John Michael Garcia – B11 January 19, 2021

STEM 11 – St. John of the Cross

1What is the nature of disasters?

Disasters have long been a cause for problems and issues for countries and communities. In the simplest
sense, disasters are events that would lead to a response which is beyond what the affected community can cope with
using its current resources. Often, disasters happen suddenly and so these events are described as being unexpected
and unpredictable in nature like earthquakes and volcanic eruption. However, some disasters are foreseeable and can
easily be prepared for and predicted, like typhoons and wars. Since disasters are unpredictable, these events are
sometimes interchanged with emergencies. What makes disasters distinguishable from emergencies is that disasters
have a large-scale nature, and its damages are absurdly worse than that of emergencies. Disasters bring about huge
amounts of destructions and suffering to communities or countries even, while emergencies may only cause a little
disturbance for a community in a short amount of time

2 What are the characteristics of disasters?

The most well-known characteristics of disasters is that they happen suddenly and unexpectedly, and these
events cause severe disturbance and damages to communities resulting in huge losses of resources. Disasters can be
further characterized based on their classifications of hazards. A disaster can be natural like typhoons and
earthquakes. Natural disasters can be further classified as geological (volcanic eruptions), meteorological
(typhoons), hydrological (floods) and biological (pandemics). A disaster can also be man-made like wars,
explosions, and chemical spills. There are also instances where disasters are brought about by both human and
natural means like, fires caused by earthquakes and spread of toxic material because of flooding. Disasters can also
be characterized using other classifications. Some of which are: based upon time, if a disaster happens quickly and
unexpected like an earthquake or if it happens slowly and takes a long time to develop like a pandemic. And based
on the response needed, if it is only an emergency which only affects a small fraction of people, or if it is a disaster
which affects a whole community of people, or if it is a catastrophe which affects the whole world. There are several
ways one can characterize disasters; however, the most important thing people must do is not only characterize and
classify disasters but, have proper preparation and response for when disasters strike.

3What are the effects/impacts of disasters?

The effects of disaster can be classified into three categories. Primary effects are defined as the direct results
of disasters. These include damages like collapsed buildings, flooded housed and communities, or life casualties.
Secondary effects on the other hand are brought about by the primary effects. Some examples are fire after an
earthquake which may be caused by broken gas pumps or exposed gas tanks, power outages because of fallen trees,
smoke filling up a community as a result of a massive forest fire, or a disruption in transportation due to broken
roads. The damage disasters inflict on the mental and emotional well-being of people may also be considered as a
secondary effect as a result of possibly losing homes or losing a loved one from an accident. Lastly, tertiary effects
are the long- term effects of disasters. Most well-known tertiary effects are changes in landscapes as brought about
by volcanic eruptions or earthquakes, loss of habitat of several species of animals because of forest fires, or the
changes in temperature as also caused by the ash from volcanic eruptions blocking sunlight. Included as a tertiary
effect is the possible problem disasters will cause for a country’s economy which may be a result of flooded
farmlands, broken infrastructures, worn-down houses, or like now, where many people have lost their livelihood.
 4 What are the various elements that may be exposed to
hazards? Define each.
There are many elements that may be exposed to hazards. Hazards are any dangerous phenomenon,
substance, human activity or condition which may cause loss of life, injuries, health impacts and other damages.
Exposure is one of the key factors in measuring disaster risk, along with hazards and vulnerability. Here are 5
elements of exposure to be considered:
a. People/population - This refers to of course the amount of people living in a specific area which does not
necessarily consider the demographic like age, gender, etc. It can be inferred that the denser the population of an
area is the more it is exposed to disaster hazards.
b. Infrastructures - Another element exposed to hazards is the infrastructures of a community. This includes
infrastructures like roads and highways which can be damaged by an earthquake, houses and factories which can
be burned down by a fire accident or electric and light posts which can be swept by strong winds or falling trees
and debris. That is why it is necessary to ensure that the structure being built can withstand blows from disasters
to keep damages to a minimum.
c. Agriculture – The agricultural sector is also exposed to several hazards. Farmlands are highly vulnerable to
damages from floods and intense rainstorms, and crops are also susceptible to being disrupted from extreme heat
wave or cold wave. Since the Philippines is considered an agricultural country, storms and typhoons often bring
huge amounts of losses for the country’s economy.
d. Business Activities – These are also an element exposed to hazards. Since transportation is key for business and
the like, floods and earthquakes damaging roads and highways often damages businesses. This also includes
different buildings and factories of companies.
e. Assets/Property – Lastly, assets or properties are also on the lists of things exposed to hazards. It is undeniable
that assets and properties would be damaged by disasters. From household furniture and other things being
flooded or burnt to cars getting demolished because of accidents. Properties are exposed to several hazards thus,
there is a need to ensure that these are kept safe and away from places where they are extremely exposed and not
safeguarded.

References:
o 58448_CH01_0001.qxd (jblearning.com) (The Nature of Disasters)
o Chapter 1: Characteristics of disasters (nzdl.org)
o Disaster Risk Management | UN-SPIDER Knowledge Portal (un-spider.org)
o Effects of Disasters: Risk and Resilience Factors - PTSD: National Center for PTSD (va.gov)
o Natural disasters and hazards - SEG Wiki
o Risk and Impact | Geoscience Australia (ga.gov.au)
o What Are the Negative Effects of Natural Disasters? (sciencing.com)