Supervisor Elham AbolFateh
Editor in Chief Mohamed Wadie

Natural Disasters of 2018.. Planet's Pains Everywhere


Sat 29 Dec 2018 | 04:36 AM
Yassmine Elsayed

By: Yassmine ElSayed

CAIRO, Dec. 29 (SEE) – In 2018, the world has witnessed a lot of natural disasters that led to the death of hundreds of people, destruction of hundreds of houses, buildings and farm areas.

According to media reports, the number of those disasters

has increased this year compared to previous years, varied between earthquakes,

volcanoes, hurricanes and wild fires. Floods, cold and ice waves were also

included. They were all happening in different parts of the world.

Below are the biggest among those disasters in terms of its

type, destructive scale and losses:

  • Volcanoes:

1. Guatemala –Mount de

Fuego: Erupted on June 3, the volcano affected more than 1.7 million people in three

central departments, or states. As of Aug. 9, the death toll stood at 425 people, with 260 still missing.

This was Guatemala’s most severe volcanic eruption in 45 years.

2. Indonesia – Mount Merapi: Erupted on June 1, it spewed a column of

volcanic ash 6 km into the air, triggering a top alert notice for passenger

planes. Merapi's previous eruption on May 24 had prompted the authorities to

raise the alert to the third highest level, with a no-go zone of 3 km in radius

from the crater.

3. Hawaii – Mount Kilauea: Erupted on May 4, it spewed lava in the

surrounding area. Officially, there had been no reports of injuries or death,

but homes had been surrounded by lava and officials were warning of dangerous

gases.

4. Japan – Mount Io: Erupted on April 19, Authorities have issued a level

3 warning, which advises inpiduals to stay at least 2 km (1.25 mi) from the

crater. No casualties or damages have been reported.

5. Philippines – Mount Mayon: Erupted on January 24, Lava was spilling and columns of ash were sent up over farmland and towns, coating them in grey during a nearly two-week eruption. More than 74,000 people stayed in dozens of emergency.

Earthquakes

1.Osaka, Japan (5.5): Shaked in June,  the earthquake temporarily disrupted electrical and gas service to 170,000 homes and buildings. The earthquake struck during rush hour, disrupting train services for several hours, and also damaged water pipes and hundreds of homes. At least four people have been killed and 417 people have reported injuries.

2. Lilian, Hawaii (6.9): Shaked in May, the earthquake cracked a beam in a county gymnasium in Hilo, forcing workers to be sent home. Besides, the jolt knocked out power to about 14,400 customers, but electricity was restored about two hours later.

3. Papua New Guniea (6.9): A 7.5 magnitude earthquake struck the Southern Highlands province of Papua New Guinea in February. According to ReliefWeb, nearly half a million people were affected by quake. At least 160 people and many others injured

4. Mexico (7.2): In February, a 7.1 earthquake affected Mexico City and the southern Pacific coast of Mexico. The disaster damaged 1000 homes, hundreds of businesses and schools. There were no reports of death directly from the earthquake but 13 people died as a result of the military helicopter that crashed into civilians.

5. Sulawesi island in Indonesia, a 7.5 magnitude earthquake and subsequent 20-foot tsunami brought widespread devastation in late September, erased entire cities. According to World Vision, a global humanitarian nonprofit, more than 330,000 people rendered homeless and the death toll reached 2,783.

In August, a 6.9 magnitude earthquake struck the Indonesian island of Lombok and neighbouring Bali. The earthquake was preceded with a 6.4 magnitude quake in late July, and the areas also were hit with a number of aftershocks. Approximately, 468 people were killed.

Other Natural disasters:

1.India: In the worst flood recorded in 100 years, more than 300 people were killed due to floods in the southern Indian state of Kerala. The Kerala government said many victims died after being crushed by debris after landslides, the BBC reported.

2. Japan: Heavy rains and landslides impacted large areas of Japan in July, killing more than 200 people. Officials said the flooding was particularly bad because much of the rain fell in mountainous areas and funneled down into cities, CNN reported.

3.Nigeria: According to FloodList, more than half a million people were displaced and more than 13,000 homes destroyed due to floods in September. The floods struck one-third of Nigeria's 36 states, affecting nearly 2 million people.

4. Pakistan: Temperatures in the Pakistani city of Karachi stayed above 44 degrees Celsius (104 degrees Fahrenheit) for several days in May, according to news reports. The heat wave coincided with power cuts. Most of those who died were from poor areas, and included children and elderly people, the reports said.

5. North Korea: Heavy rains at the end of August and in early September caused dangerous flooding and landslides in North Korea, which killed at least 76 people, destroyed more than 800 buildings, the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies reported.

6. Fierce wildfires tore through a coastal area of Greece in late July. While most victims died in the fire, some drowned in the sea as they attempted to flee the flames, according to news reports. California's deadliest wildfire: California's deadliest wildfire claimed 85 lives and 11 people went missing. Three separate wildfires broke out in early November 2018: the Camp fire in Paradise; the Hill fire in the Santa Rosa Valley, and the Woolsey Fire in Los Angeles and Ventura counties. The worst of the three, the Camp fire, completely devastated the town of Paradise, causing all 27,000 residents to evacuate their homes and taking the lives of 88-in addition to scorching over 150,000 acres. Those in southern California were heavily affected by the Santa Ana winds, which caused the fires to spread quickly. The death toll in the Camp fire alone made it the deadliest (and most destructive) fire in California history. In total, over 15,000 structures (including homes) and 230,000 acres were scorched by the fires.

7. India: In May it was struck by dust storms that might have been caused by abnormally high temperature. The storm produced high winds and lightning that killed more than 125 people, destroyed houses, livestock, trees, and shut down electricity.

8. Fiji: The small Island in Oceania in March witnessed a natural weather pattern that led to a tropical storm, which in turn triggered the cyclone. The property damaged resulted in the evacuation of 1,873 people and the death of 4 people. Added, 74 roads were also closed.