Natural Disasters

A.C. Narayana
Centre for Earth & Space Sciences
University of Hyderabad
Central University P.O.
Hyderabad 500 046
acnes@uohyd.ernet.in
Talk delivered at Academic Staff College, UoH,
21st November 2010

- Earthquakes
- Volcanoes
- Tsunamis
- Storm Surges/Cyclones
- Floods
- Landslides
- Exogenic/Endogenic
- Impact on creatures, human life, surroundings

Earthquakes, volcanoes and landslides cannot be predicted

Concept of the Plate Tectonics

Plate tectonic theory is based on an earth model characterized

by a small number of lithospheric plates (there are 7 major plates
and many smaller ones), 70 to 250 km thick, that float on a
viscous under-layer called the asthenosphere.
These plates move relative to each other at rates of up to 10
cm/year.
The region where two plates come in contact is called a plate
boundary. The way in which one plate moves relative to another
determines the type of boundary: spreading, where the two
plates move away from each other; subduction, where the two
plates move toward each other and one slides beneath the other;
and transform, where the two plates slide horizontally past each
other.

Seismicity Map of India and Adjoining Regions

Seismic Zoning Map of India

Damage due to Earthquakes

Vertical Forces

Horizontal Forces
Duration and Frequency
Acceleration
(g)
0.1
0.01

0.01
10cps
3

Amplitude (in)
0.1
1
10
3
1
0.3
1
0.3 0.1

100
0.1
0.03

Tsunamis
Earthquakes and tsunamis
Tsunamis can be generated when the sea floor abruptly

deforms and vertically displaces the overlying water

When these earthquakes occur beneath the sea, the water
above the deformed area is displaced from its equilibrium
position. Waves are formed as the displaced water mass,
which acts under the influence of gravity attempts to regain
its equilibrium. When large areas of the sea floor elevate or
subside, a tsunami can be created.
Not all earthquakes generate tsunamis
Shallow focus earthquakes (depth less than 70 km) along
subduction zones are responsible for most destructive
tsunamis
10

Tsunami speed is reduced in shallow waters as

wave height increases rapidly

Depth
(m)
7000

Velocity
(km/h)
943

Wavelength
(km)
282

4000

713

213

2000

504

151

200

159

48

50

79

23

10

36

10.6

5.4

1.59

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 What Happens To a Tsunami as it Approaches

Land?
What Happens When a Tsunami Encounters
Land?
How Fast Can Tsunami Travel?
How Big Can Tsunamis Grow?
How frequently can Tsunamis recur?
Tsunami Warning Centers in the Pacific Rim
Countries
Tsunami Research Activities
Why No Warning Was Issued?
The Need of the Hour

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Tsunami waves hitting the coast of Maldives and

curious tourists watching it

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Tsunami waves engulfing the buildings,

automobiles and hundreds of people

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Rising Tsunami waves of 10m height and tourists

running away for their life

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Attack of Tsunami at Phuket, Northern Indonesia

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Eruption of Volcano at Mauna Loa

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Floods
Kosy River Flood 2008
Tungabhadra-Kurnool Flood - 2009

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Satellite pictures
of August 24,
2008 (A)
showing the
post-flood
channel and of
August 8, 2008
(B) illustrating
the pre-flood
channel.

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The Kosi River has a history of devastating floods

and capricious behaviour, and is aptly called the river
of sorrow. On August 18, 2008 the river suddenly
tore apart its eastern embankment at Kusaha in Nepal
and reoccupied one of its former courses (Fig. 1),
causing the worst flood in last five decades.
The flood overwhelmed the life and the landscape of
Bihar. In terms of the quantum of destruction, this
extraordinary event is comparable to the supercyclone of October 29, 1999 and the tsunami of
December 26, 2004. This megaflood uprooted over
three million people, swamped hundreds of villages
and caused serious damage to infrastructure.
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2009 Tungabhadra River Floods

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Kedarnath Floods June 16, 2013

Coordinates:
30o44N 7904E
Elevation

3,553 m (11,657 ft)

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On June 16, 2013, at about 7:30 p.m. a landslide

occurred near Kedarnath Temple with loud thunder
followed by gushing of huge amount of waters from
Chorabari Tal or Gandhi Tal down Mandakini river at
about 8:30 p.m. which washed everything away in its
path. Then again the next day on the 17th of June, 2013
at about 6:40 a.m. in the morning waters rushed down
river Saraswati and from Chorabari Tal or Gandhi
Sarovar bringing along with its flow huge amount of
silt, rocks and boulders. A huge boulder got stuck
behind Baba Kedarnath Temple, protecting it from the
ravages of the flood's fury. The flood waters gushed on
both the sides of the temple destroying everything their
path. Thus in the middle of pilgrimage season,
torrential rains, cloud burst and resulting flash floods 32
nearly destroyed the Kedarnath town.

The town was the worst affected area by the floods.[5]

Thousands of people were feared killed and many
thousands of others (mostly pilgrims) were reported
missing or stranded due to landslides around Kedarnath.
Although the surrounding area and compound of the
Kedarnath temple were destroyed, the temple itself is still
standing amid surrounding debris. The rescue operation
resulted in about more than 100000 people being airlifted
with the help of Indian Army, Air force, NDRF and IndoTibet border police force. A helicopter (Mi 17) crashed
during this exercise killing all 20 people on board (all of
them were soldiers involved in relief and rescue work).
The air force dropped logs to build pyres for mass
cremations of the victims.
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Cyclones

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Landslides
Rain-induced landslides-devastating natural disasters
Challenges for science community
-Understanding the surface and meteorological processes that
lead to landslides
-To determine how new technology and techniques be applied
to reduce the risk of the land slides
Advantage of advances in Satellite Remote Sensing and
other global data sets
-For the development of landslide susceptibility maps based
on satellite-based BEM
-Satellite land cover information
- Digital map of soil characteristic
- High time resolution, multi satellite precipitation analysis

 Landslide occurrence can be broadly classified in to two categories

- Preparatory variables that make the land surface susceptible to
slide (such as slope, soil properties, litho logy etc.)
- The triggering variables that induce land mass movement (such
as rain fall)
Landslide Susceptibility Maps
- Best method to assess landslide susceptibility is through field
surveys
- Recent advances in Remote Sensing techniques contribute to
determining landslide susceptibility by providing information on
land surface feature and characteristics.

Rainfall and Landslides

- The spatial distribution, duration and intensity of precipitation
play important role in triggering landslides.
- Comprehensive modeling of a physical processes involve in
landslide helps pinpoint causes of land mass movement in relation
to rainfall.

b)

Figure (a) Global landslide hazard index and hot spots and (b)
landslide occurrences collected from news reports and other
sources during the period of January 2004 through September
2006. Note how the actual landslides in figure 1b match with
regions identified as having high landslide susceptibility.

Satellite-based rainfall intensity-duration threshold curve for

triggering landslides (Orange line) for landslides (squares) that
occurred around the globe in the period 1998-2005; and raingauge-based threshold (dashed blue line) curve from Caine
[1980; after Hong et al., 2006]. Note that satellite-based threshold
falls below Caines threshold, likely because the satellite rainfall
is an area-average value, rather than a point accumulation.

Mitigation and Management of Natural Disasters

Four Phases of Response for disaster management
(i) Disaster Relief
(ii) Disaster Reconstruction
(iii) Disaster Management and Preparedness
(iv) Disaster reduction
The first two phases focus on regions which have
experienced the disaster
The third looks at improved emergency response to
future disasters to mitigate the adverse effects.
The last one looks at modifying the habitat and
infrastructure of all regions at risk such that
destruction of life, habitat, infrastructure and
livelihood are significantly reduced.
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Guide to Disaster Reduction

Should address needs of communities at
risk of inundation from floods, storm
surges associated with tropical cyclones,
earthquakes and tsunamis.

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Needs/ Requirements
Working Commission with structural, coastal and
earthquake engineers, meteorologists, geoscientists and
social scientists be established.
The ability to survive inundation without loss of life, and
with acceptable physical damage to housing and
infrastructure, any of the disaster events having a return
period of 50 years
The minimization of the loss of life and damage to
essential services while accepting significant physical
damage to housing and infrastructure, any of the events
having a return period of 100, 300, 500 and 1000 years.
The capacity for the communities themselves to
implement the disaster program.
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Disaster Reduction along the Indian coasts

Two hazards cyclones and tsunamis threaten the coasts of Indian Ocean.
An average of 10 intense tropical cyclones
each year can wreak havoc, since they can
cause storm surges (up to 7 m reported in
the Bay of Bengal) coupled with high waves,
wind and floods.

In the last 50 years they have produced

more deaths and loss of livelihood than all
the tsunamis of the last 280 years including
the recent one.
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Issues involved in effecting a reduction of disasters in the face of

natural cataclysmic events, with particular emphasis on coastal
communities.

How to Address the Problem?

A quantified risk assessment by magnitude and return period of
all cataclysmic events.
Determination of the effect of those events with respect to
depth, velocity and inland penetration of inundation, ground
acceleration etc. as affected by local topology.
Determination of the effect of such inundation on buildings and
infrastructure.
Implementation of an affordable disaster reduction strategy
depending on the importance of the structure or facility and the
risk of loss of life.
Implementation of the disaster reduction strategy at the local
community level.
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