Storm Disaster Research Articles

Peculiarities of the hydrological regime of the Ganges and Brahmaputra river mouth area

The basic peculiarities of the hydrological regime of one of the largest mouth areas of the world, i.e., the common mouth of the rivers of Ganges and Brahmaputra, are discussed. The main features of natural conditions (including climatic) of the mouth of these rivers and the delta drainage system are characterized. The hydrological regime of the Ganges and Brahmaputra rivers, the largest rivers of South Asia, is studied in greater detail; the quantitative assessments of the water and sediment runoff of these rivers are specified. Provision is made for revealing the basic peculiarities of river flow distribution among numerous delta branches, annual floods during southwest monsoons, tidal phenomena in the maritime zone of the delta, and disastrous storm surges and inundations in the period of tropical cyclones. Flood control measures taken in Bangladesh to protect the population and lands are described.

The impact of storm damage on small-scale forest enterprises in the south-west of Germany

Storm damage is considered to be one of the most important risk factors for forestry in Central Europe. At the end of 1999 a centennial storm event hit the south-east of Germany and Switzerland, as well as central and western parts of France, and caused great damage. Forests in Baden-Wurttemberg were severely affected, with 30 M m3 of timber felled due to storm damage, three times the amount of the normal annual cut. Approximately 5.2 M m3 of the wind-thrown timber was in private forests, of which most were located in the central Black Forest. Smaller shares came from other regions of Baden-Wurttemberg. The economic damages and strategies of the forest owners were analysed in a multi-dimensional approach, using economic data from long-term accountancy networks, in combination with the results of a qualitative opinion poll amongst private forest owners. A storm coefficient was devised as a suitable indicator for the concerns of owners or ownership classes. The predicted operating income of the private forest owners is related to this coefficient. Cash flow simulations suggest that enterprises with a coefficient of more than 100% suffer from a reduction of their economic base. By combining the results derived from the accountancy networks with findings from the opinion poll it was found that the owners took an active decision towards self-processing and were able to save more than 30 M £ by choosing this strategy. State support which was provided in a variety of ways is also identified. A range of programs and institutional support measures mitigated the impact of the storm disaster. The effectiveness and acceptance of these measures by forest owners was confirmed by the results of the opinion poll.

Detection of Windthrow in Mountainous Regions with Different Remote Sensing Data and Classification Methods

After a disastrous storm event, quick and reliable information on the extent of forest damage is required. This study evaluated different remote sensing data and methods to detect windthrown forests in mountainous regions as an alternative to the manual analysis of aerial images or terrestrial methods. To this end, both optical satellite sensors (Landsat-7, Spot-4 and Ikonos) and synthetic aperture radar (SAR) data at various frequencies (X-, L-, P- and C-band) were evaluated, and classifications of the windthrown forests were performed. This study was designed to state the advantages and disadvantages of the investigated data and methods. Classification results were compared with aerial images which were interpreted manually on a stereoscopic base. The study showed that the manual interpretation of Ikonos data revealed the most accurate results, followed by an automatic classification of Spot-4 data. Except for ERS-1/2 data, which are too inaccurate in mountainous regions, and SAR P-band data, all sensors and methods investigated have different advantages, so the choice of a specific sensor and method will depend on the question being answered.

Municipal initiatives for managing dunes in coastal residential areas: a case study of Avalon, New Jersey, USA

Abstract The characteristics of foredunes created in a municipal management program on a developed barrier island are evaluated to identify how landforms used as protection structures can be natural in appearance and function yet compatible with human values. Shoreline management zones include a naturally evolving, undeveloped segment; a noneroding, developed segment; eroding and noneroding segments of an “improved beach” where dunes have been built by artificial nourishment; and a privately built, artificially nourished dune on the shoreline of an inlet. A disastrous storm in 1962 resulted in an aggressive program for building dunes using sand fences, vegetation plantings, purchase of undeveloped lots, and sediment backpassing to maintain beach widths and dune elevations. The present nourished and shaped foredune in the improved beach is higher, wider, and closer to the berm crest than the natural dune. Restricted inputs of aeolian sand keep the surface flat and poorly vegetated. A stable section of this engineered shore has a wider beach, and sand fences have created a higher foredune with greater topographic diversity. The cross shore zonation of vegetation here is more typical of natural dunes, but the environmental gradient is much narrower. The privately built dune is low, narrow, and located where it could not be created naturally. Foreshore and aeolian sediments in the undeveloped segment and the improved beach are similar in mean grain size (0.16–0.21 mm) and sorting (0.31–0.39 φ ), but sediment on the surface of the nourished dune is coarser (28.1% gravel) with a more poorly sorted sand fraction (1.30 φ ) representing lag elements on the deflation surface. Willingness to enhance beaches and dunes for protection has reduced insurance premiums and allowed the municipality to qualify for funds from the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) to replace lost sediment, thus placing an economic value on dunes. Success of the management program is attributed to: (i) timing property-purchase and dune-building programs to periods immediately after storms (causing residents to accept high dunes that restrict access or views); (ii) instituting a vigorous education program (reminding residents of hazards during nonstorm periods); (iii) maintaining control over local sediment supplies (to keep pace with erosion and create new shoreline environments); (iv) investing private and municipal economic resources in landforms (qualifying them for external funds for replacement); and (v) maintaining, augmenting, or simply tolerating biodiversity and natural processes (retaining a natural heritage).

Preliminary study on sand-dust storm disaster and countermeasures in China

As a kind of natural disasters, sand-dust storms frequently occur in deserts and their surrounding areas. The occurrence of this disaster in China’s northwest and north China has exerted an extremely adverse effect upon the environment in China. The management of sand-dust storms is of a systematic project closely related with the environment such as agriculture, ecosystem, forestry, water conservancy, meterology and other aspects. Therefore, studies of the formation, the basic features, causes, temporal-spatial distribution, developing-trend and related disasters of sand-dust storms in China are conducted based on satellite data. The experience of sand-dust storms control and countermeasures in the United States and some other countries are referred. Meanwhile, preliminary countermeasures relating to sand-dust storms in China are proposed.

Corresponding Crisis; Tohkai Storm Disaster in Nishi-Biwajima Town, Sept. 2000

Corresponding Crisis; Tohkai Storm Disaster in Nishi-Biwajima Town, Sept. 2000

Structure and Evolution of a Severe Squall Line over the Arid Region in Northwest China

Abstract The structure and evolution of a long-lived squall line associated with a disastrous dust storm, called a black storm, that occurred over the arid region in northwest China are described. Data used in the present study were those from routine observations in China and those acquired from surface observations of the Heife River Field Experiment. The squall line evolved within an extremely dry environment in which surface water vapor mixing ratios were less than 2.5 g kg−1 and the level of free convection (LFC) was very high. The surface cold-air outflow that emanated from the squall line propagated rapidly, producing strong horizontal convergence at the leading edge of the cold pool. The deep, dry mixed layer that developed over the desert region, owing to strong solar surface heating, played a significant role in determining the squall line evolution. The maximum depth of the mixed layer was estimated as more than 4 km, which is often found over the desert regions of China. The growth of the deep...

Appalachia in the Making: The Mountain South in the Nineteenth Century.

Appalachia first entered the American consciousness as a distinct region in the decades following the Civil War. The place and its people have long been seen as backwards and 'other' because of their perceived geographical, social, and economic isolation. These essays, by fourteen eminent historians and social scientists, illuminate important dimensions of early social life in diverse sections of the Appalachian mountains. The contributors seek to place the study of Appalachia within the context of comparative regional studies of the United States, maintaining that processes and patterns thought to make the region exceptional were not necessarily unique to the mountain South. The contributors are Mary K. Anglin, Alan Banks, Dwight B. Billings, Kathleen M. Blee, Wilma A. Dunaway, John R. Finger, John C. Inscoe, Ronald L. Lewis, Ralph Mann, Gordon B. McKinney, Mary Beth Pudup, Paul Salstrom, Altina L. Waller, and John Alexander Williams |North Carolina's Hurricane History charts the more than fifty great storms that have battered the Tar Heel State from the colonial era through Irene in 2011 and Superstorm Sandy in 2012, two of the costliest hurricanes on record. Drawing on news reports, National Weather Service records, and eyewitness descriptions, hurricane historian Jay Barnes emphasizes the importance of learning from this extraordinary history as North Carolina prepares for the inevitable disastrous storms to come.

On a risk analysis of storm surges

Three major cities in Japan, Tokyo, Osaka and Nagoya, have developed along shallow bays which open to the Pacific Ocean so that these cities have suffered once in a while from storm surges caused by strong typhoons even though events are scarce. One of the prediction methods for storm surges is to use an empirical relation of three parameters, the central pressure, expected maximum wind speed and associated wind direction of a typhoon. The probability distribution of the maximum wind speed at a specific site may be estimated by an indirect method based on the statistical properties of a typhoon. Then the probability distribution of annual maximum departure of the tide due to a typhoon can be obtained by the same method. Estimated probabilities of annual maximum departure of the tide at Tokyo, Osaka and Nagoya harbours are shown on extremal probability papers with observed ones. It may be reasonable to say that the storm surge of 1959 at Nagoya harbout, the most disastrous storm surge in Japan, was an extraordinary event.

The Delta Project Dutch Macro-Engineering to Control the Eastern Scheldt

AbstractThe Delta Project was an endeavour to dam the estuaries of the Rivers Rhine, Meuse and Scheldt in the Southwestern part of the Netherlands that started after the disastrous storm flood of 1953 and was finished in 1986. Here the authors discuss the policy analysis that led to the political choice in 1976 to keep the Eastern Scheldt open, contrary to the aims of the original project. They also discuss the problems posed by the management, design and construction of a storm surge barrier of gigantic size to control the estuary, while preserving most of its original ecology.

A pilot study on the possible impacts of sea level rise on East China

The possible global sea level rise and its magnitude in the next century induced by the doubling of atmospheric carbon dioxide concentration are briefly discussed. The rates of crustal sinking, ground surface aggradation, and sediment compaction which might give rise to the regional characteristics of relative sea level (RSL) changes, are studied in detail. Attention is focused on the following problems that are closely associated to the sea level rise in the next century: 1) the flood susceptibility of the low-lying East China plains in the next century and its historical evidences, 2) the frequency of disastrous floods and storm surges, 3) the aggradational rate and the potential danger to the dikes along the Changjiang River's lower reaches and 4) the salt water intrusion and the water quality in the Changjiang River estuary. The study shows that the adverse impacts would be very great even if only the lower estimate of sea-level rise in the next century is considered. Therefore, comprehensive research must be conducted and decision must be made to cope with the approaching sealevel rise.

Ecosystem Behavior Under Stress

The behavior of ecosystems under stress can be shown to be analogous to Selye's characterization (1973, 1974) of the response of higher organisms to stress. The ecosystem-level distress syndrome is manifest through changes in nutrient cycling, productivity, the size of dominant species, species diversity, and a shift in species dominance to opportunistic shorter-lived forms. These symptoms of ecosystem dysfunction are common in both terrestrial and aquatic systems under various stress impacts including harvesting, physical restructuring, pollutant discharges, introductions of exotic species, and extreme natural events (such as disastrous storms or volcanic activity). The progression of appearance of symptoms under intensifying stress levels may be interrupted temporarily as ecosystem homeostasis and homeorhetic mechanisms intercede. Inability to cope leads to further dysfunctions and, perhaps, to irreversible ecosystem breakdown.

Disaster Planning in the Stockholm Region of Sweden: Medical Teams for Qualified First Aid

Although in Sweden the risk of natural catastrophes is small, several have occurred in recent years. Two examples are a storm disaster in 1970 and a landslide in 1978—both causing extensive personal and material damage.Other disasters can be caused by human activity in different forms, for instance, fires, explosions and accidents involving public transport, and also—a subject of much concern today—accidents at nuclear power plants. Terrorist actions have also led to serious disaster situations in recent years.Common to the different types of disasters from the viewpoint of medical care is the fact that locally available resources are often inadequate. Even with very good access to ambulances and other forms of medical transport the waiting time at the scene of the accident can be so long that many patients suffer from acute respiratory distress, major hemorrhages and shock. Under such circumstances qualified first aid can be expected to reduce the morbidity and mortality considerably.

Introduction to the Delta Case Studies

In 1953 a disastrous storm flood stroke the Dutch Delta Region. Since, an extensive program for safe-guarding the area is being carried out. Essential part of the program is to obtain a new primary defence against storm floods by building water barriers between the islands (the Delta Project). The basins in between, formerly estuarine systems, are each affected in a different way. The matter is presented as a set of three papers, each one dealing with a large basin. Below a common introduction is given, including the motives and how the decision for the Delta Project was made.

NWS's Severe Local Storm Warning and Disaster Preparedness Programs

Abstract Severe local storms (tornadoes, waterspouts, and thunderstorms accompanied by large hail and/or damaging winds) kill more than 100 persons and injure several thousands more, on the average, each year. In an attempt to reduce the casualties from these storms the National Weather Service's Severe Local Storm Warning and Disaster Preparedness Programs were developed. This paper gives an overview of these important operational programs.