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==Natural disasters== {{see also|List of natural disasters in the United States}} [[File:Dimmitt Tornado1 - NOAA.jpg|thumb|A powerful tornado near [[Dimmitt, Texas]] on June 2, 1995]] The United States is affected by a variety of [[natural disaster]]s yearly. Although drought is rare, it has occasionally caused major disruption, such as during the [[Dust Bowl]] (1931β1942). Farmland failed throughout the Plains, entire regions were substantially depopulated, and dust storms ravaged the land. ===Tornadoes and hurricanes=== {{main|Tornadoes in the United States|Hurricanes in the United States}} [[File:Hurricane katrina damage gulfport mississippi.jpg|thumb|Total devastation in [[Gulfport, Mississippi]] caused by storm surge from [[Hurricane Katrina]] in 2005]] According to a 2023 Gallup survey, around one in three Americans said that they directly experienced a severe weather condition over the previous two years.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Horn-Muller |first=Ayurella |date=2023-04-15 |title=Climate-displaced Americans face discrimination |url=https://www.axios.com/2023/04/14/climate-displaced-americans-discrimination |access-date=2023-04-19 |website=Axios |language=en}}</ref> The Great Plains and Midwest, due to the contrasting air masses, see frequent severe thunderstorms and tornado outbreaks during spring and summer with around 1,000 tornadoes occurring each year.<ref>[http://www.nssl.noaa.gov/primer/tornado/tor_climatology.html NSSL: Severe Weather 101] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120320044359/http://www.nssl.noaa.gov/primer/tornado/tor_climatology.html |date=2012-03-20 }}. Nssl.noaa.gov. Retrieved on 2013-07-29.</ref> The strip of land from north [[Texas]] north to [[Kansas]] and [[Nebraska]] and east into [[Tennessee]] is known as [[Tornado Alley]], where many houses have tornado shelters and many towns have tornado sirens, due to the very frequent tornado formation in the region. Hurricanes are another natural disaster found in the US, which can hit anywhere along the [[U.S. Gulf Coast|Gulf Coast]] or the [[East Coast of the United States|Atlantic Coast]] as well as Hawaii in the Pacific Ocean. Particularly at risk are the central and southern [[Texas]] coasts, the area from southeastern [[Louisiana]] east to the [[Florida Panhandle]], peninsular [[Florida]], and the [[Outer Banks]] of [[North Carolina]], although any portion of the coast could be struck. The [[U.S. territories]] and possessions in the [[Caribbean]], including [[Puerto Rico]] and the [[U.S. Virgin Islands]], are also vulnerable to hurricanes due to their location in the [[Caribbean Sea]]. Hurricane season runs from June 1 to November 30, with a peak from mid-August through early October. Some of the more devastating hurricanes have included the [[Galveston Hurricane of 1900]], [[Hurricane Andrew]] in 1992, [[Hurricane Katrina]] in 2005, and [[Hurricane Harvey]] and [[Hurricane Maria]] in 2017. Hurricanes (known as cyclones in the Pacific Ocean) fail to make landfall on the Pacific Coast of the United States due to water temperatures being too cool to sustain them. However, the remnants of tropical cyclones from the Eastern Pacific occasionally impact the western United States, bringing moderate to heavy rainfall. ===Flooding=== Occasional severe flooding is experienced in the United States. Significant floods throughout history include the [[Great Mississippi Flood of 1927]], the [[Great Flood of 1993]], and widespread flooding and mudslides caused by the 1982β83 [[El NiΓ±o]] event in the western United States. Flooding is still prevalent, mostly on the Eastern Coast, during hurricanes or other inclement weather, for example in 2012, when [[Hurricane Sandy]] devastated the region. Localized flooding can, however, occur anywhere, and mudslides from heavy rain can cause problems in any mountainous area, particularly the Southwest. Large stretches of desert shrub in the west can fuel the spread of [[wildfire]]s. The narrow canyons of many mountain areas in the west and severe thunderstorm activity during the summer lead to [[flash flood]]s as well, which can sometimes be devastating, while [[nor'easter]] snowstorms can bring activity to a halt throughout the Northeast (although heavy snowstorms can occur almost anywhere). ===Geologic=== The West Coast of the continental United States makes up part of the [[Pacific Ring of Fire]], an area of heavy tectonic and volcanic activity that is the source of 90% of the world's earthquakes.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Cool Earthquake Facts {{!}} U.S. Geological Survey |url=https://www.usgs.gov/programs/earthquake-hazards/cool-earthquake-facts#:~:text=The%20%E2%80%9CRing%20of%20Fire%E2%80%9D%20also,the%20world's%20earthquakes%20occur%20there. |access-date=2023-09-30 |website=www.usgs.gov}}</ref> The American Northwest sees the highest concentration of active volcanoes in the United States, in [[Washington (state)|Washington]], [[Oregon]] and [[northern California]] along the [[Cascade Mountains]]. There are several active volcanoes located in the islands of Hawaii, including Kilauea in ongoing eruption since 1983, but they do not typically adversely affect the inhabitants of the islands. There has not been a major life-threatening eruption on the Hawaiian Islands since the 17th century. Volcanic eruptions can occasionally be devastating, such as in the [[1980 eruption of Mount St. Helens]] in Washington. The Ring of Fire makes [[California]] and southern [[Alaska]] particularly vulnerable to [[earthquake]]s. Earthquakes can cause extensive damage, such as the [[1906 San Francisco earthquake]] or the 1964 [[Good Friday earthquake]] near [[Anchorage, Alaska]]. California is well known for seismic activity and requires large structures to be [[Earthquake resistant structures|earthquake resistant]] to minimize loss of life and property.<ref>{{cite web| url = https://earthquake.usgs.gov/learn/publications/saferstructures/| url-status = dead| archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20100511070408/http://earthquake.usgs.gov/learn/publications/saferstructures/| archive-date = 2010-05-11| title = Building Safer Structures}}</ref> Outside of devastating earthquakes, California experiences minor earthquakes on a regular basis. There have been about 100 significant earthquakes annually from 2010 to 2012. Past averages were 21 a year. This is believed to be due to the deep disposal of wastewater from [[fracking]]. None have exceeded a magnitude of 5.6, and no one has been killed.<ref>{{cite news | first=Dan | last=Vergano | title=Study:Earthquake increase tied to energy boom | url=https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/nation/2013/07/11/injection-induced-earthquakes/2508499/| newspaper=[[The Burlington Free Press]] | location=[[Burlington, Vermont]] | pages= 10A | date=July 12, 2013 | access-date=July 14, 2013}}</ref> ===Other natural disasters=== Other natural disasters include [[tsunami]]s around the Pacific Basin, mudslides in California, and forest fires in the western half of the contiguous U.S. Although drought is relatively rare, it has occasionally caused major economic and social disruption, such as during the [[Dust Bowl]] (1931β1942), which resulted in widespread crop failures and dust storms, beginning in the southern Great Plains and reaching to the Atlantic Ocean. === Consequences === According to report by U.S. [[Census Bureau]], in 2022 natural disasters led to the forced displacement of 3.3 million people, more than 1.3% of the U.S. adult population, with half of the displacements being caused by the [[Tropical cyclone|hurricanes]]. The survey-report stated that in [[Florida]], the devastation caused by Hurricanes Ian and Nicole resulted in the relocation of around 1 million people, or about one in every 17 adult residents.Β In [[Louisiana]], where inhabitants were still dealing with the devastating results of [[Hurricane Ida]] the year before, more than 409,000 people, or almost one in every eight residents, were moved. Despite this, the [[Louisiana]] state saw a relatively calm hurricane season in 2022.<ref>{{Cite web |agency=Associated Press |date=2023-01-06 |title=3.3 million US adults displaced by natural disasters in past year β survey |url=https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2023/jan/06/us-adults-displaced-natural-disasters-survey-census-bureau |access-date=2023-01-11 |website=the Guardian |language=en}}</ref>
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