1. Introduction to Natural
Disasters
Dr. Mark A. McGinley
Professor, Head of Science Unit
Core Curriculum and General Education Office
Lingnan University

2. What is a Natural Disaster?
• Let’s come up with a list of examples

3. What is a Natural Distaster?
• Natural hazards are naturally occurring physical phenomena caused
either by rapid or slow onset events which can
be geophysical (earthquakes, landslides, tsunamis and volcanic
activity), hydrological (avalanches and floods), climatological (extreme
temperatures, drought and wildfires), meteorological
(cyclones and storms/wave surges) or biological (disease
epidemics and insect/animal plagues).
https://www.ifrc.org/en/what-we-do/disaster-management/about-
disasters/definition-of-hazard/

4. Why Teach a Course About Natural Disaster?
They are Cool!!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fW2qCK0I6cw - Watch

5. Why Take a Course About Natural Disasters?
Allows you to learn about a number of important areas of science
• Geophysical
• Geology
• Hydrological
• Hydrology
• Climatological
• Atmosphere and climate science
• Biological
• Ecology

6. Why Take a Course About Natural Disasters?
• Natural disasters affect both natural and human systems

7. Economic Damage
• Between 1970 and 2013, over $2.8 trillion in economic losses were
reported globally from natural disasters
• Asia and the Pacific alone reporting $1.15 trillion of that total
• This region now accounts for almost half of the world’s losses from natural disasters
• For comparison, the GDP of Hong Kong was 290.90 billion US dollars in 2014
• http://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2015-04-27/counting-the-economic-cost-of-
natural-disasters

8. Recent Disasters
The U.S. Geological Survey initially estimated economic
losses from the recent earthquakes in Nepal (April 2015)
as 9 percent to 50 percent of its gross domestic product,
with a best guess of 35 percent
Dominica, a small island in the Caribbean, just had a
hurricane (late August, 2015). “Dominica Prime Minister
Roosevelt Skerrit said in a televised address late Friday that
the island has been set back 20 years in the damage inflicted
by the storm, which dumped some 15 inches (38
centimeters) of rain on the mountainous island”.
http://abcnews.go.com/International/wireStory/puerto-rico-braces-ts-erika-dead-dominica-33372829

9. Loss of Life
• An average of 73,000 fatalities
occurred each year between
1980 and 2010.
http://www.worldwatch.org/losses-natural-disasters-
reach-new-peak-2011

10. Ecological Damage
Forest Fire Hurricane

11. Ecological Damage
Volcano Tsunami

12. Do We Need to be Worried About Natural
Disasters in Hong Kong?
• How worried are you?
• What types of natural disasters have, and potentially can, strike Hong
Kong?

13. Hong Kong
• Hong Kong has the highest natural disasters risk in Asia
• “Hong Kong, 26 May 2015 – Hong Kong tops Asia’s ranks as the city with the
highest natural disasters risk, according to the recently released inaugural
Sustainable Cities Index from ARCADIS, the leading global natural and built
asset design and consultancy firm. “
• “Hong Kong’s natural disasters risk is mainly caused by storms, floods and
wildfires”
http://www.arcadis.com/press/Hong_Kong_has_the_highest_natural_disasters
_risk_in_Asia.aspx

14. Disaster Risk- Asian and Global Rankings
Overall Asia ranking City Overall Global ranking
1 Hong Kong 3
2 Wuhan 4
3 Tokyo 9
4 Manila 10
5 Beijing 11
6 New Delhi 15
7 Jakarta 16
8 Mumbai 24
9 Shanghai 26
10 Kuala Lumpur 27
11 Seoul 29
12 Singapore 50
Hong Kong is ranked #3 Globally…. What two cities do you think are ranked #1 and #2?

15. Natural Disasters- Hong Kong
For lots of good info about the
costs of natural disasters in Hong
Kong check out this link
• http://www.preventionweb.net/
countries/hkg/data/

16. We, and the government, need to be aware
of the risk and plan accordingly.
• CONTINGENCY PLAN FOR
NATURAL DISASTERS
(INCLUDING THOSE ARISING
FROM SEVERE WEATHER
CONDITIONS)
• Emergency Support Unit, Security
Bureau
• http://www.sb.gov.hk/eng/emer
gency/ndisaster/cpnd-
e092007.pdf
http://blogs.agu.org/landslideblog/2010/01/24/new-remarkable-
animation-video-of-the-po-shan-road-landslide-in-hong-kong/