Chapter 3

Basic concept of Hazard

SECTIONS
3.1 HAZARDS AND HAZARD TYPES
3.2 CHARACTERISTICS OF HAZARD
3.3 HAZARD IDENTIFICATION, ASSESSMENT, AND MAPPING
 Section 3.1 Hazards and Hazards Types
Hazards – are the potentials for damage to man
and his environment that may result from the
occurrence of natural events such as volcanic
eruptions, earthquakes, floods, and storm surges.
 Types of Hazards
There are many different ways of classifying hazards . Natural hazards
such as volcanic eruptions, and earthquakes result from earth’s natural
processes. Secondary hazards are the consequences of other hazards,
Landslides, liquefaction, and tsunamis, for example, are secondary to an
earthquakes are building collapse, dam failure, fire, and power
interruption. Human intervention can alter the pace and magnitude of
natural hazard occurrence. This result in a type of hazard that is midway
between natural and man-made hazards. This is called quasi-natural
which results from the interaction of natural processes and human
activities. Examples of quasi-natural hazards are smog and
desertification. Destruction of mangroves and coral reefs weakens the
shore’s defenses against tsunamis and storm surges.
 Geologic Hydrologic Atmospheric Biologic Man-made

Earthquake
 Vibration
 Ground rupture
 Liquefaction Floods-river and coastal Typhoons or hurricanes Epidemic in humans Transport accidents
 Earthquake-Induced
 Landslides
 Tsunami
Volcanic Eruption
 Lava flow
 Volcanic Gas
 Pyroclastic flow Wave Action Thunderstorms Epidemic in Plants Industrial Explosions
 Tephra fall
 Lahar
 Volcanic debris
 Avalanche
Rainfall-Induced Landslides Drought Excessive rainfall Epidemic in Animals Accidental release of
toxic chemicals,
radiological material,
biologic material, oil,
etc.
Rapid sediment movement Rapid glacier advance Tornadoes Locusts Nuclear accidents
 Subsidence Heavy snowfalls Collapse of public
buildings

Sinkhole formation Hail WMD- weapons of

mass destruction

Impacts with space Blizzards Computer virus

objects such as “Trojan
horse “program
“Glaze” storms

Freezing rain

High wind speeds

Extreme
temperatures
Lightning
 SECTION 3.2
Characteristics of Hazards
In a sports even like basketball, height is considered as might.
Players of a team are classified according to height so that they can
take on suitable roles. Height is not the only measure of strength for
a basketball player. Speed is as critical, if nit, more important in
many basketball games. Just imagine if hazard events are not
measured in terms of severity. What happens when people
underestimate the strength of a coming typhoon? In the same way,
negative consequences arise from overaction to an event which
turns out to be of little or no threat at all. In relation to hazard and
disaster risk assessment, what hazard characteristic must be taken
into account ?
Key Hazard Parameters
Most hazard quantification methods consider the
Magnitude and Intensity in determining the level of harm that
a hazard event might bring. The magnitude of an event is a
measure of its strength and is an indicator of how destructive
it can be. The Richter Magnitude Scale measures the amount
of seismic energy released in an earthquake, while the
Volcanic Explosivity Index measures the relative explosiveness
of eruptions based mainly on visual observations. The energy
released by an earthquake is calculated from the amplitude
of waves on a seismogram, which indicates how much the
ground has shaken.
 Speed of onset is among the most important aspects of Hazards. How
predictable a hazard is and how much lead time is allowed by it, is critical
in determining how damaging it will be. The more predictable an event is,
the lesser the chance of incurring casualties and damages. Earthquakes,
landslides, and flash floods usually occur without warning. Tsunamis
typically can have long warning periods of minutes to hours as long as
warning system are in place. The same applies to volcanoes which can
provide signs of impending eruption weeks or month in advance.
Once the onset of the hazard event is known, the duration also
becomes a concern as the chance of experiencing severe damage will
depend on how long the hazard affects an area. In the same manner, the
larger the aerial extent or scope of an event is, the greater the potential
for damage will be. The areas affected by landslides and fires are more
limited compared with those of tsunamis and typhoons.
 Probability of Occurrence
How often an event occurs (e.g., every month,
years, 1000 years, etc.) is its frequency. Sometimes
frequency is expressed of return period. A flood
occurring every 100 years has a return period of 100
years and is referred to as a 100-year flood. Another
way of describing the timing of a hazard id by
estimating its probability of occurrence. If a flood has
a return period of 1year, the probability of the flood
occurring within a year is 100%.
 SECTION 3.3
HAZARD IDENTIFICATION, ASSESSMENT, AND MAPPING
Hazard Identification and Assessment
Hazard Assessment- “is the process of estimating, for defined areas, the
probabilities of the occurrence of potentially damaging phenomenon of
give magnitude within a specified period of time”. UNDRO
If you are living in an area exposed to multiple hazards, you should try to
gather information about hazards and the threats they pose. Individuals,
disaster-related agencies, and planners do this sort of information gathering and
analysis as part of their hazard assessment(Hazard Evaluation or Hazard
Analysis), which is required to come up with risk assessment.
Hazard Assessment and Risk assessment are two different concepts. Risk
assessment involves both the assessment of hazards from scientific point of
view and the socioeconomic impacts of hazardous event. Thus without hazard
assessment, no risk assessment can be complete.
Scientists employ various methods to assess natural hazards.
These include the following:
Quantitative approach.
Mathematical functions or equations relating the hazard variables used are
formulated or adopted or quantify the hazard. Data from the past historical records and
from those derived from basic science principles are used to come up with the
relationships between the variables considered.
Qualitative approach
Instead of representing with numbers, this method uses expert opinion in ranking in
relative terms(e.g, high, moderate and Low or 1,2,3…and so on) the intensity or
probability of occurrence of a hazard event. This method is preferred not possible to
express numerically one or more variables.
Probabilistic approach
It provides an objective estimate of the probability of each hazard affecting an area of region
by considering past record of events. Probability of occurrence of rainfall of a given intensity can
be estimated.
Deterministic approach
This is a more subjective approach of estimating probability. A past event of a
given intensity or magnitude is selected and the consequences at of deterministic
hazard assessment avoids the under-estimation of hazard at a site.

HAZARD MAPPING
Hazard mapping is the process of identifying the spatial variation of hazard
events or physical conditions. Through this process, one side of the hazard-
exposure-vulnerability risk triangle may be displayed in hazard maps. For
information and education campaigns, hazard maps are indispensable.
a hazard map is quite useful in communicating vital information about the
spatial variation of size and potential intensity of a particular hazard.