Annually various activities human and natural phenomena cause disaster environment and economic losses around the world. But apart from dark side, there is something delightful about the destructive power of nature.

This article will present you the most interesting natural phenomena and cataclysms that happened in 2011 and 2012, and at the same time remained not very well known to the public.

10. Sea smoke on the Black Sea, Romania.

Sea smoke is called evaporation sea ​​water, which is formed when the air is cold enough and the water warmed by the sun. Because of the temperature difference, the water begins to evaporate.

This beautiful photo was taken a few months ago in Romania by Dan Mihailescu.

9. Strange sounds coming from the frozen Black Sea, Ukraine.

If you've ever wondered what a frozen sea sounds like, here's the answer! Reminds me of scratching wood with nails.

The video was filmed on the coast of Odessa in Ukraine.

8. Trees in the web, Pakistan.

Unexpected by-effect of the great flood that flooded one-fifth of the land of Pakistan is that millions of spiders, escaping from the water, climbed trees and formed cocoons and huge tangles of cobwebs there.

7. Fire tornado - Brazil.

A rare phenomenon called "fire tornado" was caught on camera in Aracatuba, Brazil. A deadly cocktail high temperature, strong winds and fires formed a whirlwind of fire.

6. Cappuccino Coast, UK.

In December 2011, the seaside resort of Cleveleys, Lancashire was covered in cappuccino-colored sea foam (first photo). The second and third photos were taken in Cape Town, South Africa.

According to experts, sea foam is formed from molecules of fat and proteins created as a result of the decomposition of tiny sea creatures (Phaeocystis).

5. Snow in the desert, Namibia.

As you know, the Namibian Desert is the oldest desert on earth, and it would seem that, apart from sand and eternal heat, there can be nothing unusual here. However, judging by the statistics, it snows here almost every ten years.

The last time this happened was in June 2011, when snow fell between 11 am and 12 noon. On this day, the most low temperature in Namibia -7 degrees Celsius.

4. Huge whirlpool, Japan.

An incredibly large whirlpool formed at east coast Japan after the sensational tsunami last year. Whirlpools are common in tsunamis, but such large ones are rare.

3. Waterspouts, Australia.

In May 2011, four tornado-like tornadoes formed off the coast of Australia, one of which reached a height of 600 meters.

Waterspouts usually start as tornadoes - above the ground, and then move to a body of water. Their size in height starts from a few meters, and the width varies up to a hundred meters.

It is noteworthy that locals this region has not seen such phenomena for more than 45 years.

2. Massive sandstorms, USA.

This incredible video shows the huge sandstorm that engulfed Phoenix in 2011. The cloud of dust grew up to 50 km wide and reached 3 km in height.

Sandstorms are common meteorological phenomenon in Arizona, but researchers and local residents unanimously declared that this storm was the largest in the history of the state.

1. Volcanic ash from Lake Nahuel Huapi - Argentina.

The massive eruption of the Puyehue volcano - near the city of Osorno, in southern Chile, has created an incredible spectacle in Argentina.

Northeast winds blew some of the ash onto Lake Nahuel Huapi. And its surface was covered with a thick layer of volcanic debris, which is very abrasive and does not dissolve in water.

By the way, Nahuel Huapi is the deepest and cleanest lake in Argentina. The lake stretches for 100 km along the Chilean border.

The depth reaches 400 meters, and its area is 529 square meters. km.

Natural disasters were still described in the distant past, for example, described in the Bible " global flood". Floods happen quite often and can become truly global. For example, a flood in 1931 on the Yangtze River in China flooded an area of ​​300 thousand km², and in some areas the water remained for four months.

The destruction of the cities of Sodom and Gomorrah described in the Bible, according to scientists, resembles a natural phenomenon - an earthquake. Atlantis researchers are inclined to believe that the island was also flooded as a result of an earthquake. During the eruption of Mount Vesuvius, the cities of Herculaneum and Pompeii were buried under a layer of ash. The resulting tsunami can be the result of an earthquake and volcanic eruptions. The eruption of the Krakatoa volcano in 1833 was accompanied by an earthquake. As a result, a tidal wave was formed, which reached the shores of the islands of Java and Sumatra. The death toll was about 300 thousand people.
Natural disasters annually take about 50 thousand human lives. Since 1970, the statistics have been replenished with new data. During the earthquake in America in 1988, according to various estimates, from 25 to 50 thousand people died. Nine out of ten natural disasters are of four types. Floods account for - 40%, tropical cyclones - 20%, earthquakes and droughts - 15%. Tropical cyclones take the lead in the number of victims. Floods cause great material damage. According to R. Cates, the annual damage caused by natural disasters to the world economy is about 30 billion US dollars.

Natural disasters are natural processes that have destructive power, causing injuries and deaths.
To study natural disasters, it is necessary to know the nature of each of them. Natural disasters in the form of a tropical cyclone carry the danger of extreme action of all its elements: rain, wind, waves, storm surges. Storm surges are the most destructive.
In 1970, in the northern part of the Bay of Bengal, a tropical cyclone caused sea levels to rise by six meters. This led to flooding. As a result of the devastating hurricane and the beginning of the flood, about 300 thousand people died, Agriculture suffered a loss of 63 million dollars. 60% of the population died, mostly fishermen, 65% of fishing boats were destroyed. The consequences of the disaster affected the supply of protein food throughout the region.

Tropical cyclones are a seasonal phenomenon. On average, up to 110 incipient hurricanes are traced from satellites over the Atlantic annually. But only 10-11 of them will grow to gigantic sizes. It is necessary to predict the onset of a tropical cyclone in time to protect people. First, hurricanes are identified and then tracked from satellites. If the threat of a hurricane is detected, then its path and speed are predicted. The speed and direction of a tropical cyclone can be determined at a distance of 300 kilometers by radar. It is very important to identify the stretch of coastline where a storm surge can begin, as well as signs of a tornado. Weather services keep the public informed of the location and characteristics of the cyclone.
Floods are natural disasters that result in the flooding of coastal areas. initial stage flooding begins with the overflow of the channel and the release of water from the banks. Flooding is the most common natural phenomenon. Floods can occur on permanent and temporary streams, but even where there have never been rivers and lakes, such as areas where heavy rains occur.
Densely populated areas of the Earth suffer from floods: China, India, Bangladesh. Floods in China occur in the valleys of the Yellow River and the Yangtze. In spite of centuries of experience and hundreds of dams, the population of these areas are still victims of floods. Severe flooding along the lower reaches of the Yangtze River in the 20th century led to the fact that 60 million people suffered from hunger. During the flood in 1911, 100 thousand people became victims.

Floods still pose a great threat today. After heavy rains in 1952, the English resort town of Lynmouth was flooded. The flood destroyed buildings, flooded streets, and uprooted trees. A large number of people vacationing in Lynmouth were cut off from solid land. The next day, the dam burst and 34 people died.

Exist inverse relationship between property damage due to flooding and the number of victims. Countries that have something to lose have all the means to prevent or mitigate the effects of flooding. And vice versa, pre-industrial countries suffer more property damage, but do not have the necessary means to prevent disaster and save people. Flooding can cause outbreaks infectious diseases. To combat flooding, dams and dams are being built, reservoirs are being built to collect flood waters, and river beds are deepening.
Earthquakes are natural disasters caused by the sudden release of the energy of the earth's interior into the form shock waves and fluctuations. An earthquake is dangerous due to direct and secondary effects. Direct manifestations due to seismic waves and tectonic movements, cause soil displacement. Secondary effects are the cause of subsidence, compaction of the soil. As a result of secondary effects, cracks are formed on earth's surface, tsunami, snow avalanches, fires. A powerful earthquake is always accompanied a large number human casualties and material losses. According to statistics, the largest number of victims of this disaster falls on China, the USSR, Japan, and Italy. Approximately 14,000 people die from earthquakes each year. Zones of destruction from the epicenter of an earthquake can be several tens and hundreds of kilometers away. For example, the epicenter of the earthquake that hit Mexico in 1985 was located at pacific ocean, near the city of Acapulco. But, despite this, it was so powerful that a significant part of the country suffered, especially the capital of Mexico - Mexico City. On the Richter scale, the force of the shocks reached 7.8 points. Located 300 kilometers from the epicenter, about 250 buildings were destroyed in Mexico City, 20 thousand people were injured. The zone of devastation during the earthquake in Guatemala extended to 60 kilometers from the epicenter. ancient capital Antigua was completely destroyed, 23 thousand people died, 95% of the settlements were destroyed.

Predicting natural disasters is very difficult. On the this moment scientists can predict powerful seismic shocks but cannot specify exact time. But there were cases when scientists were able to accurately predict the earthquake. AT Chinese province Liaoning in 1974, local residents noticed signs of tectonic activity. The area was under the constant control of geologists, who, after the first shocks on February 1, 1975, managed to predict the possibility of devastating earthquake. The authorities took measures to evacuate the population, and an earthquake struck four days later, as a result of which 90% of the buildings were damaged. According to experts' forecasts, the number of victims could reach 3 million people, but thanks to the measures taken big sacrifices managed to avoid.

Up to 2 billion people continue to live in earthquake-prone areas. A radical measure to preserve the life and health of people is resettlement from seismically active zones.
Volcanic eruptions are natural disasters that have caused the death of 200 thousand people over 500 years. Until now, millions of people live in close proximity to volcanoes. On the island of Martinique in 1902, during a volcanic eruption, the city of Saint-Pierre was destroyed, which was located 8 kilometers from the Mont Pele volcano. The death toll was about 28 thousand people. This is almost the entire population of the city of St. Pierre. The activity of this volcano was already noted in 1851, but then there were no casualties and destruction. Experts predicted 12 days before the eruption that this eruption would be similar to the previous one, so none of the residents attached great importance to the beginning of the approaching disaster.

In 1985, the Ruiz volcano in Colombia “woke up”. This volcanic eruption resulted in a huge number of victims and property damage. The city of Amero, which was located 40 kilometers from Ruiz, suffered the most. The molten lava and gases melted the ice and snow on the top of the mountain, causing a mudflow that completely destroyed the city. 15 thousand people died, residents of the city of Amero. 20 thousand hectares of agricultural plantations, roads were destroyed, others were destroyed settlements. The total death toll was 25 thousand people, about 200 thousand were injured.
Natural disasters in the form of volcanic activity bring as much harm as in previous centuries. However, scientists managed to establish the size of the zones of influence of volcanoes. A lava flow spreads over a distance of up to 30 kilometers when major eruptions. Acid and hot gases pose a threat within a radius of several kilometers. Acid rains, which spread over a distance of 400-500 kilometers, cause burns in people, poisoning of vegetation and soil.

Natural disasters need to be studied in order to develop a system of measures to protect people's health and prevent mass human casualties. Great value has engineering-geographical zoning of natural disaster zones.

An avalanche is a huge mass of snow that periodically falls in the form of landslides and avalanches from steep ridges and slopes of high snowy mountains. Avalanches usually move along the weathering ruts existing on the slopes of the mountains and in the place where their movement stops, in river valleys and at the foot of the mountains, they deposit snow piles, known as avalanche cones.

In addition to occasional glaciers and hail avalanches, periodic winter and spring avalanches are distinguished. Winter avalanches occur due to the fact that freshly fallen loose snow, leaning on the icy surface of old snow, slides over it and rolls off in masses on steep slopes. insignificant reasons, often from a shot, a scream, a gust of wind, etc.

The gusts of wind caused by the rapid movement of the snow mass are so strong that they break trees, rip off roofs and even destroy buildings. Spring avalanches are caused by melting water breaking the bond between soil and snow cover. The snow mass on steeper slopes breaks off and rolls down, capturing in its movement stones, trees and buildings encountered on the way, which is accompanied by a strong rumble and crackling.

The place from which such an avalanche rolled down is in the form of a bare black clearing, and where the avalanche stops moving, an avalanche cone is formed, which has a loose surface at first. In Switzerland, avalanches are a common occurrence and have been the subject of repeated observations. The mass of snow delivered by individual avalanches sometimes reaches 1 million or even more m³.

Avalanches, except for the Alps, were observed in the Himalayan mountains, Tien Shan, in the Caucasus, in Scandinavia, where avalanches breaking down from mountain peaks sometimes they reach fiords, in the Cordillera and other mountains.

Sel (from the Arabic "sail" - "turbulent stream") is a water, stone or mud stream that occurs in the mountains when rivers overflow, snow melts or after a large amount of precipitation. Similar conditions apply to most mountainous areas.

According to the composition of the mudflow mass, mudflows are divided into mud-stone, mud, water-stone and water-dressing, and according to physical types - disconnected and connected. In non-cohesive mudflows, the transport medium for solid inclusions is water, and in coherent mudflows, a water-ground mixture. Mudflows move along the slopes at a speed of up to 10 m/s or more, and the mass volume reaches hundreds of thousands, and sometimes millions of cubic meters, and the mass is 100-200 tons.

Mudflows sweep away everything in their path: destroy roads, buildings, etc. To combat mudflows on the most dangerous slopes, special structures are installed and a vegetation cover is created that holds the soil layer on the mountain slopes.

In ancient times, the inhabitants of the Earth could not find true reason this event, therefore, they associated the volcanic eruption with the disfavor of the gods. Eruptions often caused the death of entire cities. So, at the very beginning of our era, during the eruption of the volcano Vesuvius, one of the greatest cities Roman Empire - Pompeii. The ancient Romans called the god of fire a volcano.

Volcanic eruption is often preceded by an earthquake. In time, in addition to lava, hot stones, gases, water vapor, and ash fly out of the crater, the height of which can reach 5 km. But the greatest danger to people is precisely the eruption of lava, which melts even stones and destroys all life in its path. During one eruption, up to several km³ of lava is ejected from the volcano. But a volcanic eruption is not always accompanied by a lava flow. Volcanoes can be dormant for many years, and the eruption lasts from several days to several months.

Volcanoes are divided into active and extinct. Active volcanoes are those last eruption which the information has been preserved. Some volcanoes last erupted so long ago that no one remembers it. Such volcanoes are called extinct. Volcanoes that erupt every few thousand years are called potentially active. If in total there are about 4 thousand volcanoes on Earth, of which 1340 are potentially active.

In the earth's crust, which is under the cover of the sea or ocean, the same processes take place as on the mainland. Lithospheric plates collide, causing tremors in the earth's crust. There are active volcanoes at the bottom of the seas and oceans. It is as a result of underwater earthquakes and volcanic eruptions that huge waves are formed, which are called tsunamis. This word is translated from Japanese language means "giant wave in the harbour".

As a result of concussion ocean floor a huge volume of water moves. The farther from the epicenter of the earthquake the wave moves, the higher it becomes. As the wave approaches land, the lower layers of water hit the bottom, further increasing the power of the tsunami.

The height of a tsunami is usually 10-30 meters. When such a huge mass of water, moving at speeds up to 800 km/h, hits the shore, nothing living is able to survive. The wave sweeps away everything in its path, after which it picks up fragments of destroyed objects and throws them deep into the island or mainland. Usually, the first won is followed by several more (from 3 to 10). Waves 3 and 4 are usually the strongest.

One of the most destructive tsunami fell on the Commander Islands in 1737. According to experts, the wave height was more than 50 meters. Only a tsunami of such power could throw so far on the island the inhabitants of the ocean, whose remains were found by scientists.

One more large tsunami happened in 1883 after the eruption of the volcano Krakatau. Because of this, small desert island, on which Krakatau was located, fell into the water to a depth of 200 meters. The wave that reached the islands of Java and Sumatra reached 40 meters in height. As a result of this tsunami, about 35 thousand people died.

Tsunamis do not always have such dire consequences. Sometimes giant waves do not reach the shores of continents or islands inhabited by people and remain practically unnoticed. AT open ocean, before impact with the shore, the height of the tsunami does not exceed one meter, so for ships far from the coast it does not

An earthquake is a strong vibration of the earth's surface caused by processes occurring in the lithosphere. Most earthquakes occur near high mountains, since these areas are still being formed and Earth's crust especially mobile here.

Earthquakes are of several types: tectonic, volcanic and landslide. Tectonic earthquakes occur during displacement mountain plates or as a result of collisions between oceanic and continental platforms. During such collisions, mountains or depressions are formed and the surface oscillates.

Volcanic earthquakes occur when flows of hot lava and gases press down on the surface of the Earth. Volcanic earthquakes are usually not too strong, but can last up to several weeks. In addition, volcanic earthquakes are usually the forerunners of a volcanic eruption, which threatens with more serious consequences.

Landslide earthquakes are associated with the formation of underground voids that occur under the influence of ground water or underground rivers. At the same time, the top layer of the earth's surface collapses down, causing small shaking.

The place where an earthquake occurs (collision of plates) is called its source or hypocenter. The area of ​​the earth's surface where an earthquake occurs is called the epicenter. It is here that the most severe destruction occurs.

The strength of earthquakes is determined on a ten-point Richter scale, depending on the amplitude of the wave that occurs during the vibration of the surface. The larger the amplitude, the stronger earthquake. The weakest earthquakes (1-4 points on the Richter scale) are recorded only by special sensitive instruments and do not cause damage. Sometimes they manifest themselves in the form of glass trembling or moving objects, and sometimes they are completely invisible. Earthquakes of 5-7 on the Richter scale cause minor damage, and stronger ones can cause complete destruction of buildings.

Seismologists study earthquakes. According to them, about 500,000 earthquakes occur on our planet every year. different strength. About 100 thousand of them are felt by people, and 1000 cause damage.

Floods are one of the most common natural disasters. They make up 19% of total number natural disasters. Flooding is the flooding of land that occurs as a result of a strong rise in the water level in a river, lake or sea (spill), due to the melting of snow or ice, as well as heavy and prolonged rains.

Depending on the cause of the flood, they are divided into 5 types:

High water - a flood that occurs as a result of melting snow and the release of a reservoir from its natural banks

Flood - a flood associated with heavy rains

Flooding caused by large accumulations of ice that clog the riverbed and prevent water from flowing downstream

Floods caused by strong winds that push water in one direction, most often against the current

Floods resulting from a dam or reservoir failure.

Floods and floods occur every year wherever there is deep rivers and lakes. They are usually expected, they heat up relatively large area and do not lead to the death of a large number of people, although they cause destruction. If these types of floods are accompanied by heavy rains, then a much larger area is already flooded. Usually, as a result of such floods, only small buildings are destroyed without a reinforced foundation, communication and power supply are disrupted. The main inconvenience is the flooding of the lower floors of buildings and roads, as a result of which the inhabitants of the flooded areas remain cut off from land.

In some areas where floods are most frequent, houses are even raised on special piles. Floods resulting from the destruction of dams have a large destructive force especially since they happen unexpectedly.

One of the most severe floods occurred in 2000 in Australia. Heavy rain did not stop there for two weeks, as a result of which 12 rivers immediately overflowed their banks and flooded an area of ​​200 thousand km².

To prevent floods and their consequences during the floods, the ice on the rivers is blown up, breaking it into small ice floes that do not prevent the flow of water. If it fell during the winter a large number of snow, which threatens with a strong flood of the river, residents from dangerous areas are evacuated in advance.

Hurricane and tornado are atmospheric vortices. However, these two natural phenomena are formed and manifest themselves in different ways. A hurricane is accompanied by strong winds, and a tornado occurs in thunderclouds and is an air funnel that sweeps away everything in its path.

The speed of a hurricane wind on Earth is 200 km/h near the earth. This is one of the most destructive phenomena nature: passing on the surface of the earth, it uproots trees, tears off the roofs of houses, brings down the supports of power lines and communications. A hurricane can exist for several days, weakening and then gaining strength again. The danger of a hurricane is assessed on a special five-point scale, which was adopted in the last century. The degree of danger depends on the speed of the wind and on the destruction that the hurricane produces. But terrestrial hurricanes are far from the strongest. On the giant planets (Jupiter, Saturn, Uranus, Neptune), hurricane wind speeds reach 2000 km/h.

A tornado is formed when moving unevenly heated layers of air. It spreads in the form of a dark sleeve towards the land (funnel). The height of the funnel can reach 1500 meters. The funnel of the tornado twists from the bottom up counterclockwise, sucking in everything that is next to it. It is because of the dust and water captured from the ground that the tornado acquires dark color and becomes visible from afar.

The speed of the tornado can reach 20 m/s, and the diameter can be up to several hundred meters. Its strength allows uprooted trees, cars and even small buildings to be lifted into the air. A tornado can occur not only over land, but also over the water surface.

The height of a spinning air column can reach a kilometer and even one and a half kilometers, it moves at a speed of 10-20 m / s. Its diameter can be from 10 meters (if the tornado passes over the ocean) to several hundred meters (if it passes over the ground). Often a tornado is accompanied by a thunderstorm, rain or even hail. It exists much less than a hurricane (only 1.5-2 hours) and is able to travel only 40-60 km.
The most frequent and strong tornadoes originate on the west coast of America. Americans even assign human names to the largest natural disasters (Katrina, Denis). A tornado in America is called a tornado.

Often in the news you can hear that a natural disaster has happened somewhere. This means that a strong storm or hurricane swept through, an earthquake occurred, or a turbulent mud stream descended from the mountains. Tsunamis, floods, tornadoes, volcanic eruptions, landslides, drought - all these natural phenomena are destructive in nature, take the lives of people, demolish houses, neighborhoods, and sometimes entire cities, cause serious economic damage.

Definition of a cataclysm

What does the word "cataclysm" mean? This is, by definition explanatory dictionary Ushakov, a sharp change in conditions organic life, which is observed on a significant surface of the Earth (planet) and is due to the influence of atmospheric, volcanic and geological processes.

The explanatory dictionary edited by Efremov and Shvedov defines a cataclysm as a destructive change in nature, a catastrophe.

Also, in each dictionary it is indicated that in figurative meaning cataclysm is a global and destructive change in the life of society, a disastrous social upheaval.

Of course, you can see common features in all definitions. As you can see, the main meaning that the concept of "cataclysm" carries in itself is destruction, disaster.

Types of natural and social disasters

Depending on the source of occurrence, the following types of disasters are distinguished:

• geological - earthquake or volcanic eruption, mudflow, landslide, avalanche or collapse;
• hydrological - tsunami, flood, breakthrough to the surface from the depths of a gas reservoir (CO 2);
• thermal - forest or peat fire;
• meteorological - hurricane, storm, tornado, cyclone, snowstorm, drought, hail, prolonged downpour.

These natural disasters differ in character and duration (from several minutes to several months), but they all pose a threat to human life and health.

In a separate category, man-made disasters are distinguished - accidents on nuclear installations, chemical objects, treatment facilities, dam failures and other cataclysms. Their occurrence provokes a symbiosis of natural forces and the anthropogenic factor.

The most famous social cataclysm is war, revolution. Also emergencies. social character may be associated with overpopulation, migration, epidemics, global unemployment, terrorism, genocide, separatism.

The most terrible cataclysms in the history of the Earth

In 1138 in the city of Aleppo ( modern Syria) happened powerful earthquake, which completely wiped the city off the face of the earth and claimed 230 thousand human lives.

In December 2004, a 9.3 magnitude underwater earthquake hit the Indian Ocean. It triggered a tsunami. Huge 15-meter waves reached the shores of Thailand, India and Indonesia. The number of victims reached 300 thousand people.

In August 1931, in China, due to monsoon rains, severe flood, which claimed the lives of 4 million (!) People. And in August 1975, due to a powerful typhoon in China, the Banqiao Dam was destroyed. This provoked the largest flood in the last 2000 years, the water went 50 kilometers deep into the mainland, created artificial reservoirs with a total area of ​​12 thousand km2. As a result, the death toll reached 200 thousand people.

What can expect the blue planet in the future

Scientists predict that in the future our planet is expected severe catastrophes and cataclysms.

Global warming, which has been worrying progressive minds for more than 50 years, may in the future provoke unprecedented floods, droughts, heavy rains, which will lead not only to millions of victims, but also to a global economic and social crisis.

Also, do not forget that the asteroid 99942 weighing 46 million tons and 500 meters in diameter is inexorably approaching our planet. Astronomers predict a likely collision in 2029 that will destroy the Earth. NASA has created a special working group to solve this very serious

Today, the attention of the whole world is drawn to Chile, where a large-scale eruption of the Calbuco volcano began. The time has come to remember 7 biggest natural disasters recent years to know what we can expect in the future. Nature attacks people earlier people attacked nature.

Calbuco volcano eruption. Chile

Mount Calbuco in Chile is a fairly active volcano. However, its last eruption took place more than forty years ago - in 1972, and even then it lasted only one hour. But on April 22, 2015, everything changed in the worst side. Calbuco in literally exploded, starting the emission of volcanic ash to a height of several kilometers.

On the Internet you can find great amount videos about this amazing beauty spectacle. However, it is pleasant to enjoy the view only through a computer, being thousands of kilometers from the scene. In reality, being near Calbuco is scary and deadly.

The Chilean government decided to resettle all people within a radius of 20 kilometers from the volcano. And this is only the first step. It is not yet known how long the eruption will last and what real damage it will bring. But it will definitely be a sum of several billion dollars.

Earthquake in Haiti

On January 12, 2010, Haiti suffered a catastrophe of unprecedented proportions. There were several tremors, the main of which had a magnitude of 7. As a result, almost the entire country was in ruins. Even the presidential palace, one of the most majestic and capital buildings in Haiti, was destroyed.

More than 222,000 people died and 311,000 were injured during and after the earthquake, according to official figures. varying degrees. At the same time, millions of Haitians were left homeless.

This is not to say that magnitude 7 is something unprecedented in the history of seismic observations. The scale of destruction turned out to be so huge due to the high deterioration of the infrastructure in Haiti, and also because of the extremely Low quality absolutely all buildings. In addition to this, just local population was in no hurry to provide first aid to the victims, as well as to participate in the removal of rubble and the restoration of the country.

As a result, an international military contingent was sent to Haiti, which took over the government in the first period after the earthquake, when the traditional authorities were paralyzed and extremely corrupt.

Tsunami in the Pacific Ocean

Until December 26, 2004, the vast majority of the inhabitants of the Earth knew about the tsunami exclusively from textbooks and disaster films. However, that day will forever remain in the memory of Mankind due to huge wave that covered the coast of dozens of states in the Indian Ocean.

It all started with a major earthquake with a magnitude of 9.1-9.3 that happened a little north of the island Sumatra. It caused giant wave up to 15 meters high, which spread in all directions of the ocean and meaning from the face of the Earth hundreds of settlements, as well as world-famous seaside resorts.

Tsunami covered coastal zones in Indonesia, India, Sri Lanka, Australia, Myanmar, South Africa, Madagascar, Kenya, Maldives, Seychelles, Oman and other states on the coast indian ocean. Statisticians counted more than 300 thousand dead in this disaster. At the same time, the bodies of many could not be found - the wave carried them into the open ocean.

The consequences of this disaster are enormous. In many places infrastructure was never fully restored after the 2004 tsunami.

Eyjafjallajökull volcano eruption

The hard-to-pronounce Icelandic name Eyjafjallajokull became one of the most popular words in 2010. And all thanks to the volcanic eruption in the mountain range with this name.

Paradoxically, not a single person died during this eruption. But this natural disaster seriously disrupted business life all over the world, especially in Europe. After all, a huge amount of volcanic ash thrown into the sky from the Eyjafjallajökull vent completely paralyzed air traffic in the Old World. The natural disaster destabilized the lives of millions of people in Europe itself, as well as in North America.

Thousands of flights, both passenger and cargo, were cancelled. The daily losses of airlines during that period amounted to more than $200 million.

Earthquake in China's Sichuan province

As in the case of the earthquake in Haiti, a huge number of victims after a similar disaster in the Chinese province of Sichuan, which occurred there on May 12, 2008, is due to low level capital buildings.

As a result of the main earthquake magnitude 8, as well as subsequent smaller concussions, in Sichuan, more than 69 thousand people died, 18 thousand were missing, and 288 thousand were injured.

At the same time, the Chinese government People's Republic severely limited international assistance in the disaster area, it tried to solve the problem with my own hands. According to experts, the Chinese thus wanted to hide the real extent of what happened.

For publishing real data about the dead and destruction, as well as for articles about corruption, which led to such huge numbers of losses, the PRC authorities even imprisoned the most famous contemporary Chinese artist, Ai Weiwei, for several months.

Hurricane Katrina

However, the scale of the consequences of a natural disaster does not always directly depend on the quality of construction in a particular region, as well as on the presence or absence of corruption there. An example of this is Hurricane Katrina, which hit the Southeast coast of the United States in the Gulf of Mexico in late August 2005.

Hurricane Katrina hit the city New Orleans and the state of Louisiana. The rising water level in several places broke through the dam protecting New Orleans, and about 80 percent of the city was under water. At that moment, entire districts were destroyed, infrastructure facilities were destroyed, road junctions and communications.

The population who refused or did not have time to evacuate fled on the roofs of houses. The famous Superdom stadium became the main gathering place for people. But it turned into a trap at the same time, because it was already impossible to get out of it.

During the hurricane, 1,836 people died and more than a million were made homeless. Damage from this natural disaster estimated at $125 billion. At the same time, New Orleans for ten years has not been able to return to a full-fledged normal life– The population of the city is still about a third less than in 2005.

March 11, 2011 in the Pacific Ocean east of the island of Honshu, shocks with a magnitude of 9-9.1 occurred, which led to the appearance of a huge tsunami wave up to 7 meters high. She hit Japan, washing away many coastal objects and going deep into the tens of kilometers.

AT different parts In Japan, after the earthquake and tsunami, fires broke out, infrastructure was destroyed, including industrial. In total, almost 16 thousand people died as a result of this disaster, and economic losses amounted to about 309 billion dollars.

But this turned out to be not the worst. The world knows about the 2011 disaster in Japan, primarily because of the accident on nuclear power plant Fukushima, which happened as a result of the collapse of a tsunami wave on it.

More than four years have passed since this accident, but the operation at the nuclear power plant is still ongoing. And the settlements closest to it were permanently settled. So Japan got its own.

A large-scale natural disaster is one of the options for the death of our Civilization. We have collected .