To what extent can preparedness and planning mitigate the effects of tropical revolving storms? (40 marker)
A tropical revolving storm is a term that covers hurricanes, tropical cyclones, typhoons and willy-willies. These intense low-pressure weather systems are associated with catastrophic wind speeds averaging at 120kmph and torrential rainfall. Tropical revolving storms are huge and extremely violent extending to about 500km in diameter. They occur in the tropics and the sub-tropics and form over the oceans where sea surface temperatures are above 27’C.
Tropical storms are natural hazards, a natural event brought about by weather or climate that threatens life and property, and therefore cannot be prevented, however there are…show more content… Over 1500 people were killed and the financial cost of the damage exceeded £50billion, making it the costliest hurricane in US history. The impacts affected everything and everyone, especially the poorer neighbourhoods with high rates of unemployment and a high proportion of people renting their homes. Many of these people didn’t have home insurance or the money to return and rebuild. The impacts have affected Louisiana on a larger scale also as dramatic population changes have occurred. The population has fallen by 8.4% in the aftermath of the hurricanes due to 460,000 people leaving New Orleans.
In response to some of these impacts, local planners have called for the lowest-lying areas, including the Lower 9th Ward where hundreds died in New Orleans, to be used as parkland. These green spaces would serve as buffers against future floodwaters and therefore prevent many of the impacts that occurred in 2005. This form of planning would help to mitigate some of the impacts but probably not by much. Hard engineering was used to repair and improve the levees to prevent future breaching.
Bangladesh suffers from the most destructive cyclones in the world. The country has a funnel-shaped coast at the northern tip of the Bay of Bengal and an offshore shelf, making it vulnerable to tropical cyclones and storm surges. As many as 10% of the world’s tropical storm develop in the Bay of Bengal including the fiercest killer cyclone that hit Bangladesh on the 12th of
