Tsunami, Landslides, Avalance, Volcanic 18-Mar-19
Hazards
CE-315 Hazards and Disaster Management
Hazards
Famine, Drought
Dr. M. Rizwan Riaz
Assistant Professor
References:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Famine
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Drought
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CIVIL ENGINEERING DEPARTMENT, UNIVERSITY OF ENGINEERING & TECHNOLOGY LAHORE
CE-315 Hazards and Disaster Management
Famine
A famine is a widespread scarcity of food, caused by several
factors including war, inflation, crop failure, population imbalance,
or government policies.
This phenomenon is usually accompanied or followed by
regional malnutrition, starvation, epidemic, and increased
mortality.
Every inhabited continent in the world has experienced a
period of famine throughout history. In the 19th and 20th century,
it was generally Southeast and South Asia, as well as Eastern
and Central Europe that suffered the most deaths from famine.
The numbers dying from famine began to fall sharply from the
1970s.
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CIVIL ENGINEERING DEPARTMENT, UNIVERSITY OF ENGINEERING & TECHNOLOGY LAHORE
1
Tsunami, Landslides, Avalance, Volcanic 18-Mar-19
Hazards
CE-315 Hazards and Disaster Management
Drought
A drought is a period of below-average precipitation in a given
region, resulting in prolonged shortages in the water supply,
whether atmospheric, surface water or ground water.
A drought can last for months or years, or may be
declared after as few as 15 days. It can have a substantial impact
on the ecosystem and agriculture of the affected region and harm
to the local economy.
Annual dry seasons in the tropics significantly increase the
chances of a drought developing and subsequent bush fires.
Periods of heat can significantly worsen drought conditions by
hastening evaporation of water vapour.
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CIVIL ENGINEERING DEPARTMENT, UNIVERSITY OF ENGINEERING & TECHNOLOGY LAHORE
CE-315 Hazards and Disaster Management
(1998-2002) Drought in Pakistan
The drought of 1998-2002 is
considered worst in 50 years in
Pakistan.
The drought started in 1997 but
gained intensity in 1998 and reached
its peak in 2000 till 2001 and thus
gradually weakened in 2002.
The extreme drought also affected
much of India and Afghanistan.
The drought was at its peak in
Balochistan and Sindh, 26 districts of
Balochistan were suffering from
severe famine as a result of the
drought. 1.2 million people in the
province were affected by the great
drought.
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CIVIL ENGINEERING DEPARTMENT, UNIVERSITY OF ENGINEERING & TECHNOLOGY LAHORE
2
Tsunami, Landslides, Avalance, Volcanic 18-Mar-19
Hazards
CE-315 Hazards and Disaster Management
(1998-2002) Drought in Pakistan
One of the worst-affected areas was
Nushki, which lies close to the border
with Afghanistan. At that time Nushki
had not seen any drizzle for the last 5
years. The drought in Balochistan
affected more than one-and-a-half
million people and killed some two
million animals
In Sindh, 127 people died, mostly in the
Tharparkar region near the Indian
border, as a result of severe water
shortages and dehydration, nearly 60%
of the population of Sindh migrated to
irrigated land. Ten of thousands of
people were affected by this drought in
both Balochistan and Sindh.
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CIVIL ENGINEERING DEPARTMENT, UNIVERSITY OF ENGINEERING & TECHNOLOGY LAHORE
CE-315 Hazards and Disaster Management
Hazards
Heat Wave
Dr. M. Rizwan Riaz
Assistant Professor
References:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/heatwave
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CIVIL ENGINEERING DEPARTMENT, UNIVERSITY OF ENGINEERING & TECHNOLOGY LAHORE
3
Tsunami, Landslides, Avalance, Volcanic 18-Mar-19
Hazards
CE-315 Hazards and Disaster Management
Heat Wave
A heat wave is a period of excessively hot weather, which may be
accompanied by high humidity, especially in oceanic climate
countries.
While definitions vary, a heat wave is measured relative to
the usual weather in the area and relative to normal temperatures
for the season.
Temperatures that people from a hotter climate consider
normal can be termed a heat wave in a cooler area if they are
outside the normal climate pattern for that area.
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CIVIL ENGINEERING DEPARTMENT, UNIVERSITY OF ENGINEERING & TECHNOLOGY LAHORE
CE-315 Hazards and Disaster Management
Heat Wave in Pakistan
A severe heat wave with
temperatures as high as 49 °C
(120 °F) struck southern
Pakistan in June 2015.
It caused the deaths of about
2,000 people from dehydration
and heat stroke, mostly in
Sindh province and its capital
city, Karachi. The heat wave
also claimed the lives of zoo
animals and countless
agricultural livestock.
The event followed a separate
heat wave in India that killed
2,500 people in May 2015.
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CIVIL ENGINEERING DEPARTMENT, UNIVERSITY OF ENGINEERING & TECHNOLOGY LAHORE
