**4.6 Wildfire**

A wildfire, forest fire, bush fire, wildfire, or rural fire is an unplanned, uncontrolled, and unpredictable fire in an area of combustible vegetation [9, 10]. A wildfire can be more accurately identified as a bush fire (in Australia), desert fire, grass fire, hummock fire, peat fire, prairie fire, vegetation fire, or steppe fire, depending on the type of vegetation present [11]. Some natural forest ecosystems depend on wildfire [12]. Wildfires are the most common natural hazards in Siberia, California, and Australia [13–15]. Areas with a Mediterranean climate or in the taiga biome are particularly susceptible. On a global scale, human practices have exacerbated the effects of wildfires, with the area of land burned by wildfires doubling compared to natural levels. Wildfires have steadily decreased since records began in the early twentieth century. Humans have impacted wildfires through climate change, landslide change, and wildfire suppression [16].

A total of 270 (4%) wildfire events occurred from 1900 to 2022. However, the natural hazard caused 3684 deaths, accounting for <0.5% of the total; 17,217,656 people were affected, accounting for 1%; and direct economic losses were 162,322,664,000 US dollars, accounting for 3% (**Table 1**, **Figure 2**). Northern America (45%), Europe (23%), Oceania (14%), Asia (13%), and Southern America (5%) continents had the highest to the lowest number of wildfire events, respectively, in the world. The United States of America, Australia, and Spain, respectively, in the continents have had more frequency of events from 1900 to 2022.

#### **4.7 Drought**

Drought is a complex phenomenon characterized by a deficiency of water relative to average availability at a specific location and time of year. According to the IPCC's Sixth Assessment Report, drought is defined as drier than normal conditions [17]. The National Integrated Drought Information System (NIDIS) defines it as a prolonged lack of precipitation resulting in a water deficit. The NOAA (National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration) defines it as a moisture deficiency that negatively impacts humans, animals, or vegetation over a large area [18]. However, due to its complex nature, drought is difficult to monitor and define [19]. In fact, by the early 1980s, over 150 different definitions of drought had been published, [20] reflecting different perspectives based on regions, needs, and disciplinary approaches.

A total of 87 (1%) drought events occurred from 1900 to 2022. However, the natural hazard caused 11,715,980 deaths, accounting for 53% of the total; 2,365,801,967 people were affected, accounting for 32%; and direct economic losses were 444,784,962,000 US dollars, accounting for 9% (**Table 1**). Africa (51%), Asia (29%), Northern America (20%), and Southern America (20%) continents had the highest to the lowest number of wildfire events, respectively, in the world from 1900 to 2022. Ethiopia, China, the United States of America, and Brazil countries, respectively, in the continents have had more frequency of the events.

*Perspective Chapter: A Global View of Natural Hazards Related Disasters DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.5772/intechopen.111582*

#### **4.8 Flood**

A flood is an overflow of water or, less commonly, other liquids that typically inundate dry land [21]. The term can also refer to the inflow of tides. Floods are an important area of study in fields such as hydrology, agriculture, civil engineering, and public health. Human-caused changes to the environment, such as land use changes, changes to waterway courses or flood control measures, and larger environmental issues, can increase the intensity and frequency of floods. Additionally, climate change, increased rainfall, and extreme weather events can exacerbate flooding causes, resulting in more severe floods and an increased risk of flooding [22, 23].

There were 1840 major flood disasters during 1900–2022, accounting for 29% of the total number of significant natural hazards. 6,884,491 deaths were caused by flood disasters, accounting for 31% of the total deaths; 3,676,715,666 people were affected, accounting for 50%; and direct economic losses were 1,109,311,917,000 US dollars. India and other Asian countries have suffered severe floods (**Table 1**). The 1931 Yangtze-Huai River floods 1931 in China took place in China from June to August 1931 and were the deadliest floods, and this figure accounted for less than a quarter of all deaths in the first 100 days of the flood. The official report found 140,000 drowned and claimed 2 million people drowned or died of starvation during the flood [24].

#### **4.9 Storm**

A storm is any disturbance in the natural environment or atmosphere marked by strong winds, hail, thunder, tornadoes, lightning, heavy precipitation, ice storms, strong winds, and dust storms, among others. Storms are caused by the formation of a center of low pressure surrounded by high pressure. These events can have significant impacts on human life, agriculture, and navigation. One notable example is the 1970 Bhola cyclone, also known as the Great Cyclone of 1970, which struck Bangladesh (then East Pakistan) and resulted in an estimated death toll of between 150,000 and 550,000 people [25].

There were 2410 major storm disasters, accounting for 38% of the total number of major hazards; storm disasters caused 1,278,982 deaths (6%), 1,152,095,652 people were affected the direct (16%), and direct economic losses were 2,137,312,395,000 US dollars during 1900–2022.

### **5. Discussion**

By considering the limitations of the data, such as potential underreporting or variations in reporting methods across different regions and time periods the following are important to be noted. The presented data shows a total of 22,178,448 deaths globally due to natural hazards between 1900 and 2022 (**Table 1**), with drought being the leading cause of death accounting for 53% (11,715,980 number of deaths), followed by floods at 31% (6,884,491 number of deaths), earthquakes at 9% (1,995,580 number of deaths), storms at 6% (1,278,982 number of deaths), extreme temperatures at 0.75% (165,880 number of deaths), volcanic activity at 0.38% (85,319 number of deaths), landslides at 0.22% (48,532 number of deaths), and wildfires at 0.02% (3648 number of deaths). The sources for the data presented in **Table 1** can be found in the references section.

A total of 7,417,593,950 people were affected by natural hazards globally between 1900 and 2022, with flooding being the leading cause of impact, accounting for 50% (3,676,715,666 affected), followed by drought at 32% (2,365,801,967 affected), storm at 16% (1,152,095,652 affected), the extreme temperature at 1% (101,216,729 affected), earthquake at 1% (81,809,874 affected), a landslide at 0.18% (13,505,420 affected), and volcanic eruptions at 0.12% (9,230,986 affected). The units used for each measurement are provided in parentheses.

A total of 5,213,995,868,000 US dollars in direct economic losses were caused by natural disasters globally between 1900 and 2022, with earthquakes being the leading cause of economic loss accounting for 41% (2,137,312,395,000 US dollars), followed by storms at 24% (1,221,061,032,000 US dollars), floods at 21% (1,109,311,917,000 US dollars), a drought at 9% (444,784,962,000 US dollars), wildfire at 3% (162,322,664,000 US dollars), the extreme temperature at 2% (109,314,953,000 US dollars), a landslide at 0.34% (17,476,352,000 US dollars), and volcanic activities at 0.24% (12,411,593,000 US dollars). The limitations of the data, such as potential underreporting or variations in reporting methods across different regions and time periods, should be considered when interpreting the results.

The study also found that climatological hazards were responsible for the most deaths caused by natural hazards (53%), followed by hydrological hazards (31%), geophysical hazards (9%), and meteorological hazards (7%). This indicates that despite having a lower frequency of occurrence, climatological hazards are the deadliest type of hazard. In terms of the number of people affected by natural hazards, hydrological hazards had the greatest impact, affecting 50% of the total (3,690,221,086 people), followed by meteorological hazards (17%), climatological hazards (32%), and geophysical hazards (1%).

It is important to note that the frequency and severity of natural hazards have changed over time, and the potential impacts of climate change on natural hazards should also be considered when interpreting these results.

## **6. Conclusions**

This study utilized the EM-DAT database to investigate the primary natural hazards worldwide from 1900 to 2022. The results show that earthquakes, volcanic eruptions, landslides, floods, droughts, wildfires, storms, and extreme temperatures have been the primary natural hazards globally during the last 123 years. Regarding continents, Asia has experienced the highest frequency of natural hazards, with the most significant number of deaths and total affected people. North America follows in terms of natural hazard frequency, with Africa experiencing the highest number of fatalities and North America experiencing the most total affected people. North America has also suffered the highest economic losses due to natural hazards, followed by Asia and Europe. The highest frequency of natural hazards with the most significant economic losses is caused by meteorological events. Climatological events are the deadliest, while hydrological events affect the most people. The study's findings highlight databases such as EM-DAT are critical in enhancing our understanding of natural hazards worldwide. By providing comprehensive data on these events' type, location, and frequency, such databases can support informed decision-making in risk assessment, disaster management, and mitigation efforts. The results underscore the importance of continued monitoring of natural hazards and preparedness measures to mitigate

*Perspective Chapter: A Global View of Natural Hazards Related Disasters DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.5772/intechopen.111582*

their impact. Overall, the findings of this study contribute to advancing our knowledge of natural hazards and improving our ability to address the associated challenges.

**Table 3** and **Figure 4** present the results of this study, which analyzed the top ten countries affected by natural hazards between 1900 and 2022. The data show that a total of 6358 natural hazard events occurred globally during this period. The majority of these events were caused by meteorological hazards (42%), followed by hydrological hazards (35%), climatological hazards (6%), and geophysical hazards (17%).

The economic impact of natural hazards was also significant, with a total of 5,213,995,868,000 US dollars in direct economic losses. Meteorological hazards accounted for the largest share of economic losses (43%), followed by geophysical hazards (23%), hydrological hazards (21%), and climatological hazards (12%). This suggests that while meteorological hazards may not cause the most deaths or affect the most people, they have the most significant economic impact.

Overall, these findings demonstrate the importance of understanding the distribution and impact of different types of natural hazards. By identifying which hazards are most frequent, deadly, and costly, policymakers and disaster management teams can better prepare and allocate resources to mitigate their effects.


#### **Table 3.**

*Statistical results on sub-group of natural hazards in the continents (1900–2022).*

#### **Figure 4.**

*(a) Frequency, (b) deaths, (c) total affected people, and (d) direct economic losses (US dollars) of the four main sub-group of natural hazards (1900–2022).*
