Refugee numbers soar to 15-year highLatest figures from the UN high commission for refugees says that 43.7 million people were displaced by war or natural disasters during 2010, with most refugees fleeing to the developing nations of Pakistan, Iran and Syria.
Natural disasters
Rockhampton flood crisis: flood peak arrives
After the expected flood peak of 9.4 metres in Rockhampton, a maximum of 9.2 was hit yesterday. Anton Lang took his camera and walked around his flood-affected city, snapping photos of submerged roads and ducks swimming through football fields.
The money men believe in global warming
A total of 950 natural catastrophes were recorded last year by the major re-insurance company MunichRe. The company says nine-tenths of the incidents were weather-related events like storms and floods, reports Richard Farmer.
Rockhampton flood crisis: playing the waiting game
The worst case scenario brings the edge of the water level to within 500 metres of our home, and at those edges, it’s just a matter of an inch or so deep, at the very creeping edge of this massive flood, writes Tony from Oz in Rockhampton.
Over 1,300 dead in Pakistan flooding
Monsoon floods in Pakistan have claimed the lives of over 1,000 people, with more disastrous rain expected in the week ahead and tens of thousands stranded. One of the worst hit areas is the Swat Valley, previously a Taliban stronghold.
You thought the last volcano eruption was bad? Wait for the next one
Earth was lucky to get off with some delayed flights and bad weather after Iceland’s volcano erupted, explains Simon Winchester: the next one could wipe out the human race.
Adonis, Cobra, Elle? Just pass the (volcanic) ash tray and enjoy the sunshine
There is something very strange about having your life seriously impacted by a volcano, reports Rafiq Copeland from London.
What’s with all the earthquakes lately?
Chile, Haiti and now China — is it just us, or is the Earth getting a lot shakier lately? Apparently it has, but Possum is always reminding us: you have to look at the long-term trends.
Business As Usual: All hail and, well, big insurance claims … more US banks go …
Natural disasters are going to have a big say in the fortunes of insurance companies, 26 more US banks have gone down the tube, China’s exchange rate is steady as she goes, some encouragement in the latest US job figures and more business briefs.
The Chile quake: proving the goodness of governments
There’s a very strong man made reason why the Chilean earthquake will not be as destructive as the recent Haitian one. Chile knew its cities were on natural faults and the government had building codes were in place to prevent damage.
Should Haiti rebuild its capital — or start a new one elsewhere?
Haiti’s official seismologist says the country’s capital, Port-au-Prince, will face an even more devastating earthquake within the next two decades. Would the government be better to just start again from scratch?
Bob Ellis: Guns don’t kill people, people kill nature and nature kills people
When are we going to get our priorities and our tax payer dollars in order? The Haiti earthquake just reiterates that natural disasters are killing more people than terrorism, yet we spend billions on a war against terrorism, argues Bob Ellis.
Haiti: the disaster we saw coming
Scientists have known the Haitian earthquake — or something like it — was coming since 1985. Why was nothing done?
PHOTO GALLERY: Horror in Haiti
A horrific but gripping gallery of images from Haiti, where the worst earthquake in 200 years has left untold numbers dead, injured and displaced.
Letter from...: The Phillippines
The recent history of the Philippines reads like a catalogue of Hollywood blockbuster disaster movies. But locals are so focused on day-to-day survival — getting enough food for tomorrow — that the relative unlikelihood of a tsunami makes it not worth considering, writes resident Wayne Smith.
Your Say: Daily Mail readers' feedback: Disaster and the media
Crikey readers weigh in on how the media copes with the natural disasters besetting our Pacific and Asian neighbours and the messy climate change debate continues.
Swimming for survival: it’s our duty to teach
As stories emerge of people being swept away by floodwaters, it’s a source of frustration that there are very few large-scale survival swimming or lifesaving programs running in Asia and the Pacific, where these skills could literally be saving lives, writes Justin Scarr.
A tsunami of Aussie Aussie Aussie media
If you’re just a headline skimmer, sometimes the only thing you’ll know about a disaster is the Aussie death toll.
Crikey Clarifier: What’s with all the earthquakes lately?
A magnitude 8.3 earthquake strikes the south of Samoa on Tuesday, triggering a tsunami. Then, 16 hours later, another occurs 30 miles off the east coast of the Indonesian island of Sumatra. What’s going on?
Pacific Islanders’ worst nightmare
Lalomanu is the picture postcard Pacific destination, says Gillian Bradford, white beaches, tree-covered mountains jutting into the ocean and palm trees everywhere. But it isn’t ready for tsunamis like the one today.
Australia isn’t ready for a tsunami
The killer tsunami in Samoa this morning points to the missing link in Australia’s recently completed warning system. We know how to detect tsunamis — we just can’t warn people in time yet.
Red Cross: act on natural disasters before they happen
Cleaning up natural disasters after they happen is four times more expensive than putting preventative measures in place, says a new Red Cross report.
Scientists on edge over expected Caribbean tsunami
A ten-story tsunami will hit the Caribbean island of Guadeloupe, say scientists. The only question is: when?
The Army’s role in the intervention: little understood
The use of defence force elements in the federal government’s intervention in Northern Territory Aboriginal communities has embroiled the ADF in controversy for reasons both justified and unjustified, writes Neil James.
