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Flood events have dominated the natural disaster scene for the
period February to July 2004, with 119 serious floods recorded
up to and including July 22nd. While parts of New Zealand and
Japan have been badly affected by flooding, developing countries
– especially in South and South East Asia – have
once again borne the brunt in terms of scale, impact, injury
and loss of life. Amongst other countries, significant flooding
has occurred over the period in India, Nepal, Pakistan, Vietnam,
China, the US, Bosnia, Macedonia, Costa Rica, Colombia, Kenya,
Zambia, Russia and Mexico. Despite severe storms and tornadoes
striking mid-western states in May, the US recorded its lowest
tornado death toll since records began in 1875: just seven
killer tornadoes resulting in 16 deaths. Preliminary figures
suggest a total tornado number of 1086 for the 2004 season,
compared to 1376 in 2003. While tropical storms and typhoons
caused damage and loss of life in the Philippines, Myanmar,
Micronesia, Taiwan and China, the Atlantic hurricane season
has had a quiet start. Tropical Storm Risk (TSR), led by the
Benfield UCL Hazard Research Centre, predicts an above average
hurricane season, and similar predictions have been made by
the US National Hurricane Center and Colorado State University’s
Tropical Meteorology Project.
On the tectonic front, another disastrous earthquake struck
within two months of the Bam quake that took an estimated
26,000 lives in December 2003. This time northern Morocco
took a hit, leading to severe damage and the loss of over
600 lives. Three further lethal earthquakes occurred in eastern
Turkey – in March and July, in Afghanistan in April,
and in Iran in May – each taking a small numbers of
lives. Volcanic activity has not impinged upon people or property,
although landslides have caused problems in the former Soviet
state of Kyrgyzstan, taking more than 30 lives during April.
This report was first published in Catastrophe Risk Management
in Autumn 2004.
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