Of 245 disasters in 2009, 224m weather-related: 11m people affected by floods, compared to 178m in 2007 and 45m in 2008 |
First 16 of 16 paragraphs shown The 2009 figures were released by the Belgian WHO collaborating Centre for Research on Epidemiology of Disasters (CRED), and covered the period from 1 January to November 2009. 245 disasters in 2009: Out of the 245 disasters in 2009: - 24 were weather related, accounting for 55 million people out of the 58 million people affected; - 7000 out of 8900 of those killed, and US$15 billion out of the US$19 billion in economic damages. 11 million people were affected by floods: In 2009, 11 million people were affected by floods, compared to 178 million people in 2007 and 45 million in 2008. Natural hazards the big killer: Over three quarters of the people killed - and 95 per cent of the total affected by natural hazards - since the beginning of the year were due to extreme weather events said Margareta Wahlstrom, the United Nations Special Representative of the UN Secretary-General for Disaster Risk Reduction, based on the preliminary 2009 disaster figures. Extreme weather disasters top of the list: and will continue to affect more people in the future as more than half of the world's population highly exposed is living in coastal regions. said Margareta Wahlstrom. Underestimated: The extreme weather event figures are probably underestimated as drought impacts are not easily detected in disaster statistics said Professor Debarati Guha Sapir, Director of CRED in a joint UNISDR, UNDP and WMO press conference. Drought a major hazard: Drought is a major hazard and a slow onset disaster in many part of the world with long term consequences on people and their assets. It undermines livelihoods and kills slowly through malnutrition and disease. In Africa alone, drought accounted for less than 20 per cent of disaster occurrences but affected 80 per cent of all people in the continent between 1970 and 2008 (CRED). 2009 among the top 10 warmest years on record: Michel Jarraud, Secretary-General of the World Meteorological Organization who announced that the year 2009 is among the top 10 warmest years on record since the beginning of instrumental climate records in 1850 underlined the importance of early warning systems, and seasonal climate forecasts to manage risks and to better prepare vulnerable populations to cope with more extreme events. Benefits of investments in warning systems: Tropical cyclone early warning systems were demonstrated in Cuba in 2008, when the country was hit by five successive hurricanes, but only seven people were reported dead. In Bangladesh, nearly 3500 lives were lost during super cyclone Sidr in November 2007, compared to two other events in 1970 and 1991 which respectively claimed over 300,000 and 191,000 lives. Low ability to warn poplulations: These examples however, are still rare. A survey conducted by WMO in 2006 revealed that over 60 per cent of the WMOs 189 Members are not adequately equipped with the technical capacities to warn populations against hazards, particularly in the most vulnerable countries. Forecasts save lives and stabilise economies: In addition, climate information, forecasts and projection combined with operational and strategic sectoral planning provide unprecedented opportunities for saving livelihoods and reduce economic risks associated with hazards in many sectors such as agriculture, water resource management, health and insurance. How to save lives: There are proven measures for reducing the tragic and devastating losses from climate disasters said Olav Kjorven, Policy Director at the United Nations Development Programme. They include early warning systems, adjusted building codes, resilient infrastructure and government crisis response plans. Successful preparation and planning can prevent death and minimize the level of damage to homes, schools, hospitals, roads and harvests. New global plan: Trends in extreme events and capacities to manage disaster risks are currently being assessed as part of the new WMO/UNEP Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change Special Report entitled Managing the Risk of Extreme Events and Disasters to Advance Climate Change Adaptation to be released in 2011. ...Log in to read rest of Article or image. |