AR6_WGII_SummaryForPolicymakers.pdf Summary for Policymakers] [H.-O. Pörtner, D.C. Roberts, E.S. Poloczanska, K. Mintenbeck, M. Tignor, A. Alegría, M. Craig, S. Langsdorf, S. Löschke, V. Möller, A. Okem (eds.)]. In: [https://www.ipcc.ch/report/ar6/wg2/ Climate Change 2022: Impacts, Adaptation and Vulnerability. Contribution of Working Group II to the Sixth Assessment Report of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change] [H.-O. Pörtner, D.C. Roberts, M. Tignor, E.S. Poloczanska, K. Mintenbeck, A. Alegría, M. Craig, S. Langsdorf, S. Löschke, V. Möller, A. Okem, B. Rama (eds.)]. Cambridge University Press: Cambridge and New York, pp. 3–33, {{doi|10.1017/9781009325844.001}}.</ref>{{rp|9}}

=== Hot and dry conditions ===

==== Heat waves ====
{{main|Heat wave}}

{{see also|List of heat waves}}

A heat wave is a period of unusually and excessively hot weather. Heat waves used to be rare, requiring specific combinations of [[weather]] events to take place, such as [[temperature inversion]]s, [[katabatic winds]], or other phenomena. Since the turn of this century, under the continuing pressure of global warming, many areas have experienced peaks of temperatures, along with more frequent, more intense, more prolonged warming events than ever met on record. This is notably the case in many ocean regions such as the Mediterranean Sea.<ref>Marine heatwaves in the Mediterranean Sea and beyond - an overview. 2024. pp. 5-24 in ''CIESM Monograph 51’’ ''(F. Briand, Ed.) ISSN 1726-5886'' [https://www.researchgate.net/publication/384727584]''</ref> On land heat waves coupled with severe winds are now causing hundreds of major wildfires every year, burning thousands of square kilometers of forests, and threatening the very heart of cities as observed in the January 2025 megafires that destroyed several sectors of Los Angeles.

==== Droughts ====
{{main|Drought}}

{{see also|List of droughts}}
{{excerpt|Drought|paragraphs=1|file=no}}

Well-known historical [[drought]]s include the 1997–2009 [[2000s Australian drought|Millennium Drought]] in Australia which led to a water supply crisis across much of the country. As a result, many desalination plants were built for the first time ([[List of desalination plants in Australia|see list]]). In 2011, the State of [[Texas]] lived under a drought emergency declaration for the entire calendar year and suffered severe economic losses.<ref>{{cite web |title=Billion-Dollar Weather and Climate Disasters: Events &#124; National Centers for Environmental Information (NCEI) |url=http://www.ncdc.noaa.gov/billions/events |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140401025100/http://www.ncdc.noaa.gov/billions/events |archive-date=2014-04-01 |access-date=2015-03-20 |website=ncdc.noaa.gov}}</ref> The drought caused the [[Bastrop County, Texas|Bastrop]] fires.

==== Duststorms ====
{{excerpt|Duststorm|paragraphs=1|file=no}}

==== Firestorms ====
{{excerpt|Firestorm|paragraphs=1|file=no}}

==== Wildfires ====
[[File:The Rim Fire in the Stanislaus National Forest near in California began on Aug. 17, 2013-0004.jpg|thumb|right|upright=1.2|A [[Wildfires in California|wildfire]] in [[California]].]]
{{main|Wildfire}}

{{see also|List of forest fires}}

[[Wildfire]]s are large fires which often start in [[wildland]] areas. Common causes include [[lightning]] and [[drought]] but wildfires may also be started by human negligence or [[arson]]. They can spread to populated areas and thus be a threat to humans and property, as well as [[wildlife]]. One example for a notable [[wildfire]] is the 1871 [[Peshtigo Fire]] in the United States, which killed at least 1700 people.<ref>{{cite web |last=US Department of Commerce |first=NOAA |title=The Peshtigo Fire |url=https://www.weather.gov/grb/peshtigofire |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210425083245/https://www.weather.gov/grb/peshtigofire |archive-date=2021-04-25 |access-date=2021-04-25 |website=weather.gov |language=EN-US}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |title=Massive fire burns in Wisconsin |url=https://www.history.com/this-day-in-history/massive-fire-burns-in-wisconsin |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210415163821/https://www.history.com/this-day-in-history/massive-fire-burns-in-wisconsin |archive-date=2021-04-15 |access-date=2021-04-25 |website=History.com |date=13 November 2009 |language=en}}</ref> Another one is the 2009 Victorian bushfires in Australia (collectively known as "[[Black Saturday bushfires]]").<ref>{{cite web |title=2009 Victorian Bushfires {{!}} Victorian Government |url=http://www.vic.gov.au/2009-bushfires |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210428081631/https://www.vic.gov.au/2009-bushfires |archive-date=2021-04-28 |access-date=2021-04-25 |website=vic.gov.au |language=en}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |date=2023-02-07 |title= Black Saturday bushfires |url=https://www.nma.gov.au/defining-moments/resources/black-saturday-bushfires |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210423060348/https://www.nma.gov.au/defining-moments/resources/black-saturday-bushfires |archive-date=2021-04-23 |access-date=2021-04-25 |website=National Museum of Australia|language=en}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |title=Bushfire – Black Saturday, Victoria, 2009 |url=http://knowledge.aidr.org.au/resources/bushfire-black-saturday-victoria-2009/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210326082700/https://knowledge.aidr.org.au/resources/bushfire-black-saturday-victoria-2009/ |archive-date=2021-03-26 |access-date=2021-04-25 |website=Australian Disaster Resilience Knowledge Hub}}</ref> In that year, a summer heat wave in Victoria, Australia, created conditions which fueled the massive [[2009 Victorian bushfires|bushfires]] in 2009. [[Melbourne]] experienced three days in a row of temperatures exceeding 40&nbsp;°C (104&nbsp;°F), with some regional areas sweltering through much higher temperatures.

=== Storms and heavy rain ===

==== Floods ====
{{main|Flood}}
{{see also|List of floods}}[[File:Limpopo.jpg|thumb|The [[Limpopo River]] during the [[2000 Mozambique flood]]]]

A [[flood]] is an overflow of water that 'submerges' land.<ref>MSN Encarta Dictionary. [http://encarta.msn.com/encnet/features/dictionary/DictionaryResults.aspx?refid=1861612277 Flood.] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110204203836/http://encarta.msn.com/encnet/features/dictionary/DictionaryResults.aspx?refid=1861612277|date=2011-02-04}} Retrieved on 2006-12-28. 2009-10-31.</ref> The EU [[Floods Directive]] defines a flood as a temporary covering of land that is usually dry with water.<ref>{{cite web |title=Directive 2007/60/EC Chapter 1 Article2 |url=http://eur-lex.europa.eu/LexUriServ/LexUriServ.do?uri=OJ:L:2007:288:0027:0034:EN:PDF |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20151106094442/http://eur-lex.europa.eu/LexUriServ/LexUriServ.do?uri=OJ:L:2007:288:0027:0034:EN:PDF |archive-date=2015-11-06 |access-date=2011-11-14}}</ref> In the sense of 'flowing water', the word may also be applied to the inflow of the [[tides]]. Flooding may result from the volume of a body of water, such as a [[river]] or [[lake]], becoming higher than usual, causing some of the water to escape its usual boundaries.<ref>Glossary of Meteorology (June 2000). [http://amsglossary.allenpress.com/glossary/search?id=flood1 Flood.] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070824054504/http://amsglossary.allenpress.com/glossary/search?id=flood1|date=2007-08-24}} Retrieved on 2009-01-09.</ref> While the size of a lake or other body of water will vary with seasonal changes in precipitation and snow melt, a flood is not considered significant unless the water covers land used by humans, such as a village, city or other inhabited area, roads or expanses of farmland.

==== Thunderstorms ====
[[File:Cumulonimbus NOAA gov.jpg|thumb|right|A classic anvil-shaped, and clearly-developed [[Cumulonimbus incus]]]]
{{main|Thunderstorm|Lightning}}

Severe storms, dust clouds and volcanic eruptions can generate [[lightning]]. Apart from the damage typically associated with storms, such as winds, hail and flooding, the lightning itself can damage buildings, ignite fires and kill by direct contact. Most deaths from lightning occur in the poorer countries of the Americas and Asia, where lightning is common and [[adobe]] [[mud brick]] housing provides little protection.<ref>{{cite news |date=31 July 2015 |title=Deadly lightning strike in Mexico reveals plight of poorest citizens |url=https://www.theguardian.com/world/2015/jul/31/deadly-lightning-mexico-government-failure |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170106110244/https://www.theguardian.com/world/2015/jul/31/deadly-lightning-mexico-government-failure |archive-date=6 January 2017 |access-date=17 December 2016 |work=The Guardian}}</ref>

==== Tropical cyclone ====
{{see also|Tropical cyclones and climate change}}
[[Typhoon]], [[cyclone]], [[cyclonic storm]] and [[hurricane]] are different names for the same phenomenon: a [[tropical storm]] that forms over an ocean. It is caused by evaporated [[water]] that comes off of the [[ocean]] and becomes a [[storm]]. It is characterized by strong winds, heavy rainfall and thunderstorms. The determining factor on which term is used is based on where the storm originates. In the Atlantic and Northeast Pacific, the term "hurricane" is used; in the Northwest Pacific, it is referred to as a "typhoon"; a "cyclone" occurs in the South Pacific and Indian Ocean.

The deadliest hurricane ever was the [[1970 Bhola cyclone]]; the deadliest Atlantic hurricane was the [[Great Hurricane of 1780]], which devastated Martinique, St. Eustatius and Barbados. Another notable hurricane is [[Hurricane Katrina]], which devastated the Gulf Coast of the United States in 2005. Hurricanes may [[Tropical cyclones and climate change|become more intense and produce more heavy rainfall]] as a consequence of human-induced [[climate change]].

==== Tornadoes ====
[[File:Shoal Creek Valley Alabama Tornado April 27, 2011.jpg|thumb|right|A [[2011 Shoal Creek Valley–Ohatchee tornado|killer tornado in Alabama]] photographed during the [[2011 Super Outbreak]], the most intense tornado outbreak on record.]]
{{see also|List of tornadoes and tornado outbreaks}}

A [[tornado]] is a violent and dangerous rotating column of air that is in contact with both the surface of the Earth and a [[cumulonimbus cloud]], or, in rare cases, the base of a [[cumulus cloud]]. It is also referred to as a ''twister'' or a ''cyclone'',<ref>{{cite web |title=Definition of CYCLONE |url=https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/cyclone |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210105190603/https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/cyclone |archive-date=2021-01-05 |access-date=2020-12-29 |publisher=Merriam-Webster}}</ref> although the word [[cyclone]] is used in meteorology in a wider sense to refer to any closed [[low pressure area|low pressure]] circulation. Tornadoes come in many shapes and sizes but typically take the form of a visible [[funnel cloud|condensation funnel]], the narrow end of which touches the Earth and is often encircled by a cloud of [[debris]] and [[dust]]. Tornadoes can occur one at a time, or can occur in large [[tornado outbreak]]s associated with [[supercell]]s or in other large areas of thunderstorm development.

Most tornadoes have wind speeds of less than {{convert|110|mph|km/h|sigfig=2|order=flip|abbr=on}}, are approximately {{convert|250|ft|m|round=5|order=flip|abbr=on}} across, and travel a few kilometers before dissipating. The [[Tornado records#Largest and most powerful tornadoes|most extreme tornadoes]] can attain wind speeds of more than {{convert|300|mph|km/h|order=flip|abbr=on}}, attain a width exceeding {{convert|2|mi|km|0|order=flip|abbr=on}} across, and stay on the ground for perhaps more than {{convert|100|km|mi|sigfig=1|abbr=on}}.<ref name="fastest wind">{{cite web |author=Wurman, Joshua |date=2008-08-29 |title=Doppler on Wheels |url=http://cswr.org/dow/DOW.htm |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070205124033/http://www.cswr.org/dow/dow.htm |archive-date=2007-02-05 |access-date=2009-12-13 |publisher=Center for Severe Weather Research}}</ref><ref name="widest tornado">{{cite web |date=2005-10-02 |title=Hallam Nebraska Tornado |url=http://www.crh.noaa.gov/oax/archive/hallam/hallam.php |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140820095200/http://www.crh.noaa.gov/oax/archive/hallam/hallam.php |archive-date=2014-08-20 |access-date=2009-11-15 |work=[[National Weather Service]] |publisher=[[National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration]]}}</ref><ref name="SPC FAQ">{{cite web |author=Roger Edwards |date=2006-04-04 |title=The Online Tornado FAQ |url=http://www.spc.ncep.noaa.gov/faq/tornado/ |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20060929185156/http://www.spc.ncep.noaa.gov/faq/tornado/ |archive-date=2006-09-29 |access-date=2006-09-08 |work=[[National Weather Service]] |publisher=[[National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration]]}}</ref>

=== Cold-weather events ===
{{see also|Ice storm|Cold wave}}

==== Blizzards ====
[[File:Elkton, Maryland 2009 Blizzard.jpg|thumb|right|300x300px|A [[blizzard]] in [[Maryland]] in 2009]]
{{main|Blizzard}}

Blizzards are severe [[winter storm]]s characterized by heavy snow and strong winds. When high winds stir up snow that has already fallen, it is known as a [[ground blizzard]]. Blizzards can impact local economic activities, especially in regions where snowfall is rare. The [[Great Blizzard of 1888]] affected the United States, when many tons of wheat crops were destroyed. In Asia, the [[1972 Iran blizzard]] and the [[2008 Afghanistan blizzard]], were the deadliest blizzards in history; in the former, an area the size of Wisconsin was entirely buried in snow. The [[1993 Storm of the Century|1993 Superstorm]] originated in the Gulf of Mexico and traveled north, causing damage in 26 American states as well as in Canada and leading to more than 300 deaths.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.n-d-a.org/snow-hail-storm.php|title=Natural Hazards – Snow & Hail Storms|website=n-d-a.org|access-date=2017-02-26|archive-date=2017-02-03|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170203144851/http://www.n-d-a.org/snow-hail-storm.php|url-status=live}}</ref>

==== Hailstorms ====
[[File:Granizo.jpg|thumb|right|A large [[hail]]stone, about {{cvt|6|cm|in|frac=2}} in diameter]]
{{main|Hail}}

{{see also|List of costly or deadly hailstorms}}

Hail is precipitation in the form of ice that does not melt before it hits the ground. Hailstorms are produced by thunderstorms. Hailstones usually measure between {{convert|5|and|150|mm|in|frac=4|abbr=on}} in diameter. These can damage the location in which they fall. Hailstorms can be especially devastating to [[farm]] fields, ruining crops and damaging equipment. A particularly damaging hailstorm hit [[Munich]], Germany, on July 12, 1984, causing about $2 billion in [[insurance]] claims.