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Extreme weather disasters intensifying

August 16, 2009 by mereza


The impact of climate change on urban areas is reflected in the increased number and intensity of
extreme weather events such as heavy rainstorms, typhoons, and hurricanes. The increasing
intensity of weather related disasters is becoming more apparent with resounding alarm. The
National Meteorological Centre of China recently made the observation that droughts, floods,
and storms had become more frequent and severe since the 1990s with the trend likely to
continue. Generally, the increasing frequency of extreme weather is attributed to climate change
and global warming. Even the Annual Red Cross Report 2008 mentioned that over the last
decade worldwide, the number of weather related disasters have risen from 200 annually to 350
and was continuing. Extreme weather events would become more frequent and more severe,
warned its Secretary General Bekele Geleta.

Flooding in the Philippines


In late 2006, Typhoon Utor which caused massive floods in Malaysia also hit Philippines,
Vietnam, Singapore and Indonesia. Utor’s heavy rainstorms brought above average rainfall
with the recorded amount in Singapore on December 20 2006, the third highest recorded rainfall
in 75 years. Torrential downpours from the rainstorms in Philippines caused rivers and dams to
overflow and weather officials described the 2006-2007 flooding as the worst in the area in a
century. In the same period floods occurred in North Sumatra and Aceh displacing an estimated
400,000 people and at least 118 people dead with 155 people missing.

A bridge destroyed by flooding in Xuanhan County, Dazhou, South West China Sichuan
Province. July 13. 2009. Photo. sino.com
In Malaysia, urban areas in the southern state of Johore were flooded and two towns,Kota Tinggi
and Segamat were completely cut off during the floods. Emergency evacuations in Johore
caused by the floods affected between 60,000 and 70,000 people. Further onslaught of heavy
rainfall brought a second wave of the flood which almost paralysed Johore state after all its eight
districts were submerged by the floods. The regular natural disasters in Malaysia, albeit annual
affairs accompanying the seasonal monsoon season are increasingly becoming more intense.
Compound this situation with inadequate drainage in many urban areas which inevitably worsen
the effects of torrential rain. Flood mitigation projects which have been included in the Ninth
Malaysia Plan indicate that the government is aware of the seriousness on the floods and their
impact on to the economy and development. The substantial amount budgeted to these efforts
will greatly contribute towards the alleviation of the flood problems.

Buildings destroyed by landslides. Xuanhan County, Dazhou, Sothwest China Sichuan Province,
July 13 2009
During the flash floods in Kuala Lumpur, the Sungai Gombak river which traversed the capital,
overflowed its banks following a three hour downpour. One wonders whether insurance
premium costs for vehicles will soar if demand for inclusion of coverage for loss/damage due to
floods go on the rise. This question inevitably crops up with the large number of cars parked in
the hotel basements and the major underground car parks submerged in floodwaters. The
consequent massive traffic jams resulting from the flash floods incurred invisible losses on lost
man-hours over and above the obvious financial implications of damages and destruction to
property.
In Philippines, the recent Typhoon Marakot displaced several thousands in the main island of
Luzon. The scenes were of houses, vehicles and farms swept away, with many villagers stranded
on rooftops. The Philippines National Disaster Coordinating Council (NDCC) declared the
affected Botolan coastal town under a “state of calamity”. In the southern island of Mindanao
more than 375,000 people were affected by massive flooding. (i)
Moving out of the Philippines, Marakot gathered intensity and slammed into Taiwan resulting in
the worst flooding in half a century and killed at least 12 people. Thousands found themselves
marooned helplessly as bridges were destroyed by raging swollen rivers. Just imagine the
enormity of the damage to infrastructure and agriculture.
These patterns of unusually heavy rains were detected through data collected by the tropical
Rainfall Measuring Mission (TRMM) satellite since June . In the wake of several days of
extreme rain in early July 2009, floods swept across southern China and northern Vietnam. The
rains caused widespread flooding and landslides that left 75 people dead and 938,000 homeless
in China as of July 5. (ii) In China, Typhoon Marakot forced the evacuation of nearly 1 million
people in two eastern coastal provinces. Continuous rainfall triggered many landslides paralysing
traffic in many rural areas.
(iii)

Floods in Northern Philippines.Photo. Jason Gutierrez.IRIN


The flood disaster of 2006-2007 was considered the costliest flood in Malaysian history with a
total cost of RM 1.5 billion. In China the annual economic cost of extreme weather has soared
to 244 billion Renminbi. The horror of these losses over the last few months have yet to be
assessed and the sum total could be humungous. Awareness of the perils of natural disasters
should lead to action for disaster preparedness. Nature has given us all the signals and we
should have analysed the emerging patterns and prepare ourselves.

References:-
(i)IRIN, Manila, 10 August 2009.
(ii) Xinhua News, China. 5 July 2009.
(iii) Xinhua News Agency August 9, 2009

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