Human and economic impacts of natural disasters: can we trust the global data?

Jones, Rebecca Louise; Guha-Sapir, Debarati; Tubeuf, Sandy

doi:10.1038/s41597-022-01667-x

Cited by 63 publications

(45 citation statements)

References 38 publications

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“…A previously conducted study of missing data in the EM-DAT demonstrates that economic data are more frequently missing than human-based data, such as total deaths. 44 The present study, with total deaths missing from 29% of disasters and total damages missing from 79% of disasters, is in agreement with the previously conducted study’s finding. 44…”

Section: Limitationssupporting

confidence: 93%

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Disasters in the Northern Triangle: A Descriptive Analysis Using the EM-DAT Database 1902-2022

Dickason,

Hertelendy,

Hart

et al. 2023

Prehosp. Disaster med.

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Introduction:Since 1902, disasters in the Northern Triangle of Central America, which consists of the countries Guatemala, Honduras, and El Salvador, have caused over one-hundred-thousand deaths, affected millions of people, and caused tens of billions of dollars in damages. Understanding the nature and frequency of these events will allow stakeholders to decrease both the acute damages and the long-term deleterious consequences of disasters.Study Objective:This study provides a descriptive analysis of all disasters recorded in the Emergency Events Database (EM-DAT) affecting Guatemala, Honduras, and El Salvador from 1902-2022.Methods:Data were collected and analyzed from the EM-DAT, which categorizes disasters by frequency, severity, financial cost, distribution by country, burden of death, number of people affected, financial cost by country, and type of disasters most prevalent in each country. Results are presented as absolute numbers and as a percentage of the overall disaster burden. These trends are then graphed over the time period of the database.Results:The EM-DAT recorded 359 disasters in the Northern Triangle from 1902 through 2022. Meteorologic events (floods and storms) were the most common types of disaster (44%), followed by transport accidents (13%). Meteorologic events and earthquakes were the most severe, as measured by deaths (62%), people affected (60%), and financial cost (86%). Guatemala had the greatest number of disasters (45%), deaths (68%), and affected people (52%). The financial costs of the disasters were evenly distributed between the three countries.Conclusion:Meteorologic disasters are the most common and most severe type of disaster in the Northern Triangle. Earthquakes and transport accidents are also common. As climate change causes more severe storms in the region, disasters are likely to increase in severity as well. Governments and aid organizations should develop disaster preparedness and mitigation strategies to lessen the catastrophic effects of future disasters. Missing data limit the conclusions of this study to general trends.

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Section: Limitationssupporting

confidence: 93%

“…44 The present study, with total deaths missing from 29% of disasters and total damages missing from 79% of disasters, is in agreement with the previously conducted study’s finding. 44…”

Section: Limitationssupporting

confidence: 93%

Disasters in the Northern Triangle: A Descriptive Analysis Using the EM-DAT Database 1902-2022

Dickason,

Hertelendy,

Hart

et al. 2023

Prehosp. Disaster med.

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“…The disaster database EM-DAT records only major disasters, meaning that smaller disasters and instances where a flood hazard did not result in a disaster (that is, 'success stories') will be missed. The number of fatalities is a relatively straightforward disaster outcome to measure compared with, for example, economic damages and the number of affected individuals, although the accuracy will nonetheless vary across records 57 .…”

Section: Methodological Limitationsmentioning

confidence: 99%

The wider the gap between rich and poor the higher the flood mortality

et al. 2023

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Economic inequality is rising within many countries globally, and this can significantly influence the social vulnerability to natural hazards. We analysed income inequality and flood disasters in 67 middle- and high-income countries between 1990 and 2018 and found that unequal countries tend to suffer more flood fatalities. This study integrates geocoded mortality records from 573 major flood disasters with population and economic data to perform generalized linear mixed regression modelling. Our results show that the significant association between income inequality and flood mortality persists after accounting for the per-capita real gross domestic product, population size in flood-affected regions and other potentially confounding variables. The protective effect of increasing gross domestic product disappeared when accounting for income inequality and population size in flood-affected regions. On the basis of our results, we argue that the increasingly uneven distribution of wealth deserves more attention within international disaster-risk research and policy arenas.

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“…Data on disaster impacts are collected in various ways, in various databases and by various institutions (Jones et al, 2022). The collected data reflect the historical and current factors, contribute to the DRM landscape complexity, e.g.…”

Section: Data and The Drm Landscape In South Africamentioning

confidence: 99%

Quantitative and Qualitative Data in Disaster Risk Management of Fires: A Case Study From South Africa at Various Geographical Levels

MADONDO¹,

Tandlich²,

STOCH³

et al. 2023

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The current paper is aimed at investigating some quantitative and qualitative data, as well as their implications for the space/place/time perspective in terms of fire disaster management in Makana Local Municipality. The working hypothesis of the current article is that fire-fighting under drought conditions will post severe challenges on the disaster risk management system (DRM) in the study area. Methodology of the article includes a combination of document analysis, modelling using the Google-related tools to track and statistically analyse the public interest in fires, the legislation, and financial/practical implications of the drought on fire disaster management in Makana Local Municipality. Results of the study indicate that there has been a constant and increasing trend in terms of the South African public's in fires. That trend is driven by interest in fire-fighting equipment and possible also by the interest of the South African population in fire-fighting as a career. On causality front, the interest in fires is quantitatively driven by number of fires in South Africa between 2004 and 2017, as well as access to the internet by the South African population.

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Human and economic impacts of natural disasters: can we trust the global data?

Cited by 63 publications

References 38 publications

Disasters in the Northern Triangle: A Descriptive Analysis Using the EM-DAT Database 1902-2022

Disasters in the Northern Triangle: A Descriptive Analysis Using the EM-DAT Database 1902-2022

The wider the gap between rich and poor the higher the flood mortality

Quantitative and Qualitative Data in Disaster Risk Management of Fires: A Case Study From South Africa at Various Geographical Levels

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