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Articles on Disaster

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Discarded furniture and household items on a street in Beaconsfield, west of Montréal, in the aftermath of the floods on Aug. 9, 2024. Disasters force us to rethink the way we rebuild. The Canadian Press/Graham Hughes

Flooding: Is it time to stop living in basements?

The vast majority of damage to residential buildings during flooding occurs in basements. Rather than rebuilding identically after a disaster, we need to build better.
In the opening scenes of ‘Twisters,’ the fictional death of storm chasers sets the tone. Daisy Edgar-Jones and Glen Powell in ‘Twisters.’ (Universal Pictures via AP)

‘Twisters’ alludes to real-life dangers of chasing storms

‘Twisters’ selectively depicts aspects of reality by showcasing the raw, destructive power of tornadoes – but don’t look to it for safety advice.
The Dali, right, sits amid the wreckage and collapse of the Francis Scott Key Bridge in Baltimore, Md., on April 1. (Kaitlin Newman/The Baltimore Banner via AP)

Human error may have contributed to the Key Bridge disaster — changing our approach to design can help reduce accidents

Human error may have contributed to the tragic accident in Baltimore harbour on March 26. Designing systems that reduce the potential for human error may help prevent future incidents.
Rocky Mountain fires leave telltale ash layers in nearby lakes like this one. Philip Higuera

What 2,500 years of wildfire evidence and the extreme fire seasons of 1910 and 2020 tell us about the future of fire in the West

As the climate warms, devastating fires are increasingly likely. The 2020 fires pushed the Southern Rockies beyond the historical average. Is there hope for the Northern Rockies?
Disasters affect all, human and non-human alike. It is imperative that we consider the harms to non-human life and ecosystems as both a moral obligation and a realistic effort to preserve the ecosystem services upon which we all rely. (Jesse Brothers/Sioux City Journal via AP)

Why we must address the interconnected harms to people, animals and ecosystems in train derailments

Focusing solely on humans at the expense of other life in the aftermath of train derailments limits the effectiveness of our disaster response management.

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