Casualties from natural disasters in 2010 exceeded 200,000, according to Live Science.
Hurricanes, tornadoes, floods, earthquakes, tsunamis and landslides are natural disasters that wipe out cities and cause numerous deaths and casualties every year. While it is impossible to know when a natural disaster might strike, there are some areas that are more prone to natural disaster than others due to their geographic location.
Hurricanes and Tornadoes
Winds from hurricanes and tornadoes cause billions of dollars of damage every year. Those places that often get pummeled by hurricanes and tornadoes are by the coastline. India, Burma, Haiti, Cuba, Vietnam and the southern east coast and gulf area in the United States all have suffered substantial losses due to hurricanes in the past five years, according to NOAA. Tornadoes can occur anywhere, but Mississippi is the worst place to live because of its tornado activity, according to a study done by The National Weather Service and reported by WLBT.
Earthquakes
Earthquakes occur on fault lines so cities and countries located on fault lines often have repeated earthquakes. Some of the deadliest earthquakes have occurred in Japan, Sumatra, China, Chile and California. The deadliest quake to date was in 1556 in Shaanxi or Hua County, China. The quake resulted in 830,000 deaths, according to "The Daily Beast." One of the worst places to live for earthquakes is southern California, which experiences 10,000 earthquakes annually, according to USGS.
Tsunamis and Floods
The worst tsunamis have caused some of the worst floods. Pakistan, India, Japan and Portugal have historically been the worst locations for tsunamis, according to Ranker. The deadliest tsunami took place in the Indian Ocean in 2004 and killed over 150,000 people, according to National Geographic. The tsunami traveled 3,000 miles. However, flooding is not just caused by tsunamis. Storms can cause rivers to overflow, flooding out cities. China, Australia and the UK face several bad floods every year.
Landslides
Landslides are often caused by earthquakes, volcanoes or floods, according to FEMA. In the United States alone landslides cause $1 to 2 billion in damages and over 25 deaths annually. In the last decade landslides in Nicaragua, Brazil, Mt. Saint Helens and China have caused thousands of deaths.
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