The EM-DAT Glossary
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- Affectedsearch for term
- People requiring immediate assistance during a period of emergency, i.e. requiring basic survival needs such as food, water, shelter, sanitation and immediate medical assistance. Appearance of a significant number of cases of an infectious disease introduced in a region or a population that is usually free from that disease.
- Agreementssearch for term
- Avalanchesearch for term
- Avalanche describes a quantity of snow or ice that slides down a mountainside under the force of gravity. It occurs if the load on the upper snow layers exceeds the bonding forces of the entire mass of snow. It often gathers material that is underneath the snowpack like soil, rock etc (debris avalanche). Any kind of rapid snow/ice movement.
- Biological Disasterssearch for term
- Disaster caused by the exposure of living organisms, to germs and toxic substances
- Blizzard/Snowstormsearch for term
- A snowstorm refers to a storm, usually in the winter season, where large amounts of snow fall. If it's a severe snowstorm that meets certain criteria, such as strong winds, blowing snow and low or falling temperatures, it's called blizzard. Blizzard, ice & snow, often in North America
- Chemical spillsearch for term
- Accident release occurring during the production, transportation or handling of hazardous chemical substances.
- Climatological Disasterssearch for term
- Events caused by longlived/meso to macroscale processes (in the spectrum from intraseasonal to multidecadal climate variability)
- Cold wavesearch for term
- A cold wave can be both a prolonged period of excessively cold weather and the sudden invasion of very cold air over a large area. Along with frost it can cause damage to agriculture, infrastructure, property. Damage caused by low temperatures.
- Collapsesearch for term
- Accident involving the collapse of building or structure. Can either involve industrial structures or domestic / non-industrial structures.
- Country-level disastersearch for term
- A disaster that has affected a particular country. A disaster event [see « Disaster event»] that affects several countries will have a number of country-level disaster entries equal to the number of countries that have been affected. Each of these country-level disasters will have the same DISNO identifier. In the case of multi-country disasters, The EM-DAT inclusion criteria apply to the disaster event and not to the country-level disaster.
- Crop failuresearch for term
- Abnormal reductions in crop yield such that is insufficient to meet the nutritional or economic needs of the community
- Cyclonesearch for term
- Large-scale closed circulation system in the atmosphere above the Indian Ocean and South Pacific with low barometric pressure and strong winds that rotate clockwise. Maximum wind speed of 64 knots or more [See « hurricane » for the western Atlantic and eastern Pacific and « typhoon » for the western Pacific].
- Disastersearch for term
- Situation or event, which overwhelms local capacity, necessitating a request to national or international level for external assistance (definition considered in EM-DAT); An unforeseen and often sudden event that causes great damage, destruction and human suffering. Though often caused by nature, disasters can have human origins. Wars and civil disturbances that destroy homelands and displace people are included among the causes of disasters. Other causes can be: building collapse, blizzard, drought, epidemic, earthquake, explosion, fire, flood, hazardous material or transportation incident (such as a chemical spill), hurricane, nuclear incident, tornado, or volcano (Disaster Relief).
- Disaster Eventsearch for term
- A disaster meeting the EM-DAT criteria and which is recorded in EM-DAT. A disaster event can affect one country or several [see «Country-level disaster»]. In the case of the latter, the disaster event will result in several country-level disasters being entered into the database. A disaster event will always have a unique DISNO identifier.
- Droughtsearch for term
- Long lasting event; triggered by lack of precipitation. A drought is an extended period of time characterised by a deficiency in a region's water supply that is the result of constantly below average precipitation. A drought can lead to losses to agriculture, affect inland navigation and hydropower plants, and cause a lack of drinking water and famine.
- Earthquakesearch for term
- Shaking and displacement of ground due to seismic waves. This is the earthquake itself WITHOUT secondary effects. An earthquake is the result of a sudden release of stored energy in the Earth's crust that creates seismic waves. They can be of tectonic or volcanic origin. At the Earth's surface they are felt as a shaking or displacement of the ground. The energy released in the hypocenter can be measured in different frequency ranges. Therefore there are different scales for measuring the magnitude of a quake according to a certain frequency range. Those are: a) surface wave magnitude (Ms); b) body wave magnitude (Mb); c) local magnitude (ML); moment magnitude.
- El Niñosearch for term
- (« little child » in Spanish): Anormalous warming of ocean water resulting from the oscillation of current in the South Pacific, usually accompanied by heavy rainfall in the coastal region of Peru and Chile, and reduction of rainfall in equatorial Africa and Australia.
- Emergencysearch for term
- Sudden and usually unforeseen event that calls for immediate measures to minimise its adverse consequences.
- Epicentresearch for term
- Point on the earth’s surface directly above the place of origin (i.e. focus, or hypocenter) of an earthquake.
- Epidemicsearch for term
- Either an unusual increase in the number of cases of an infectious disease, which already exists in the region or population concerned; or the appearance of an infection previously absent from a region.
- Estimated Damagesearch for term
- The economic impact of a disaster usually consists of direct (e.g. damage to infrastructure, crops, housing) and indirect (e.g. loss of revenues, unemployment, market destabilisation) consequences on the local economy. In EM-DAT estimated damage are) given in US$ (‘000). For each disaster, the registered figure corresponds to the damage value at the moment of the event, i.e. the figures are shown true to the year of the event.
- Explosionssearch for term
- Explosions involving buildings or structures. Can either involve industrial structures.
- Extreme winter conditionssearch for term
- (Winter storm) Damage caused by snow and ice. Winter damage refers to damage to buildings, infrastructure, traffic (esp. navigation) inflicted by snow and ice in form of snow pressure, freezing rain, frozen waterways etc.
- Faminesearch for term
- Catastrophic food shortage affecting large numbers of people due to climatic, environmental and socio-economic reasons.
- Flash floodsearch for term
- Rapid inland floods due to intense rainfall A flash flood describes sudden flooding with short duration. In sloped terrain the water flows rapidly with a high destruction potential. In flat terrain the rainwater cannot infiltrate into the ground or run off (due to small slope) as quickly as it falls. Flash floods typically are associated with thunderstorms. A flash flood can occur at virtually any place.
- Floodsearch for term
- Significant rise of water level in a stream, lake, reservoir or coastal region
- Food shortagesearch for term
- Lack of alimentation bases.
- Forest firesearch for term
- Fires in forest that cover extensive damage. They may start by natural causes such as volcanic eruptions or lightning, or they may be caused by arsonists or careless smokers, by those burning wood, or by clearing a forest area.
- General floodsearch for term
- Gradually rising inland floods (rivers, lakes, groundwater) due to high total depth of rainfall or snowmelt. A general flood is caused when a body of water (river, lake) overflows its normal confines due to rising water levels. The term general flood additionally comprises the accumulation of water on the surface due to long-lasting rainfall (water logging) and the rise of the groundwater table above surface. Furthermore, inundation by melting snow and ice, backwater effects, and special causes such as the outburst of a glacial lake or the breaching of a dam are subsumed under the term general flood. General floods can be expected at certain locations (e.g. along rivers) with a significantly higher probability than at others.
- Geophysical disasterssearch for term
- Events originating from solid earth.
- Glacier lake outburst flood /Jökulhlaupsearch for term
- Flooding due to the outburst of a glacier lake. A glacier lake outburst flood occurs when a lake – dammed by a glacier or a terminal moraine - fails. The outburst can be triggered by erosion, a critical water pressure, a mass movement, an earthquake or cryoseism. A jökulhlaup is a special type of a glacier lake outburst flood related to the outburst of an ice-dammed lake during a volcanic eruption.
- Hail stormsearch for term
- Storm with hailstones as dominant type of precipitation. A hail storm is a type of storm that is characterised by hail as the dominant part of its precipitation. The size of the hailstones can vary between pea size (6mm) and softball size (112mm) and therefore cause considerable damage.
- Hazardsearch for term
- Threatening event, or probability of occurrence of a potentially damaging phenomenon within a given time period and area.
- Heat wavesearch for term
- A heat wave is a prolonged period of excessively hot and sometimes also humid weather relative to normal climat patterns of a certain region. Heat waves like in Central Europe 2003.
- Homelesssearch for term
- People needing immediate assistance in the form of shelter.
- Hurricanesearch for term
- Large-scale closed circulation system in the atmosphere above the western Atlantic with low barometric pressure and strong winds that rotate clockwise in the southern hemisphere and counter-clockwise in the northern hemisphere. Maximum wind speed of 64 knots or more [See « cyclone » for the Indian Ocean and South Pacific and eastern Pacific and « typhoon » for the western Pacific].
- Hydrological Disasterssearch for term
- Events caused by deviations in the normal water cycle and/or overflow of bodies of water caused by wind set-up.
- Industrial accidentsearch for term
- Disaster type term used in EM-DAT to describe technological accidents of an industrial nature/involving industrial buildings (e.g. factories).
- Injuredsearch for term
- People suffering from physical injuries, trauma or an illness requiring medical treatment as a direct result of a disaster.
- Insect infestationsearch for term
- Pervasive influx and development of insects or parasites affecting humans, animals, crops and materials.
- ixqehodusearch for term
- Killedsearch for term
- Persons confirmed as dead and persons missing and presumed dead.
- La Niñasearch for term
- (« little girl » in Spanish): It is essentially the opposite of El Niño. The ocean becomes much cooler than normal. Although, La Niña is not as well understood as El Niño, it is thought to occur due to an increase in the strength of the trade winds. This increases the amount of cooler water that upwells toward the West Coast of South American and reduces water temperatures. (Environnement Canada).
- Landslidesearch for term
- Any kind of moderate to rapid soil movement incl. lahar, mudslide, debris flow. A landslide is the movement of soil or rock controlled by gravity and the speed of the movement usually ranges between slow and rapid, but not very slow. It can be superficial or deep, but the materials have to make up a mass that is a portion of the slope or the slope itself. The movement has to be downward and outward with a free face.
- Lighteningsearch for term
- Hazards/losses caused by lightning stroke. Lightning is an atmospheric discharge of electricity, which typically occurs during thunderstorms, and sometimes during volcanic eruptions or dust storms.
- Local Windstormsearch for term
- Local windstorm refers to strong winds caused by regional atmospheric phenomena which are typical for a certain area. These can be katabatic winds, foehn winds, Mistral, Bora etc.
- Meteorological disasterssearch for term
- Events caused by short-lived/small to mesoscale atmospheric processes (in the spectrum from minutes to days).
- Miscellaneous accidentsearch for term
- Disaster type term used in EM-DAT to describe technological accidents of a non-industrial or transport nature (e.g. houses).
- Orographic stormsearch for term
- Local windstorm refers to strong winds caused by regional atmospheric phenomena which are typical for a certain area. These can be katabatic winds, foehn winds, Mistral, Bora etc.
- Poisoningsearch for term
- Poisoning of atmosphere or water courses due to industrial sources.
- Richter scalesearch for term
- Devised by C.F. Richter in 1935, an index of the seismic energy released by an earthquake (as contrasted to intensity that describes its effects at a particular place) expressed in terms of the motion that would be measured by a specific type of seismograph located 100 km from the epicentre of an earthquake.
- Risksearch for term
- Expected losses (of lives, persons injured, property damaged and economic activity disrupted) due to a particular hazard for a given area and reference period. Based on mathematical calculations, risk is the product of hazard and vulnerability.
- Rockfallsearch for term
- Quantities of rock or stone falling freely from a cliff face. Rockfall refers to quantities of rock or stone falling freely from a cliff face. It is caused by undercutting, weathering or permafrost degradation.
- Sandstorm/Dust stormsearch for term
- A sandstorm/dust storm typically occurs in arid or semi-arid regions if high wind speeds cause the transportation of small particles like sand or fine clastic sediment by saltation and/or suspension. e.g. in deserts.
- Scrub firesearch for term
- Fires in scrub or bush that cover extensive damage. They may start by natural causes such as volcanic eruptions or lightning, or they may be caused by arsonists or careless smokers, by those burning wood, or by clearing a forest area.
- sdnolmsearch for term
- Severe Stormsearch for term
- A severe storm or thunderstorm is the result of convection and condensation in the lower atmosphere and the accompanying formation of a cumulonimbus cloud. A severe storm usually comes along with high winds, heavy precipitation (rain, sleet, hail), thunder and lightning
- Storm surgesearch for term
- Coastal flood on coasts and lake shores induced by wind. A storm surge is the rise of the water level in the sea, an estuary or lake as result of strong wind driving the seawater towards the coast. This so-called wind setup is superimposed on the normal astronomical tide. The mean high water level can be exceeded by five and more metres. The areas threatened by storm surges are coastal lowlands.
- Subsidencesearch for term
- Downward motion of the Earth's surface relative to a datum (e.g. the sea level). Subsidence is the motion of the Earth's surface as it shifts downward relative to a datum (e.g. the sea level). Subsidence (dry) can be the result of: geological faulting, isostatic rebound, human impact (e.g. mining, extraction of natural gas) etc. Subsidence (wet) can be the result of: karst, changes in soil water saturation, permafrost degradation (thermokarst) etc.
- Tornadosearch for term
- Tornados A tornado is a rotating column of air (vortex) that emerges out of the base of a cumulonimbus cloud and has contact to the Earth's surface. Typically it forms during a severe convective storm in so-called supercells and is often visible as a funnel-shaped cloud. Tornadoes are usually short-lived, lasting on average no more than 10 minutes. They can generate wind speeds above 400 km/h and are considered the most destructive weather phenomenon. The intensity of tornadoes is assessed using the Enhanced Fujita Scale. Other names for this weather phenomenon are twister, waterspout (over open water).
- Total affectedsearch for term
- In EM-DAT, people that have been injured, affected and left homeless after a disaster are included in this category.
- Transport accidentsearch for term
- Disaster type term used in EM-DAT to describe technological transport accidents involving mechanised modes of transport. It comprises of four disaster subsets: accidents involving aeroplanes, helicopters, airships and balloons « Transport:Air »; accidents involving sailing boats, ferries, cruise ships, other boats « Transport:Boat »; accidents involving trains « Transport:Rail »; and accidents involving motor vehicles on roads and tracks « Transport:Road ».
- Tropical cyclonesearch for term
- A tropical cyclone is a non-frontal storm system that is characterised by a low pressure center, spiral rain bands and strong winds. Usually it originates over tropical or sub-tropical waters and rotates clockwise in the southern hemisphere and counter-clockwise in the northern hemisphere. The system is fueled by heat released when moist air rises and the water vapor it contains condenses ("warm core" storm system). Therefore the water temperature must be >27 °C. Depending on their location and strength, tropical cyclones are referred to as hurricane (western Atlantic/eastern Pacific), typhoon (western Pacific), cyclone (southern Pacific/Indian Ocean), tropical storm, and tropical depression (defined by wind speed; see Saffir-Simpson-Scale). Cyclones in tropical areas e.g. hurricanes, typhoons, tropical depressions etc (names depending on location).
- Tsunamisearch for term
- (« wave in the port » in Japanese): Waves advancing inland. A tsunami is a series of waves caused by a rapid displacement of a body of water (ocean, lake). The waves are characterised by a very long wavelength and their amplitude is much smaller offshore. The impact in coastal areas can be very destructive as the waves advance inland and can extend over thousands of kilometers. Triggers of a tsunami can be: earthquakes, volcanic eruptions, mass movements, meteorite impacts or underwater explosions.
- Typhoonsearch for term
- Large-scale closed circulation system in the atmosphere above the western Pacific with low barometric pressure and strong winds that rotate clockwise in ther southern hemisphere and counter-clockwise in the northern hemisphere. Maximum wind speed of 64 knots or more [See « hurricane » for the western Atlantic and eastern Pacific and « cyclone » for the Indian Ocean and South Pacific].
- Urban firesearch for term
- Urban fire involving buildings or structures. Can either involve industrial structures.
- Volcanic eruptionsearch for term
- All volcanic activity like rock fall, ash fall, lava streams, gases etc. Volcanic activity desribes both the transport of magma and/or gases to the Earth's surface, which can be accompanied by tremors and eruptions, and the interaction of magma and water (e.g. groundwater, crater lakes) underneath the Earth's surface, which can result in phreatic eruptions. Depending on the composition of the magma eruptions can be explosive and effusive and result in variations of rock fall, ash fall, lava streams, pyroclastic flows, emission of gases etc.
- Volcanosearch for term
- (Volcanic eruption) All volcanic activity like rock fall, ash fall, lava streams, gases etc. Volcanic activity desribes both the transport of magma and/or gases to the Earth's surface, which can be accompanied by tremors and eruptions, and the interaction of magma and water (e.g. groundwater, crater lakes) underneath the Earth's surface, which can result in phreatic eruptions. Depending on the composition of the magma eruptions can be explosive and effusive and result in variations of rock fall, ash fall, lava streams, pyroclastic flows, emission of gases etc.
- Vulnerabilitysearch for term
- Degree of loss (from 0% to 100%) resulting from a potential damaging phenomenon.
- Wildfiresearch for term
- Wildfire describes an uncontrolled burning fire, usually in wild lands, which can cause damage to forestry, agriculture, infrastructure and buildings. Fire in forested/bush areas e.g. California, Australia.
- Winter stormsearch for term
- Extra-tropical cyclones in spring, autumn or winter; e.g. storm Daria, Lothar A winter storm emerges from a extra-tropical cyclone, a synoptic scale low pressure system that occurs in the middle latitudes of the Earth and is connected to fronts and horizontal gradients in temperature and dew point. A winter storm comes along with high wind speeds, gusts, thunderstorms, rain and often storm surges.
- Winter storm (Extreme winter conditions)search for term
- Damage caused by snow and ice. Winter damage refers to damage to buildings, infrastructure, traffic (esp. navigation) inflicted by snow and ice in form of snow pressure, freezing rain, frozen waterways etc.