 The photo above is a satellite image of a hurricane.  A hurricane is one of the most devastating natural disasters.  This storm consists of high speed spiralling winds and intense rainfall.  Hurricanes form over oceans and eventually move over land.  Property destruction, flooding, injuries, and death are common consequences of major hurricanes.

 Life is full of risks and hazards.  Hazard: lack of predictability which usually involves danger.  People deal with hazards and risks on a daily basis.  However, people go to extraordinary lengths to reduce hazards.  For example: people install alarm systems and smoke detectors

 Cities can also be subject to hazards.  This is when the population is exposed to various types of threats. 1. Natural (earthquakes, hurricanes, etc) 2. Socio-economic (war, despression) 3. Technical (computer failure, explosion at a factory) 4. Biological (increase in insect or vermin infestation)  Some cities may have to deal with one or more of these threats.

 All of these threats can result in property damage, economic loss, environmental damage and death.  The larger the population of a city, the larger the hazard is.  There are several types of hazards.  For our course we will study natural hazards.  Natural hazards such as; seismic activity (earthquake), volcanoes, cyclones, and floods.

 Natural phenomenon: is anything that happens in nature, away from a human population  Risk: is when natural phenomenon threatens a population  Issue: is population or property which is threatened.  Natural disaster: occurs when property or a population is not sufficiently protected against a risk.

 As mentioned above risks are all around us.  There are different organizations that analyze risk of damage or death due to a natural or human phenomenon.  For example: dying from smoking 10 cigarettes a day, 1 in 200  Ex: Dying from the flu 1 in 5000  Ex: Dying during an earthquake in California 1 in

 Many of the world’s major cities are located in risk prone zones.  Current estimates place the earth’s population at roughly 7 billion.  Most of the earth’s population live on coastlines, fault lines, or in close proximity to volcanoes.

 Natural hazards are not equally distributed throughout the world.  There are some areas that experience higher threats than others.  For Example: Montreal has flood risks only, whereas most European countries have several hazards.  Almost all territories on earth have natural hazards.  Most of these hazards are not constant but all areas have experienced some form of disaster.

 Beijing, CHINA – Earthquake, extreme cold

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1. The area is favourable to human activities. (navigation, mines, etc) 2. People are attached to an area. They have a sense of belonging to a territory. 3. People don’t have the means (transportation or funds) to leave. 4. Most territories have some degree of risk.

 Different areas will cope with hazards differently.  Furthermore, living conditions, lifestyles, income, and education will increase or decrease the level of risk.  These factors will determine the vulnerability of a community.  Vulnerability: the ability of the population to deal with the threat of disaster.

 Every territory will see hazards and risks in different ways.  Perception: how something is seen.  Perception of a risk will depend on an territory’s level of development.  Natural hazards will have different impact on a territory that is extensively developed  Ex: Florida vs. Karachi (Northern Pakistan)

 Karachi, Pakistan is threatened by; earthquakes, floods, and landslides  Florida is also threatened by floods, as well as hurricanes.  In Florida, governments have invested millions into flood prevention and hurricane warning systems.  In Karachi, very little has been done to prevent any of these natural disasters from occurring.  Karachi invest time and money into other problems like; poverty, hunger, and housing

 Pakistan does not perceive natural hazards as a priority.  In Pakistan poverty, hunger, housing and disease is perceived as a top priority.  There are many areas like Pakistan that perceive natural hazards as less important than other issues.  Ex: Poverty, hunger, disease

 In Florida providing basic needs and fighting disease is not a priority.  This is due to the fact that the United States is far more developed.  Since Florida does not have to invest money in basic needs.  This means that they can invest more money into prevention of natural disasters.

 There are many places all over the world that must deal with natural hazards.  Some examples are: 1. San Francisco has earthquakes 2. Manila has earthquakes, volcanoes, typhoons, and floods. 3. Quito has volcanoes.

 The image above is Pichincha. A very active volcano in Ecuador.  Quito is located right at the bottom of Pichincha.  Quito is Ecuador’s largest city and its capital.  Pichincha’s most recent eruption was in  Furthermore, 35 km away from Quito sits Cotopaxi another very active volcano. Its last eruption was about 100 years ago.

 Quito is the capital of Ecuador as well as the largest city.  Ecuador is a small country with a population of roughly 14 million.  Quito is located in the Andes mountains.  Quito sits at 2800m which makes it the second highest capital city in the world.

 Most of the population of Ecuador lives in Quito, Guayaquil, and Cuenca.  These cities struggle with overcrowding, poverty, and air pollution, and polluted water supplies.  Ecuador’s economy is based on agriculture (bananas, cocoa, sugar, coffee) and fishing.  However, in recent years, large oil and pharmaceutical companies have set up in the major cities.

 The Andes Mountains run through Ecuador.  In 1802, Alexander von Humbolt named the area around the mountains “Volcano Avenue”  Quito is in the center of Volcano Avenue.  Quito is actually built on the slope of Pichincha. A volcano that has erupted 59 times since the 16 th century.