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NATURAL DISASTERS

Nature and natural disasters are varied(разнообразный) and widespread(широкораспространнённый).

Nature has always been a great enigma(загадка) for people since times immemorial(незапамятные времена). People admired(восхищаться) nature, worshiped(покланлись) it, were afraid(боялись) of it. Nature may(может) present us with nice warm weather and with icy(ледовиковых) winds(ветров), with pleasant(приятный) sunshine and horrible hail, with peaceful(мирный) sky and thunder(гром) and lightning(молния). People have always known that nature is powerful(могущественна) and unpredictable(непредсказуема); it has bright and ugly sides(стороны).

Natural disasters are mostly connected with weather. A few examples of natural disasters are the following(следующие): earthquakes(землетресение), floods(новоднения), tsunamis, hurricanes(уроганы), tornadoes(торнадо), volcanic eruptions(вулканические взрывы, извержения), avalanches(лавина), heat waves(тепловая волна), ice ages, meteor strikes(удары метеоритов), drought(засуха), wild fires(дикие пожары), epidemics(эпидемия), famines(голод), weather disasters(бедствие ,крушение, авария) and others.

A flood(новоднение) is a large amount(количество) of water which covers(покрывать) a place that is usually dry land.

An earthquake(землетрясение) is a sudden(внезапное) shaking of the ground.

A hurricane(вулкан) is a very violent(очень сильный, резрушительный) wind that comes from the sea.

A tornado is a very violent wind in the form of a funnel(воронка) of air that spins(вращается) at great(большой) speed(скоростью).

A tsunami (also known as a tidal(прелив) wave(волна)) is a series(несколько) of water waves that can be XXXX meters high and flood(новоднение) vast(обширный, large) territories of land.

A volcano eruption is a spread(распрарониение) of lava, gases(газов) and heat(жары) thrown(выбресываемый) from a volcano crater(кратер).

A drought(засуха) is a long period of dry weather when there is not enough water.

An avalanche(обвал снега. лавина) is the rapid(быстрый) flow(течёт) of snow down a slope(по склону), hill(холму), or mountain(горе).

The reasons of natural disasters are different.

An earthquake occurs(слуачется) due(из-за) to underground activity(деятельность, активность) such as the movement(движение) of tectonic (тектонических плостов)plates(пластов). The magnitude(величина) of earthquakes is measured(измеряется) most commonly(вобщем) by the Richter(Рихтарскай) scale(шкале) of 0-10. An earthquake(землетресения) of magnitude(величиной) 10 has never(никогда) been(небыло) recorded(записано). The largest earthquake in recorded history occurred(случился) in Chile in 1960. It was an earthquake of magnitude 9.5. Earthquakes happen in any part of the world and they are pretty(почти) much unpredictable(непредсказуемые, почти, довольно, очень). There are approximately(примерно) 8,000 of less(меньше) than 2.0 on the Richter scale microearthquakes(микроземлетрясений) every day! Fortunately, they are not felt(нечувствуются).

A tsunami is caused(приинён) by the displacement(смещение) of a large(большой) volume(объём) of a body of water(водное тело) that is usually caused by underwater earthquakes.

A hurricane is caused by warm wet air that rises(подъёмы) in a spiral(спираль) and goes faster and faster – over 160 km an hour.

An avalanche is often triggered (инициируемый) by human activities, such as constructions or even simply skiing. During(напротяжении) World War One, almost 50,000 solders(солдаты) were killed as a result of avalanches(лавина) during the mountain campaign(горная компания) in the Alps on the Austrian-Italian front. Most of the avalanches were caused by artillery(артилерейский огонь) fire.

The consequences of natural disasters are usually devastating.

A terrible tsunami happened in South-Eastern Asia on 25 December 2004. It was caused by the second most powerful earthquake in recorded history. Such countries as Thailand, Sri Lanka, and Indonesia were damaged greatly. The tsunami wreaked (причинять вред) havoc (разрушение, опустошение), killed more than 200000 people thousands, a lot of people were injured(пораненый), thousands of people became homeless, unemployed(безработные), a lot of people need water, food clothes, medical and psychological(психологическая) help. There was a threat(угроза) of different diseases(болезнь) and epidemics.

A devastating drought happened a desert climate of Sahel, in West Africa between 1968 and 1974. The winds changed direction(напровление) and the area did not receive(получать) any rain for six years. Hundreds(сотни) of thousands of people and nearly half of the animals in the area died because there wasn’t enough water. The crops(урожаи) did not grow and many countries suffered(страдали) from famine(голод). People had to walk hundred kilometers to find water.

A well-known Galveston Hurricane struck in the United States in September 1900 and the whole city of Galveston, Texas, was destroyed. About 6000 people were killed.

«Hurricane Andrew» hit Florida in 1992. The people there had to leave their homes and move to other towns and wait. When the hurricane arrived, it killed 15 people and destroyed thousands of buildings. More than 50 000 people had nowhere(нигде) to live.

An awful(ужасный) flood happened in China in 1998 because of heavy(тежёлый, сильный) rainfall. Nearly 4000 people were killed. The flood destroyed houses and left millions of people homeless, a lot of farmland(фермерские замли) was damaged. Floods attacked(отаковало) the Netherland in January 1995. Rains are dangerous for the country as the Netherlands are very flat(плоский) and their part is below(ниже) the sea level. It rained and rained for more than two weeks. The water in the canals and rivers rose higher and higher, and thousands of people had to leave their homes until the water level fell down again.

Volcanic eruptions are dangerous because of the hot lava which flows from the volcano after eruption(извержение) and the volcanic ash(эш, вулканиеский пепел) which is released(освобождается) into the atmosphere. The ash is dangerous for animals and people to inhale(вдыхать) and can cause damage to moving parts in machinery(техника).

Nearly two thousand years ago, in 79 AD(Ano Domine, годы после рождения Христа) a volcano called Vesuvius erupted(взорвался, извергся) on the west coast of Italy, south of Naples. It was one o’clock on 24th August. In the busy Roman port of Pompeii, people were walking about in the streets, families were preparing(готовиться) lunch and children were playing. Suddenly Vesuvius erupted(1извергся). There was a loud(громкий) explosion(взрыв). There was dust(пыль) and ash(пепел) everywhere. People rushed(бежать, метаться) into the streets screaming(кричать, везжать). Children ran to their parents crying. People tried to run away, taking their things with them. They tried to escape(избежать), but most of people and animals died.

Vesuvius has erupted(извергать) many times. The last big eruption(извержение) was in 1944. Will Vesuvius erupt again? Nobody knows. If it does, it might be a small eruption or a big one. Some people live close to Vesuvius because the soil(земля) around it is good for growing crops. But it is also very dangerous.