3. Disaster risk and vulnerability

Collect students homework and encourage them to share the disaster story they recorded. Use these prompt questions:

• Who did you interview?
• What disaster event did they tell you about?
• What were the impacts of the hazard on the person you interviewed? How did it affect them?

Students view the natural hazards video and then complete the quiz.

1. What is a natural hazard?

• When humans are hurt.
• Anything dangerous.
• An event of natural forces such as a flood or an earthquake.

Answer:  An event of natural forces such as a flood or an earthquake.

2. What is a disaster?

• When a natural hazard impacts humans.
• When the earth shakes.
• When a tree is struck by lightning.

Answer: When a natural hazard impacts humans.

3. What makes someone vulnerable to a disaster?

• When they drive on the wrong side of the road.
• Risk factors that increase the likelihood of someone being injured or killed.
• When it is officially declared by the government.

Answer: Risk factors that increase the likelihood of someone being injured or killed.

4. Could you have a disaster without humans being impacted?

• Of course you can.
• Sometimes.
• No, without humans they are just natural hazards.

Answer: No, without humans they are just natural hazards.

5. What is an example of hazard vulnerability?

• Poor design and construction of buildings.
• Lack of public information and awareness.
• Both of the above.

Answer: Both of the above.

6. Can humans influence the impacts of a disaster?

• Yes, they can manage their risks and become less vulnerable.
• Sometimes.
• Never.

Answer: Yes, they can manage their risks and become less vulnerable.

Students in groups or pairs view digital stories about the 1929 Launceston floods or the 1967 Black Tuesday bushfires and respond to a series of questions about these significant historical disaster events.

Depending on the hazard most likely to impact your area, select either a flood or bushfire disaster.

1929 Launceston flood

Since Launceston’s establishment, there have been 36 significant floods with 1929 reputedly the worst. Rainfalls of 250mm were monitored in 48 hours and gale force winds destroyed buildings, roads & farms across the north & north-west.

The 1929 flood saw the evacuation of 4,000 people. 1,000 homes were inundated and 20 ultimately condemned. The flood claimed the lives of 22 people. Fourteen were killed when the Cascade Dam at Derby collapsed on the town.

The severe weather across the North East of Tasmania caused flood waters from both the North and South Esk rivers to converge on Launceston. The city was left without electricity, as the Duck Reach power station had been destroyed in the torrent. The Tamar river broke its banks and the low lying suburbs of Launceston began evacuating in the early hours of the morning.

Students view the first three minutes of this digital story. (Time in the lesson is limited and the whole video does not need to be viewed to complete the quiz)

Read more about the Launceston flood history.

Launceston flood quiz

Answer these 3 questions in pairs or as a class discuss:

1. Why did this natural hazard become a disaster? Possible answers: People were living in a low lying land areas, Launceston is a flood zone, there were no levy banks, there was a lot of rain, people weren’t aware that it would flood so quickly, people ignored the risks.
2. Explain the impacts of the flood. Include things like the physical, structural, emotional, social and ecological impacts. Possible answers: People died and injured, houses destroyed, people became homeless, livestock lost, businesses and fences destroyed, native animals and their habitat lost, bridges and roads destroyed, power and water disrupted, power poles destroyed, millions of dollars to rebuild and repair, whole towns destroyed and had to be rebuilt, people left and never returned because they felt unsafe.
3. Describe some of the reasons why people were vulnerable to the impacts of this flood. Possible answers: People didn’t know what was coming, people didn’t have the time to leave, people didn’t know about it, houses were built in low lying areas which made them vulnerable, there were no levy banks or sand bags to hold the water away.

1967 Black Tuesday bushfires

On the 7th of February in 1967, 110 separate fire fronts burnt through 264,000 hectares of land within 5 hours. There was extensive damage to agricultural property and parks areas, as well as public infrastructure, properties and many small towns.

The worst of the fires was the Hobart fire which encroached upon the city of Hobart. The fires claimed 62 lives in a single day and there were 900 injured and thousands of people were homeless as a result of the fires. The total damage amounted to $40 million in 1967 Australian dollars value.

In terms of both loss of property and loss of life, the Black Tuesday bushfires in 1967 are considered one of the worst disasters to have occurred in Australia.

Students in groups or pairs view a ’67 bushfire story on the ’67 Bushfires Storymap. Or view these suggested stories:

Black Tuesday bushfires quiz

Answer these 3 questions in pairs/group or as a class discuss:

1. Why did this natural hazard become a disaster? Possible answers: It impacted people and many died, their homes and community infrastructure were destroyed, people were living in and near bushland areas that were on fire, people were allowed to burn off, burning off got out of control, the weather of high winds, high temperature and low humidity meant the fire moved quickly and was very intense, they weren’t aware of the risk.
2. Explain the impacts of the bushfires? Include things like the physical, structural, emotional, social and ecological impacts. Possible answers: People died and injured, houses were destroyed, people became homeless, livestock lost, businesses and fences burnt, native animals and their habitat burnt, bridges and roads destroyed, power and water disrupted, power poles destroyed, millions of dollars to rebuild and repair, whole towns destroyed and had to be rebuilt, people left and never returned because they felt unsafe, some native forest areas never recovered, old growth trees were destroyed, the fire was so intense that seed stock in the forest floor were destroyed.
3. Describe some of the reasons why people were vulnerable to the impacts of this bushfire. Possible answers: People didn’t know what was coming as it moved very quickly, large forested areas meant the fire spread quickly, people didn’t have the right equipment or preparations to keep themselves safe, burning practice of farmers created the fires, very hot and very windy day made the fire move very quickly and was very intense, people were not prepared, 50 years ago there was not the emergency services as there is now, 50 years ago there were no rules about when you can burn safely, many fires burning at the same time made it hard for people to escape, houses were not built to withstand this kind of fire, communications and technology was not as advanced as it is now to give people warnings, more people now have their own cars to escape, people are more aware of fires now because of the history of fires here.

Emergency Management Plan – you can access your schools emergency management plan or the local government’s municipal emergency management plan. These plans will list the most common natural hazards in your area and the strategies to mitigate and manage them. Now think-pair-share:

• Can you think of people in your community who might be vulnerable to the impacts of a local hazard?
• Would you or your family be vulnerable to the impacts of a disaster? If so why? If not, why not?

Recap on the lesson with reference to the disaster equation:

Natural Hazard + Vulnerable Community = Disaster

The lesson learning intentions:

• KNOW: How a natural hazard can impact people and property.
• UNDERSTAND: What makes communities vulnerable to the impacts of a natural hazard.
• DO: Explain how a natural hazard can become a disaster.

One way a natural hazard can impact a person or community is…?