The world is witnessing an unprecedent level of calamities for the past

12months or so. It started with the forest fire in Australia followed by fire
Whilst Covid 19 is still creating havoc around the globe,
Every disaster has things to teach us.
Looking back at a decade in which superstorms, wildfires,
disease outbreaks, and monster earthquakes have taken
unimaginable tolls all over the planet, it’s easy to be
overwhelmed by the scope of the problem.
But learning the lessons of every disaster, every time, is
important.
HAITI EARTHQUAKE (2010)
Even before the magnitude 7.0 earthquake, But the
earthquake’s impact was hard to fathom. More than 220,000
people – two percent or more of the population – were killed.
One and a half million were displaced.
TŌHOKU EARTHQUAKE AND TSUNAMI, FUKUSHIMA DAIICHI NUCLEAR DISASTER (2011)
A magnitude 9.0 earthquake off the coast of Japan triggered a
tsunami wave that rose 133 feet at its highest and traveled as
far as six miles inland – much larger and more powerful than
expected.
.
Although estimates of the death toll vary, as many as 20,000
people were killed, in a country whose wealth and well-
developed infrastructure made that number feel impossible.
HURRICANE SANDY (2012)
A predicted Category 1 storm quickly morphed into the largest
hurricane on record (at the time), causing widespread havoc
through the Caribbean before crashing into the United States’
eastern seaboard, taking large swathes of New Jersey and New
York, including New York City, offline
. Over 100 people died in the United States alone, many from
exposure or related conditions.
.
TYPHOON HAIYAN (2013)
This Category 5 “super typhoon” crashed into the Philippines
with wind speeds hovering near 200 miles per hour – at the
time, the strongest cyclone ever.
. It swept through densely populated areas, including the
major city of Tacloban, leaving devastation in its wake.
The storm killed approximately 7,000 people and displaced
more than 4 million.
WEST AFRICA EBOLA OUTBREAK (2014-2016)
The deadliest Ebola outbreak in recorded history. The
outbreak began in Guinea and quickly spread to Sierra Leone
and Liberia – and striking heavily in urban centers. Ebola
killed more than 11,000 people – approximately 40% of those
who fell ill – over the course of two years.
NEPAL EARTHQUAKE (2015)
This magnitude 7.8 earthquake destroyed homes throughout
much of the country and toppled tall buildings in Kathmandu,
the capital.
. It’s thought that the death toll – nearly 9,000 – could have
been much higher.
.
HURRICANE HARVEY (2017)
At its strongest, Harvey was a Category 4 storm with 130-
mile-per-hour winds.
But the storm brought home an important truth: It’s water, not
wind, that’s the most perilous part of a hurricane.
Harvey brought trillions of gallons of rain to the southern
coast, causing levels of flooding in some places that scientists
only expect to see once every 500,000 years. Tens of
thousands were displaced, critical access to health care was
cut off, and 88 people died.
HURRICANE MARIA (2017)
When the devastating storm hit first Dominica (as a Category
5 hurricane) and then Puerto Rico (as a Category 4), it left
devastation in its wake. Both countries were plunged into
darkness – in Puerto Rico’s case, for up to a year in some
places.
.
CYCLONE IDAI (2019)
The Category 3 storm crashed into southern Africa in March
of this year, leaving devastation behind in Mozambique,
Zimbabwe, and Malawi. 1,300 people were
killed; infrastructure, including many health facilities, was
destroyed; and agricultural land was flooded with salty water.
GLOBAL WILDFIRES (2019)
Slash-and-burn agriculture caused massive, devastating
wildfires in both the Amazon and Indonesia, sickening
hundreds of thousands and destroying treasured forest and
rainforest lands.
The blazes pitted palm oil farmers and beef ranchers against
the international community, raising the question of how to
meet individual needs as the world works to fight climate
change and conserve valuable spaces.
And months after the Camp Fire killed 85 people in
California and sent shock waves through the United States, a
spate of wildfires erupted across the state, displacing hundreds
of thousands and threatening a future of large-scale, climate-
fueled blazes
CAN 2020 STOP ALREADY? From the most deadly virus ever known
to mankind to forest fires and locust swarms, it looks like 2020 is the
year that our ancestors warned us about. Brace yourselves for some of
the biggest natural, human & man-made disasters that have happened
just 5 months into 2020.
1. The Australian Bushfire 2019-20
Started in December 2019, the Australian bush fires showed no signs of
slowing down or stopping. While most countries were celebrating New
Year’s, Australia was facing one of its biggest natural disasters and
several states called for emergency in January. As per a report
published in the Medical Journey of Australia, the Australian bushfire
burned an estimated 18.6 million hectares, destroyed over 5,900
buildings, and killed at least 34 people, while over 400 people were
killed due to the residual smoke inhalation.
Devastating Floods In Indonesia
On January 1, 2020 devastating floods destroyed Indonesia’s capital,
Jakarta and some neighbouring areas. Over 4 lakh people were forced
to flee from their homes. The floods were accompanied by heavy rains
lashing the city causing further damage as rivers overflowed and people
were submerged in waters that were 5ft in depth. Several locals were
victims to drowning or landslides, while others died of electric shocks or
landslides. About 66 people lost their lives to this natural disaster of
2020.
he Dreaded Coronavirus
While the first outbreak was identified in December 2019 in the now
infamous Wuhan, no one realised the significant global and economic
impact it would have. On January 11, China recorded it’s first COVID-19
death and on March 11, 2020 the WHO declared coronavirus a
pandemic. As of April 2nd, the global coronavirus cases surpassed one
million.  Today, most countries are gingerly stepping out of lockdown
and trying to resume life. However, 5 months into 2020, there is still no
vaccine or medication for Coronavirus
Volcano Eruption In The Philippines
The Taal Volcano is the second most active volcano in the Philippines and it
started rumbling on January 12th in Luzon, followed by an eruption and
ash dust over 100 km away. It had last erupted 43 years back. The
Volcano left huge ash clouds which caused mass evacuations of over
300,000 people. On Feb 13th, the National Disaster Risk Reduction and
Management Council (NDRRMC) and the Philippine Institute of
Volcanology and Seismology (PHIVOLCS) reported a total of
2,484 volcano-tectonic earthquakes in the vicinity of the volcano, 176 of
which were felt. The Philippines is still reeling from the volcano eruption
with a number of countries sending in domestic aid.
arthquakes In Turkey, The Caribbean,
China, Iran, Russia, Philippines & India
There have been so many earthquakes in 2020 that if I sat to categorise
each as a natural disaster the list would be unnaturally long. So far
there have been 45 earthquakes characterised over 6 magnitudes.
Jamaica and Russia were the worst hit with earthquakes over
magnitude 7. The earthquake in Turkey claimed 41 lives.
Locust Swarms In East Africa & Parts Of
India & Asia
Millions of desert locusts have swarmed 5 states in India, namely
Rajasthan, Gujarat, Punjab, Haryana, Uttar Pradesh and Madhya
Pradesh and the videos are quite scary. First detected in East Africa
and then Pakistan, the deadly locusts do not affect humans but they do
cause damage to crops. Swarms Of Locusts Attack 6 Indian States;
Delhi & Mathura On HIGH ALERT
this could be one of the worst pest attacks in over 2 decades (26
years). There’s a global locust swarm in existence right now and
India could suffer from a brutal wave in the coming months. To
give you perspective, Desert Locusts are considered to be the
most devastating migratory pests globally and a 1 sq km swarm in
1 day can eat as much food as 35,000 people. Not only do these
insects breed rapidly but as many as 150 million locusts can exist
in just 1 square kilometre. They
. 
feed on any kind of vegetation like crops, fodder and pasture and can
destroy crops in seconds.

The sudden increase in locusts has been credited to climate change.

The increase in temperature has made it more habitable to the breeding
and swarming of locusts. Unusually heavy rains and increased
temperatures from 2019 may most likely be the cause of this attack.
7. Cyclone Amphan In India & Bangladesh
Cyclone Amphan created havoc in West Bengal and
Odisha in May, leaving behind trails of destruction. The
meteorological department termed the cyclone to be an
“extremely severe cyclonic storm” that made landfall in
both the states with abundant rains, gust windows and
lightning, destroying everything that came in its way,
leaving chilling visuals all around. The super cyclone
reportedly killed 12 people in Bengal, while power supply
and phone networks also took a hit in states. Cyclone
Destroys Asia’s Largest Street Book Market
Forest Fires In Uttarakhand, India
Uttarakhand has been burning for 4 days now with over
46 bush fires. So far only 2 deaths have been reported,
but the fire is still nowhere under control. A report by the
Times Of India has stated that Uttarakhand has lost
nearly 51.43 hectares of forest cover and the forest
department alone has incurred a loss of over 1 lakh
Floods In Assam, India
Due to the heavy rains in many parts of Assam, the flood situation has
gotten out of hand and over 30,000 people in five out of 33 districts are
affected. According to the Assam State Disaster Management Authority
(ASDMA), a total of 128 villages in eight revenue circles of Lakhimpur,
Dhemaji, Dibrugarh, Darrang and Goalpara districts were affected.
Crops and domestic animals have also been affected by this.
Snow In Antarctica Turns Green
When you think of Antarctica, your mind normally conjures up images of
an otherworldly space, with vast glaciers of white, tethering penguins
and lazy seals. However, parts of the frozen continent are turning
green, all thanks to climate change and massive algal blooms.
According to a new research published in the journal Nature
Communications, warming temperatures and melting snow in the
continent are helping in the formation of algal blooms (rapid increase or
accumulation in the population of algae), which are expanding at a high
rate, thereby turning many areas ‘green’. In fact, the phenomenon is
becoming so prolific in some places that it is even visible from space.
Read more: Antarctica’s Snow Is Turning Green, All Thanks To Climate Change!
Well, we are going to start our 6th month soon so let’s hope the half
year mark works better for us and things start getting healthier and
happier.