The Most Dangerous Natural Disaster

Floods: The Most Dangerous Natural Disaster

According to “Floods: Information and Facts,” floods are “among Earth's most common-and most destructive–natural hazards.” Floods are a deadly natural disaster that are most commonly caused by excessive rain, cause destruction to buildings, which can be fatal, and include catastrophic events such as the August 1931 flood of China, which killed nearly 4 million people.

Floods are the most common and dangerous kind of natural disaster. They can be caused by many things, including natural and man-caused ways. First, floods are most commonly caused by an outrageous amount of rain over usually dry land. “Excessive rain, a ruptured dam or levee, rapid ice melting in the mountains, or even an unfortunately

Killing nearly 4 million people, this flood is known as the deadliest flood ever recorded. This flood didn’t just cause death. It also caused destruction to thousand of square feet of the land in China. “...34,000 square miles (88,000 square km) of land were completely inundated, and approximately 8,000 square miles (21,000 square km) more were partially flooded, leaving 80 million people homeless.” (Encyclopedia Britannica: Huang He Floods). Levees were built along the Huang He River (Yellow River), but they caused the river to rise, so the levees actually didn't help the floods at all. These failed levees are thought to be the cause of this disastrous flood. Also, it is said that the Huang He River has flooded about 1500 times in 200 years, so a flood wasn't uncommon for the people by the river. “Countless people died of drowning or from waterborne diseases such as cholera and typhus, while there were widespread reports of wives and daughters being sold, infanticide and cannibalism. The death toll estimated between 3.7 and 4 million people, with a further 30 million affected.” (This Day In History: Central China Floods of 1931) From this, you can see that this flood was the worst recorded flood of all time and caused many people to lose their lives, homes, and

They are caused by excessive rain, usually in a low lying area, or a sudden release of water like a dam failure. They can leave devastating effects on the earth and its people such as destruction to buildings or roads, the spread of diseases, and breaking sewage pipes and causing the bacteria to go into the flood water, sickening populations. Also, one of the deadliest natural disasters of all history was the Huang He River floods of China in 1931. It killed nearly 4 million people, affected 30 million people, and flooded 34,000 square