Nature Doesn’t Cause Disasters, We Do

Natural hazards are inevitable, but disasters are preventable with better planning.

Beyond ‘Natural’ Disasters: How Perception, Policy, and Climate Change Shape Risk

(Photo: PTI/altered by The Quint)

We often hear the terms “natural hazard” and “natural disaster” used interchangeably — in conversations, in news headlines, in social media posts, and even official reports.

But this casual use masks a crucial difference, one that can shape how we understand risk, assign responsibility, and respond to crises.

The distinction isn’t just academic. Failing to differentiate between the two can blur the line between what’s inevitable and what’s preventable, leading to public confusion and, at times, dangerous inaction.

As researchers have long pointed out, a natural hazard is an event, like a cyclone or drought, whereas a disaster is the consequence, often worsened by human decisions, vulnerabilities, and lack of preparedness.

Yet, this nuance rarely finds its way into mainstream conversations. Closing this gap is more urgent than ever, especially as climate change increasingly shapes the nature of hazards and amplifies their impacts.

Hazards & The Illusion of "Natural" Disasters

Hazards, whether natural or caused by human activities, are events or processes that can lead to loss of life, property damage, social and economic disruptions, or harm to the environment.

While natural hazards originate from environmental or geophysical processes such as earthquakes, floods, or cyclones, human-caused hazards stem from industrial activities, infrastructure failures, or conflict.

A hazard becomes a disaster due to the interaction between hazards and societal vulnerabilities, as well as a lack of planning and preparedness.

Focusing on natural hazards is particularly important because, unlike many human-caused hazards, they are largely unavoidable and unpredictable in their timing and location.

While disasters caused by human-induced hazards can often be mitigated or prevented through regulations and technological safeguards, natural hazards such as earthquakes, cyclones, floods, and droughts arise from systems beyond human control.

The first thing to understand is that there is no such thing as a "natural" disaster.

For instance, cyclones (hurricanes) are among the most impactful global hazards. As long as they are roaming over open ocean waters, they won't cause any damage and will be treated as just a regular extreme weather event.

Now, if it were to make landfall at or near a populous coastal city, such as Mumbai (India), Tokyo (Japan), or Miami (USA), it would wreak havoc.

Just by being in the coastal city's proximity, a Cyclone's potential to damage increases manifold, which is when it becomes a disaster.

Turkey’s 2023 earthquake is another example of the interplay between natural hazards and vulnerable factors.

This earthquake was especially catastrophic because of the destruction it caused on the infrastructure, which stemmed from the use of inadequate building materials, poor-quality foundations, and insufficient building regulations.

If an earthquake of the same magnitude were to hit Japan, would the country experience the same degree of damage? Not really.

While there is a significant gap in socio-economic conditions and technological advancements between Turkey and Japan, the impact in Japan would be substantially lower, primarily because of its sophisticated building standards, seismic building codes, and consistent enforcement over time.

It's as clear as day that natural hazards cannot be averted; however, the consequent disasters can be.

A disaster will not occur (or cause significant damage) in the first place unless people and cities are vulnerable due to unequal access to resources, knowledge, and support.

These vulnerabilities are further enhanced by wanton deforestation, unplanned and rapid urbanisation, environmental degradation, and anthropogenic climate change.

Why Labelling Disasters as "Natural" is Problematic

Top-notch weather forecasting and early warning systems have enabled us to predict natural hazards approaching from a mile away and be prepared before they arrive. That does not mean implementing equivalent mitigation measures is also top-notch.

Implementing disaster risk reduction measures requires an absolute sense of urgency, driven by past experiences of the hazard and its potential for damage, as well as information on vulnerable factors and the capabilities of decision-makers.

If a disaster is portrayed as “natural”, it imparts a sense of “inevitability” and implies that no matter the decisions or actions we take, the event would occur anyway and that there was little we could do to prevent it.

This perspective completely sidesteps the critical responsibility of safeguarding vulnerable communities.

By failing to focus on the underlying issues that create vulnerability, it shifts liability away from systems that were unable to mitigate the risk and places the blame on nature. Such acts enable inaction and leave vulnerable populations exposed to repeated harm.

Climate Change and Disaster Risk

There is no denying that the climate is changing and has significant implications for the intensity and frequency of natural hazards.

Everyone feels the shift in weather patterns. The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, a body of the United Nations, has consistently stated in all its assessment reports that increasing greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions contribute to rising atmospheric and oceanic temperatures, altering weather patterns, and exacerbating hazards.

Tropical Cyclones: Warmer sea surface temperatures feed more energy for the genesis and sustenance of tropical cyclones, leading to stronger storms with higher wind speeds and more significant rainfall.

Based on future climate projections, such tropical cyclones may become 17 percent more intense by the end of the 21st Century.

Extreme Heatwaves: The frequency and duration of heatwaves have increased globally over the past decade, resulting in record-breaking temperatures that have led to severe health impacts, water shortages, and crop failures.

Changing Precipitation Patterns and Flooding: Climate change is altering rainfall distribution, with some regions experiencing more intense downpours while others face prolonged periods of dryness.

Globally, small floods, which are responsible for recharging our water supplies, are declining, while the large flood events with greater risk to life and infrastructure are snowballing.

The Human Factor in Climate Change and Disasters

While climate change intensifies hazards, disasters occur when these hazards endanger populations that lack infrastructure and preparedness.

In such a case, the extent of damage depends not only on the severity of the hazard but also on our decisions regarding land use, urban planning, and disaster risk management.

FThe role of Natural Hazards, Exposure, and Vulnerability in disaster risk.

(Source: World Bank, 2013)

Disasters become more destructive only if we continue to view them as "Inevitable Phenomena" rather than challenges that can be mitigated through proactive measures.

Fatalism, the belief that all events are predetermined and therefore inevitable, can lead to widespread inaction, ultimately aggravating disaster risks. Instead, accepting that disasters result from our vulnerabilities will enable us and the decision-makers to shift the focus toward mitigation, the equitable distribution of natural resources, resilience-building, and practical policy interventions.

Transformation Story of Odisha's Disaster Management

Satellite image of Odisha Cyclone in the Bay of Bengal.

(Photo source: National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration)

A compelling example of effective disaster risk reduction is Odisha's response to tropical cyclones. In 1999, a Super Cyclone with a speed of around 260 km/h hit Odisha, affecting around 19 million people.

More than 10,000 lives were lost, 1.9 million houses were damaged, and more than 2 million hectares of agricultural land were devastated.

The extent of the damage was tremendous, largely due to inaction despite numerous warnings issued by state and local governments.

Following the 1999 Super Cyclone, the Odisha government and the India Meteorological Department (IMD) invested significantly in tropical cyclone (TC) forecasting, planning and preparing for disaster risk reduction.

And it paid off, as fatalities from powerful cyclones never crossed double digits.

Now, the Odia community has been empowered, the infrastructure has become resilient, and the cyclone forecasting system has also made significant strides over the years.

The government has also realised that casualties can be prevented and damages can be mitigated only if everyone unites and acts together.

The point of this story here is to reinforce the same critical point: There is no such thing as a "Natural” Disaster.

Final Thoughts

Understanding the distinction between “natural hazards” and “natural disasters” is therefore fundamental to effective disaster risk reduction.

While hazards can be natural, disasters are the result of these hazards interacting with exposed and vulnerable populations.

That being said, not all hazards can be mitigated quickly or easily.

Earthquakes, for example, strike with little to no warning, yet our collective past experiences with such events have taught us valuable lessons about their impacts.

These lessons, though born of tragedy, can serve as powerful drivers of a positive change in how we plan for future disasters, if only we pay attention to them.

Disasters can be prevented through careful planning that relies on scientific knowledge, community engagement, and government transparency and accountability.

Disaster risk reduction measures, such as developing early warning systems, ensuring equitable access to resources, and building resilient infrastructure, can significantly reduce the socioeconomic impact of these events.

Thus, by shifting away from the notion of disasters as “inevitable acts of nature” to “preventable catastrophes,” we can pave the way for a people-centred approach that prioritises preparedness, resilience, and the protection of life and livelihoods.

(Saurabh Kelkar is a Climate Researcher at the WOTR - Centre for Resilience Studies (W-CReS), Pune. He holds a Ph.D. in Climate Science from the University of Tsukuba, Japan. At W-CReS, Saurabh focuses on analysing climate data and making climate and disaster-related information more understandable to the general audience.)