Characteristics of Hazards Hazar ds Volcano es Hurrica nes Nuclear Disaste rs Oil Spills Drought s Hurrica nes Hurricane Katrina Atlantic, USA 2005 Coastal areas, between the tropic of cancer and capricorn Miles Weeks Seasonal Saffir- Simpson Hurricane Scale Hours / Days / Weeks / Months Days / Weeks Flooding, loss of personal property, destruction Volcano es Montserrat Leeward Islands 1995 Margins of tectonic plates, especially in subduction zones Kilometers Minutes Hours / Days / Weeks / Months / Years Richter Magnitude Scale Hours / Days / Weeks / Months / Years Seconds / Minutes Ash clouds, death, destruction, ground shaking Oil Spills Deepwater Horizon Gulf of Mexico 2010 Seas or oceans where there are oil pipelines Miles No predictabilit y Hours / Days / Weeks / Months / Years Depends on area, quantity of oil spilled (gallons) Months Seconds / Minutes / Hours / Days / Weeks Damage wildlife, economic loss, contamination of water Drought s Horn of Africa 2010-2011 Desertic places Miles Months / Days Hours / Days / Weeks / Months / Years Areas,countri es, km Days / Weeks / Months / Years Days / Weeks / Months Famine, loss of crops, dehydration, death Nuclear Disaste rs Chernobyl and Fukushima Where nuclear plants are located Meters / Kilometers No predictabulit y Months / Years Cities Hours / Days Seconds / Minutes Radiation affect people, destruction Spatial Distributi Spatial Extent Predictabi lity Frequency Magnitude Duration Speed of onset Effects Case Study