Hydrometeorological

Hazards

Hydrometeorological hazard

'a process or phenomenon of

atmospheric, hydrological or
oceanographic nature that may cause
loss of life, injury or other health
impacts, property damage, loss of
livelihoods and services, social and
economic disruption, or environmental
damage (includes tropical cyclones,
thunderstorms, hailstorms, tornados,
blizzards, heavy snowfall, avalanches,
coastal storm surges, floods including

Tropical cyclone
A tropical cyclone is a rotating, organized system of clouds and thunderstorms
that originates over tropical or subtropical waters and has a closed low-level
circulation. Tropical cyclones rotate counterclockwise in the Northern
Hemisphere. They are classified as follows:

Tropical Depression: A tropical cyclone with maximum sustained winds

of 38 mph (33 knots) or less.

Tropical Storm: A tropical cyclone with maximum sustained winds of 39

to 73 mph (34 to 63 knots).

Hurricane: A tropical cyclone with maximum sustained winds of 74 mph

(64 knots) or higher. In the western North Pacific, hurricanes are called
typhoons; similar storms in the Indian Ocean and South Pacific Ocean are
called cyclones.

Major Hurricane: A tropical cyclone with maximum sustained winds of

111 mph (96 knots) or higher, corresponding to a Category 3, 4 or 5 on the
Saffir-Simpson Hurricane Wind Scale.

Tropical cyclones forming between 5 and 30 degrees North latitude

typically move toward the west. Sometimes the winds in the middle and
upper levels of the atmosphere change and steer the cyclone toward the
north and northwest. When tropical cyclones reach latitudes near 30
degrees North, they often move northeast.

Thunderstorms
A thunderstorm, also known as an electrical storm, lightning storm,
or thundershower, is a storm characterized by the presence oflightning and its
acoustic effect on the Earth's atmosphere, known as thunder.[1] Thunderstorms occur
in association with a type of cloudknown as a cumulonimbus. They are usually
accompanied by strong winds, heavy rain, and sometimes snow, sleet, hail, or, in
contrast,no precipitation at all. Thunderstorms may line up in a series or become a
rainband, known as a squall line. Strong or severe thunderstorms, known as
supercells, rotate as do cyclones. While most thunderstorms move with the mean
wind flow through the layer of the troposphere that they occupy, vertical wind shear
sometimes causes a deviation in their course at a right angle to the wind shear
direction.

Warm, moist updraft from a thunderstorm associated with a southward-moving

frontal boundary - taken from Texarkana, Texas looking north.

Thunderstorms result from the rapid upward movement of warm, moist air,
sometimes along a front. As the warm, moist air moves upward, it cools,
condenses, and forms a cumulonimbus cloud that can reach heights of over 20
kilometres (12 mi). As the rising air reaches its dew point temperature, water
vapor condenses into water droplets or ice, reducing pressure locally within the
thunderstorm cell. Any precipitation falls the long distance through the clouds
towards the Earth's surface. As the droplets fall, they collide with other
droplets and become larger. The falling droplets create a downdraft as it pulls
cold air with it, and this cold air spreads out at the Earth's surface, occasionally
causing strong winds that are commonly associated with thunderstorms.

Hailstorms
Hailis a form of solidprecipitation. It is distinct from
American sleet(called ice pellets outside of the
United States), though the two are often confused.[1]
It consists of balls or irregular lumps of ice, each of
which is called ahailstone. Sleet (ice pellets) falls
generally in cold weather while hail growth is greatly
inhibited during cold surface temperatures.[2]

Unlikegraupel, which is made ofrime, and

ice pellets, which are smaller and translucent,
hailstones consist mostly ofwater iceand
measure between 5 millimetres (0.2in) and 15
centimetres (6in) in diameter. TheMETAR
reporting code for hail 5mm (0.20in) or greater
isGR, while smaller hailstones and graupel are
codedGS.

Hail is possible within mostthunderstormsas it is

produced bycumulonimbi,[3]and within 2 nautical
miles (3.7km) of the parent storm. Hail formation
requires environments of strong, upward motion
of air with the parent thunderstorm (similar to
tornadoes) and lowered heights of the freezing
level. In themid-latitudes, hail forms near the
interiors of continents, while in thetropics, it
tends to be confined to highelevations.

Tornadoes
Tornadoes are natures most violent storms.
Spawned from powerful thunderstorms,
tornadoes can cause fatalities and devastate a
neighborhood in seconds. A tornado appears as
a rotating, funnel-shaped cloud that extends
from a thunderstorm to the ground with whirling
winds that can reach 300 miles per hour.
Damage paths can be in excess of one mile wide
and 50 miles long. Every state is at some risk
from this hazard. Some tornadoes are clearly
visible, while rain or nearby low-hanging clouds
obscure others. Occasionally, tornadoes develop
so rapidly that little, if any, advance warning is
possible. Before a tornado hits, the wind may die
down and the air may become very still. A cloud
of debris can mark the location of a tornado
even if a funnel is not visible. Tornadoes
generally occur near the trailing edge of a
thunderstorm. It is not uncommon to see clear,
sunlit skies behind a tornado.

Blizzard

Ablizzardis a severe
snowstormcharacterized
by strong sustained winds
of at least 35mph
(56km/h) and lasting for a
prolonged period of time
typically three hours or
more. Aground blizzardis
a weather condition where
snow is not falling but
loose snow on the ground
is lifted and blown by
strong winds.

Heavy Snow
Heavy Snow This generally means...
snowfall accumulating to 4" or more in
depth in 12 hours or less; or
snowfall accumulating to 6" or more in
depth in 24 hours or less

In forecasts, snowfall amounts are

expressed as a range of values, e.g., "8
to 12 inches." However, in heavy snow
situations where there is considerable
uncertainty concerning the range of
values, more appropriate phrases are
used, such as "...up to 12 inches..." or
alternatively "...8 inches or more...".

Avalanche
Anavalanche(also called
asnowslideorsnowslip) is a rapid flow of
snowdown a sloping surface. Avalanches are
typically triggered in a starting zone from a
mechanical failure in thesnowpack(slab
avalanche) when the forces on the snow
exceed its strength but sometimes only with
gradually widening (loose snow avalanche).
After initiation, avalanches usually accelerate
rapidly and grow in mass and volume as
theyentrainmore snow. If the avalanche
moves fast enough some of the snow may
mix with the air forming a powder snow
avalanche, which is a type ofgravity current.
Slides of rocks or debris, behaving in a
similar way to snow, are also referred to as
avalanches (seerockslide[1]). The
remainder of this article refers to snow
avalanches.

Coastal storm surges

Astorm surgeis acoastal floodor

tsunami-like phenomenon of rising
water commonly associated with
low pressureweather systems (such as
tropical cyclonesand strong
extratropical cyclones), the severity of
which is affected by the shallowness and
orientation of the water body relative to
storm path, and the timing oftides. Most
casualties during tropical cyclones occur
as the result of storm surges.
The two mainmeteorologicalfactors
contributing to a storm surge are a long
fetchof winds spiraling inward toward
the storm, and a low-pressure-induced
dome of water drawn up under and
trailing the storm's center.

Tsunami

Atsunami , also known as aseismic

sea wave, is a series of waves in a
water body caused by the displacement
of a large volume of water, generally in
an ocean or alarge lake.[3]Earthquakes
,volcanic eruptionsand other
underwater explosions(including
detonations of underwater
nuclear devices), landslides,glacier
calvings,meteorite impactsand other
disturbances above or below water all
have the potential to generate a
tsunami.[4]Unlike normal
ocean waves which are generated by wi
nd
ortideswhich are generated by the
gravitational pull of the Moon and Sun,
a tsunami is generated by the
displacement of water.

Drought

Adroughtis a period of belowaverage precipitation in a given

region, resulting in prolonged
shortages in its water supply,
whether atmospheric,
surface waterorground water. A
drought can last for months or
years, or may be declared after as
few as 15 days.[1]It can have a
substantial impact on the
ecosystemandagricultureof the
affected region[2]and harm to the
localeconomy.[3]Annual dry
seasons in thetropicssignificantly
increase the chances of a drought
developing and subsequent bush
fires. Periods of heat can
significantly worsen drought
conditions by hastening
evaporation ofwater vapour.

Heat wave

A heat wave is a prolonged period of

excessively hot weather, which may be
accompanied by highhumidity, especially in
oceanic climatecountries. 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
normalclimatepattern for that area.
The term is applied both to routine weather
variations and to extraordinary spells of heat
which may occur only once a century. Severe
heat waves have caused catastrophic crop
failures, thousands of deaths from
hyperthermia, and widespread power outages
due to increased use of air conditioning. A heat
wave is consideredextreme weather, and a
danger because heat and sunlight may
overheat the human body.

Cold wave

A cold wave (known in some regions

as acold snap) is a weather
phenomenon that is distinguished by a
cooling of the air. Specifically, as used
by the U.S.National Weather Service ,
a cold wave is a rapid fall in
temperature within a 24-hour period
requiring substantially increased
protection to agriculture, industry,
commerce, and social activities. The
precise criterion for a cold wave is
determined by the rate at which the
temperature falls, and the minimum to
which it falls. This minimum
temperature is dependent on the
geographical region and time of year.
[1]

In the United States, acold spellis

defined as the national average high
temperature dropping below 18F
(8C).

Earthquake

Anearthquake(also known as
aquake,tremorortemblor) is
the perceptible shaking of the
surface of the Earth, resulting
from the sudden release of
energy in theEarth'scrustthat
createsseismic waves.
Earthquakes can be violent
enough to toss people around
and destroy whole cities.
Theseismicityorseismic
activityof an area refers to the
frequency, type and size of
earthquakes experienced over a
period of time.