A disaster is a perceived tragedy, being either a natural calamity or man-made catastrophe. It is a hazard which has come to fruition. A hazard, in turn, is a situation which poses a level of threat to life, health, property, or that may deleteriously affect society or an environment.

In contemporary academia, disasters are seen as the consequence of inappropriately managed risk. These risks are the product of hazards and vulnerability. Hazards that strike in areas with low vulnerability are not considered a disaster, as is the case in uninhabited regions.

Developing countries suffer the greatest costs when a disaster hits – more than 95 percent of all deaths caused by disasters occur in developing countries, and losses due to natural disasters are 20 times greater (as a percentage of GDP) in developing countries than in industrialized countries.

A disaster can be defined as any tragic event with great loss stemming from events such as earthquakes, floods, catastrophic accidents, fires, or explosions.

From Wikipedia under the GNU Free Documentation License
Sat Aug 28 18:58:50 2010

barrage trois gorges 1 jpg
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Comment resoudre l envasement des barrages Une solution chinoise + Photos catastrophes

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Pomarede t l ecriture

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Photos apres la catastrophe

From Yahoo Image Search: "Catastrophes"
Sun Sep 5 21:35:25 2010

 Catastrophes and Transitions
divorceyourcar.blogspot.com
Catastrophes and Transitions

Kate

hu, 15 Jul 2010 20:04:00 GM

I scanned this story, then wandered into the burgeoning periphery of Gulf . catastrophe. reporting to read of related concerns among them, contamination of crab larvae with spots of oil; the huge amount of methane in the water near the ...

From Google Blog Search: "Catastrophes"
Wed Sep 8 00:14:47 2010

See also:

  • Challenges of Nanotechnology Misuse Cited in Leslie's 'The End of the World'Challenges of Nanotechnology Misuse Cited in Leslie's 'The End of the World'
    foresight.org
    From the Foresight Institute (which specialises in nanotechnology). (September 15, 1996)
  • Tsunami ProjectTsunami Project
    tsunamiproject.blogspot.com
    The powerful earthquake and tsunami that hit Asia on December 26, 2004 was not the last in the masterminded sequence. The location of the next, and the final one is known. What we are still looking for, is only the date of this event.
  • Exit MundiExit Mundi
    xs4all.nl
    A variety of apocalypses: meteors, black holes, technological disasters, weird physical phenomena, religious writings, robots, and aliens.
Custom search only Catastrophes sites:

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Fri Sep 3 13:41:39 2010
Harleysville Group Comments on Impact from Second Quarter Catastrophes - MarketWatch (press release)
marketwatch.com
Harleysville Group Comments on Impact from Second Quarter Catastrophes - MarketWatch (press release)
Thu, 29 Jul 2010 20:11:43 GMT+00:00
MarketWatch (press release) In the second quarter of 2009, when Harleysville Group reported operating income of $0.72 per share, the company experienced net catastrophe losses of $0.08 ...
Acronyms that accidentally turned naughty - CNN
cnn.com
Acronyms that accidentally turned naughty - CNN
Tue, 17 Aug 2010 18:18:12 GMT+00:00
cnn she didn't foresee the name eventually signifying one of the greatest medical catastrophes of the century, though. By 1985, the LA Times reported that ...
The Hartford profits in 2Q; lowers outlook - Hartford Business
hartfordbusiness.com
The Hartford profits in 2Q; lowers outlook - Hartford Business
Thu, 05 Aug 2010 15:38:54 GMT+00:00
Hartford Business "The Hartford performed well, reporting another quarter of profitability in spite of market volatility, higher than expected catastrophes and several ... Hartford Exceeds, Profits Soar Zacks.com Hartford Financial Swings To 2Q Profit; EPS View Cut >HIG Wall Street Journal

From Google News Search: "Catastrophes"
Sun Sep 5 21:35:25 2010

Is the percentage of plane catastrophes higher that this for helicopters?
Q. Is helicopter safer air transport vehicle than aeroplane?
Asked by ThanksBelit - Wed Jan 10 07:14:47 2007 - - 5 Answers - 0 Comments

A. There are more helicopter accidents per year than airplane (by percentage - there are more planes out there), but helicopters tend to be more survivable. Most of the reason for the higher accident rate is because the helicopter is used in higher risk environments (fire-fighting, heavy lift, remote areas) Personally, I'd rather crash in a helicopter than an airplane, and that's why I fly them.
Answered by lowflyer1 - Wed Jan 10 13:44:54 2007

What were some catastrophes that occured in the era of 1980-1989?
Q. I need to know about important catastophe occurrances in the decade of 1980-1989. Thanks.
Asked by efrosty - Tue Jun 5 21:59:38 2007 - - 7 Answers - 0 Comments

A. This page has a list of airline disasters in the 1980's Here is a list of natural disasters by death toll, but it lists the year for each so you can pick out the ones in the 80's. Here is a chronological list of all wars. See the 1945-1989 section.
Answered by nowyat - Tue Jun 5 22:04:56 2007

what are the most important catastrophes in Julius Caesar that link to Brutus' honor?
Q. i need help to try to find the most important catastropes in Julius Caesar BUT they have to link into how Brutus is Honorable
Asked by Kassandra.Rose - Wed Apr 23 16:20:40 2008 - - 2 Answers - 0 Comments

A. Essay. (The Fallacy of Brutus by James Daniel ) Julius Caesar Features: Scene-By-Scene Summary and Commentary, Plot Summary, Character Descriptions, Literary Analysis Themes.
Answered by Oracle - Sat Apr 26 12:55:11 2008

From Yahoo Answer Search: "Catastrophes"
Sun Sep 5 21:35:26 2010

RA solution PPE sur les naturelles
eppgroup.eu
RA solution PPE sur les naturelles

Sun, 18 Apr 2010 00:00:00 PDT

Le dA putA grec Theodoros Skylakakis explique le contenu d'une rA solution du groupe du PPE rA clamant la solidaritA de l'UE pour l&#39 ... eppgroup.eu.

Inondations : des naturelles de plus en plus frequentes
helpdoctors.org
Inondations : des naturelles de plus en plus frequentes

Wed, 10 Sep 2008 00:00:00 PDT

Video Reuters : inondations Septembre 2008. helpdoctors.org​.

ETNA
espanol.​video.​yahoo.​com
ETNA

Sun, 15 Aug 2010 03:46:25 PDT

Un survol de l'Etna par la peinture une exploration pour sensibiliser aux catastrophes naturelles eruptions seismes et autres phenomenes ... espanol.video.y​ahoo.com.

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