1. DISASTER RISK REDUCTION A PRIMER OF KNOWLEDGE THAT CAN MULTIPLY AND SPILL OVER FOR THE BENEFIT OF MILLIONS Walter Hays, Global Alliance for Disaster Reduction, University of North Carolina, USA http://www.gadr.giees.uncc.edu

2. EXAMPLE: REMEMBERING 2OO8 THE YEAR OF THE MYANMAR CYCLONE AND THE WENCHUAN, CHINA EATHQUAKE ACCOMPANIED BY TROPICAL STORMS, HURRICANES, TYPHOONS FLOODS, WILDFIRES, EARTHQUAKES, AND VOLCANIC ERUPTIONS WITH AN EARTHQUAKE SHAKEOUT SCENARIO, AND A USA REPORT ON THE EFFECTS OF CONTINUED GLOBAL WARMING

3. SUMMARY OF NOTABLE EVENTS DURING 2008 VOLCANIC ERUPTIONS IN CHILE CYCLONE NARGIS STRIKES MYANMAR (BURMA) WENCHUAN, CHINA EARTHQUAKE, LANDSLIDES, AND “QUAKE LAKES” WILDFIRES IN NORTHERN AND SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA GREAT MIDWEST USA FLOODS 2008 TROPICAL STORM-HURRICANE-TYPHOON SEASON PAKISTAN EARTHQUAKE CALIFORNIA EARTHQUAKE SHAKEOUT SCENARIO USA REPORT ON GLOBAL WARMING

4. SOCIETAL IMPACTS DURING 2008 Hundreds of thousands killed and injured. Millions of homes damaged, destroyed, and/or inundated. Infrastructure damaged and destroyed. Toxic materials released into air, water, and soil. Shutdown of oil and gas platforms and petrochemical plants Millions evacuated and displaced. Livelihoods of hundreds of millions adversely affected. $ Tens of billions in insured and uninsured economic losses. Health care needs sharply increased everywhere.

5. AFTER 10,000 YEAR DORMANCY, CHAITEN ERUPTS IN CHILE: MAY 3, 2008

6. CYCLONE NARGIS STRIKES MYANMAR (BURMA) MAY 2, 2008 ONE OF THE WORST CYCLONE DISASTERS IN ASIA DURING THE PAST 15 YEARS 214,000 KILLED AND 2.4 MILLION PEOPLE SERIOUSLY AFFECTED ONE OF THE WORST CYCLONE DISASTERS IN ASIA DURING THE PAST 15 YEARS 214,000 KILLED AND 2.4 MILLION PEOPLE SERIOUSLY AFFECTED

7. CYCLONE NARGIS: The storm's 120 mph winds blew the roofs off hospitals, downed trees, and cut electricity to the country's largest city, Rangon. Storm surge and torrential rain caused local flooding.

8. Myanmar’s policies of self- sufficiency allowed entry of materials from a few countries, but usually not the skilled disaster workers.

9. FIVE LESSONS FROM CYCLONE NARGIS FIRST: no nation, rich or poor, can go it alone when confronted by a natural disaster of the magnitude of a Cyclone Nargis.

10. WENCHUAN, CHINA EARTHQUAKE

12. MAY 12, 2008 M7.9 80,000 DEAD 26 MILLION BUILDINGS (HOMES, SCHOOLS, AND HOSPITALS) DAMAGED OR DESTROYED LANDSLIDES AND 69 “EARTHQUAKE LAKES” MILLIONS DISPLACED

14. 45,690,000 people were adversely affected by the disaster.

15. GREAT MIDWEST FLOODS

17. WILDFIRES IN CALIFORNIA

19. THE 2008 TROPICAL STORM- HURRICANE-TYPHOON SEASON EVIDENCE OF PLANET EARTH’S WILD WEATHER JUNE 1 – NOVEMBER 30, 2008

20. 2008 ATLANTIC HURRICANE SEASON

21. El Nino, the eastern Pacific warm water phenomenon that can dampen the formation of Atlantic storms did not develop.

22. ATLANTIC TROPICAL STORMS AND HURRICANES IN 2008 Sixteen storms occurred during the 2008 season. Over $100 billion in losses.

23. ATLANTIC TROPICAL STORMS AND HURRICANES ARTHUR BERTHA CRISTOBAL DOLLY EDUOARD FAY GUSTAV HANNA IKE JOSEPHINE KYLE LAURA

24. TROPICAL STORMS- HURRICANES IN 2008 MARCO NANA OMAR PALOMA

25. IMPACTED NATIONS Jamaica, Grand Turk Island, Montserrat, Anguilla, Haiti, Dominican Republic, Puerto Rico, and Cuba in the Caribbean. Mexico Florida, Louisiana, and Texas in the Gulf of Mexico Nova Scotia on the Atlantic seaboard

29. Many of the Gulf of Mexico’s offshore oil and natural gas drilling platforms were in Edouard’s path. Companies prepared platforms for heavy wind and rain and evacuated workers.

30. Haiti, Dominican Republic, Puerto Rica, Cuba, and Florida were in Fay’s path. Fay was a heavy rainmaker, generating more than 75 cm (30 in) of rain, and spawning tornadoes in florida.

32. GUSTAV CAUSED EXTENSIVE DAMAGE IN CUBA BEFORE REACHING USA. GUSTAV MADE LANDFALL AT 9:30 AM IN COCODRIE, LOUISIANA, ABOUT 70 MILES SOUTHWEST OF NEW ORLEANS. A CAT 2 HURRICANE WITH WINDS OF 183 KM/HR (110 MI/HR). THE STORM SURGE WAS 4 m (14 ft).

34. OIL PLATFORMS WERE EVACUATED AND PRODUCTION SHUT DOWN IN THE GULF OF MEXICO. NEARLY TWO MILLION PEOPLE WERE EVACUATED FROM NEW ORLEANS AND OTHER CITIES TO OTHER PARTS OF LOUISIANA AND TO OTHER STATES OVER ONE MILLION WITHOUT POWER

35. HURRICANE GUSTAV: NEW ORLEANS SPARED AS LEVEES HELD AND A CHANGE IN THE STORM’S PATH KEPT IT FROM BECOMING ANOTHER KATRINA

37. HURRICANE IKE WAS SIMILAR TO THE STORM THAT CAUSED THE SEPTEMBER 1, 1900 GALVESTON HURRICANE DISASTER

38. HURRICANE IKE‘S TRACK

39. HAITI, BAHAMAS (GRAND TURK ISLAND), CUBA, AND USA (TEXAS) HIT HARD GULF OIL PRODUCTION SHUT DOWN AGAIN, JUST TWO WEEKS AFTER GUSTAV PASSED THROUGH OIL TANKER CRISIS AND OIL STORAGE FIRE.

40. HURRICANE IKE: TURKS AND CIAOS: Grand Turk; SEPT 8

41. HURRICANE IKE: TCI: South Ciaos

43. MASS EVACUATIONS IN TEXAS A FLOODING and A WIND EVENT STORM SURGE OF 6-7 m EXTENDED INLAND 25-35 km OVER A DISTANCE OF 200 km

46. Thousands of homes and businesses in Texas and SW Louisiana were damaged or flooded

48. HURRICANE OMAR EXTENSIVE FLOODING IN MONTSERRAT WIND DAMAGE IN ANGUILLA OCTOBER 2008

49. MONTSERRAT

50. MARCOS, NANA, OPRAH, AND PALOMA COMPLETED THE SEASON The warm ocean temperatures, low wind shear, and absence of El Nino effects contributed to a long hurricane season in the Atlantic.

51. PAKISTAN EARTHQUAKE MAGNITUDE 6.4 SHALLOW 14 KM FOCAL DEPTH 5:10 AM 12, 000 HOMELESS IN 40 DEGREE WEATHER AT LEAST 200 DEAD OCTOBER 29, 2008

52. 2008 PAKISTAN EARTHQUAKE

53. Ziarat, located in the hills and one of the poorest areas of Pakistan, was devastated by landslides and collapse of mud brick houses. Early estimates indicate that as many as 12,000 are now homeless in 40 degree weather.

54. CALIFORNIA SHAKEOUT SCENARIO NOVEMBER 2008

55. ADVANCE PLANNING SO THAT CALIFORNIA WILL BE READY WHEN THE INEVITABLE “BIG ONES” RECUR Source: US Geological Survey

56. The goal is to identify the physical, social and economic consequences of a major earthquakes in California, so that end users can identify what they can change now—before the earthquake —to avoid catastrophic impacts after the quake occurs.

57. Because of its location in the densely populated Bay area of 7 million people, a Hayward fault earthquake is likely to be one of the nation's biggest natural disasters. A Hayward fault quake damages homes, schools, senior centers, hospitals, businesses and the campus of UC Berkeley and impacts 7 million people.

58. A M 7.0 earthquake on the Hayward fault will cause an estimated $210 billion dollars in damage. The region's transportation infrastructure and water delivery systems will take a major hit.

60. The magnitude 7.8 ShakeOut earthquake causes about 1800 deaths and $213 billion losses. These numbers are as low as they are because of aggressive retrofitting programs for buildings, highways and lifelines. The estimates of about 1800 deaths and $213 billion of economic losses are as large as they are because more retrofitting is needed. Hopefully, it can still be done.

61. USA REPORT ON EFFECTS OF GLOBAL WARMING JUNE 20, 2008

62. GLOBAL CLIMATE CHANGE: A PROBLEM IN THE USA increases in heavy downpours, rising temperature and sea level, rapidly retreating glaciers and thawing permafrost, lengthening growing seasons, lengthening ice-free seasons in the ocean and on lakes and rivers, earlier snowmelt, and alterations in river flows.