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Natural Hazards Facts & Worksheets

A hazard is a situation where there is a threat to life, health, property, or environment. Natural hazard is one aspect of this, which refers to naturally occurring physical phenomenon.

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A hazard is a situation where there is a threat to life, health, property, or environment. Natural hazard is one aspect of this, which refers to naturally occurring physical phenomenon that is typically caused by rapid or onset events that can be geological/physical (i.e. landslide, earthquake, tsunami), hydrometeorological (i.e. typhoon, drought), or biological (i.e. disease, animal plague).

See the fact file below for more information on the natural hazard or alternatively, you can download our 18-page Natural Hazard worksheet pack to utilise within the classroom or home environment.

Key Facts & Information

GEOLOGICAL HAZARDS

  • These hazards happen due to natural processes coming from the activities on or beneath the Earth’s surface.
  • There are two main classifications of geological hazards: earthquake and volcanic-induced hazards.
  • Some earthquake-induced hazards include surface faulting, landslide and liquefaction, tsunami, and ground shaking. Hazards that are caused by volcanic eruption include pyroclastic flow, lahars, and lava flows.
  • Other geohazard types are sinkholes and rainfall-induced landslides.

HYDROMETEOROLOGICAL HAZARDS

  • These hazards happen as a result of extreme meteorological and climate phenomena.
  • Examples of this hazard type include droughts, floods, typhoons, El Niño, and La Niña.
  • The strongest storm ever recorded in history was Typhoon Nancy in 1961 with maximum sustained winds of 345 kilometers per hour (213 mph).
  • The El Niño events of 1982-1983 and 1997-1998 were the strongest ones. The temperature of the Pacific Ocean was 9-18 degrees Fahrenheit above the normal.

BIOLOGICAL HAZARDS

  • These hazards are usually caused by a biological substance such as virus, toxin, or microorganism that poses a threat to living organisms, especially humans and animals.
  • The four levels of biohazards include:
    • Biohazard Level 1: Bacteria and viruses such as chicken pox and E-coli
    • Biohazard Level 2: Bacteria and viruses that causes mild diseases to humans (i.e. dengue, HIV)
    • Biohazard Level 3: Bacteria and viruses – severe to humans
    • Biohazard Level 4: Fatal diseases where treatments are not available

HAZARD MAPPING

  • Hazard maps are helpful to highlight areas that are vulnerable to hazards and to prevent serious damage, as well as casualties.
  • These are useful tools in disaster risk reduction (DRR) efforts.
  • Experts have done a series of single hazard assessments. However, it has treated hazards as isolated.
  • Another way to map hazards is the multi-hazard approach. It explores the interactions and interrelationships of hazards (Example: An earthquake could possibly trigger landslides in an area).

Natural Hazards Worksheets

This is a fantastic bundle which includes everything you need to know about the natural hazards across 18 in-depth pages. These are ready-to-use Natural Hazards worksheets that are perfect for teaching students about a hazard which is a situation where there is a threat to life, health, property, or environment. Natural hazard is one aspect of this, which refers to naturally occurring physical phenomenon that is typically caused by rapid or onset events that can be geological/physical (i.e. landslide, earthquake, tsunami), hydrometeorological (i.e. typhoon, drought), or biological (i.e. disease, animal plague).

Complete List Of Included Worksheets

  • Natural Hazards Facts
  • Profiling Disasters
  • Top 10 at Risk!
  • The Ebola Scare
  • The Pacific Ring of Fire
  • In the News: “Hagibis”
  • El Niño in the Pacific
  • Drought in Ethiopia
  • Powerful Earthquakes
  • Preparing for Disasters
  • Responding to Disasters

Frequently Asked Questions

What is interesting about natural hazards?

According to statistics, only 10% of natural disasters stem from geophysical phenomena like earthquakes, landslides, tsunamis, and volcanoes. Shockingly, however, only a mere 17% of losses related to these hazards were insured. Floods are especially heavy-hitting when it comes to fatalities as well as the amount of property damage they cause – in both crops and other properties – making them one of the costliest natural disasters around today.

Why do natural hazards occur?

Natural calamities that arise from forces beyond our command can be both destructive and awe-inspiring. The shifts of tectonic plates cause earthquakes, while tsunamis are a direct result. In addition, the fluctuation in solar radiation pouring into the atmosphere generates storms during the summer months as well as blizzards when winter arrives.

Can humans stop natural hazards?

While we cannot prevent natural disasters from occurring, by understanding why and how they happen, as well as what measures can be taken to reduce their damage, we can make them less damaging.

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Link will appear as Natural Hazards Facts & Worksheets: https://kidskonnect.com - KidsKonnect, October 17, 2019

Use With Any Curriculum

These worksheets have been specifically designed for use with any international curriculum. You can use these worksheets as-is, or edit them using Google Slides to make them more specific to your own student ability levels and curriculum standards.

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