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The environmental disasters that defined 2018

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Rajeshwari Ganesan
Rajeshwari GanesanDec 31, 2018 | 18:24

The environmental disasters that defined 2018

From nature's wrath unleashed in the form of volcanic eruptions, to completely avoidable calamities like floods in Kerala, 2018 was a cocktail of disasters that we wish not to spill on to 2019

As 2018 wanes and 2019 dawns, here is a look at the calamities that caused extensive damage to life and property. There are lessons to be learnt from each — be it on preparedness or to avoid what could have been forestalled.

1) Earthquake and tsunami in the Sulawesi islands, Indonesia

Human deaths: 2,783

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A resident walks at an area hit by the earthquake and tsunami in Palu, Central Sulawesi, Indonesia. (Source: Reuters)

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A 7.5 magnitude earthquake and subsequent 20-foot tsunami brought widespread devastation to the Sulawesi island in Indonesia in late September. The powerful quakes and the consequent tsunami hit the city of Palu on the Sulawesi island — killing more than 2,000 people, levelling entire cities and rendering more than 3,30,000 people homeless, according to World Vision, a global humanitarian nonprofit.

2) Earthquake and tsunami in Lombok and Bali, Indonesia

Human deaths: 565

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People crowd on the shore as they attempt to leave the Gili Islands after the earthquake in Lombok, Indonesia. (Source: Indonesia Water Police)

On 5 August 2018, a destructive earthquake measuring 6.9 on the Richter scale struck Lombok island in Indonesia. It was preceded by a foreshock on July 29, and followed by an aftershock on August 19. The epicentre was located inland — the rupture spread to the north and reached the sea, creating tsunamis.

Widespread damage was reported in Lombok and Bali. According to official estimates, 80 per cent of the structures in North Lombok were either damaged or destroyed. With 565 people dead, more than 1,000 injured, and over 4,17,000 people displaced, the earthquake is the largest and the strongest to have hit Lombok in recorded history with maximum casualties and extensive damage.

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3) Floods in Kerala, India

Human deaths: 480

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Rescuers evacuate people from a flooded area to a safer place in Aluva, Kerala, in August 2018. (Source: Reuters)

Unchecked urban growth in what should have been ecologically sensitive zones, rains unprecedented in over a century caused by depleting forest cover, and unpreparedness on handling high water levels in the 62 large dams, despite torrential rains since the past two months — add these up to get a perfect recipe for a tragedy that was almost entirely man-made and avoidable in Kerala in August 2018.

Officials estimate that at least 480 people died in the floods — and by after being crushed by debris after landslides.

4) Volcanic eruption and tsunami in Java and Sumatra, Indonesia

Human deaths: 429 and counting

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A plume of ashes rises as Anak Krakatau erupts in Indonesia, December 23, 2018. (Source: Reuters)

On December 22, giant waves crashed into coastal towns along the Sunda Strait on Sumatra and Java islands of Indonesia. It is thought that volcanic activity set off undersea landslides which, in turn, caused the tsunami.

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A car is seen among ruins after a tsunami hit Carita beach in Pandeglang, Banten province, Indonesia. (Source: Reuters)

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The wall of water that smashed houses caught residents completely unaware and unprepared. The tsunami is thought to be caused by a volcano that erupted on the Anak Krakatau island on the Sunda Strait that connects Java and Sumatra — thereby causing maximum damage to both the islands.

5) Volcanic Eruption in Guatemala

Human deaths: 425

When Guatemala’s Fuego volcano erupted in early June, villages, coffee farms and a golf resort downslope were consumed in just minutes by a pyroclastic flow — a fast-moving mixture of hot gas and volcanic rock.

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Fuego volcano after it erupted violently, in San Juan Alotenango, Guatemala. With spewing lava, the volcano got an orange glow at night. (Photo: Reuters) 

The eruption releases mixtures denser than air, forming toxic landslides that careened downhill at speeds between 30 and 90 miles per hour and temperatures up to 1,300 degrees. The ground was reportedly so hot in areas that the soles of some rescue workers’ boots were coming apart.

More than 400 people were killed and over two million people were affected.

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A submerged car is seen in a flooded area in Mabi town, Kurashiki, Okayama Prefecture, Japan, during the floods of July 2018. (Source: Reuters)

As the earthquakes, tsunamis and volcanoes were unleashing nature’s wrath, floods — in most cases — are the new faces of the dire consequences of climate change staring us in our faces.

They are no longer possibilities in a distant future. Scientists have long warned of the dangers that a warming climate poses to our planet. This year alone, a United Nations report delivered dire warnings on scaling back greenhouse gas emissions before the effects of climate change become irreversible. The US government’s Fourth National Climate Assessment report predicted worse consequences, including increased air pollution and economic losses.

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A man makes his way through flood waters in Kogi State, Nigeria, in September 2018. (Source: Reuters)

Some other disasters that shook the collective conscience of environmentalists were — the California wildfire, Japan floods and the Nigeria floods — all three entirely avoidable.

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Firefighters battle the Mendocino Complex fire in Northern California. (Source: AFP)

We herald 2019 with a hope that a better environmental conscience prevails amongst the political leaders of the world, and each of earth’s denizens could take at least one tiny step in making it a better place — for you and for me and the entire human race.

Last updated: December 31, 2018 | 18:24
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