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Disaster Defined

An occurrence causing widespread destruction and distress; a catastrophe.

A disaster is a perceived tragedy, being either a natural calamity or man-made catastrophe. It is a hazard which has come to fruition. A hazard, in turn, is a situation which poses a level of threat to life, health, property, or that may deleteriously affect society or an environment.

In the modern world, the traditional view of natural disasters as punishments for human wickedness has given way to the scientific study of the causes of seemingly unpredictable acts of nature. In recent years, however, scholars have placed more emphasis on the roles played by greed and indifference to potential human suffering in many seemingly "natural" disasters.

The excerpts above are from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language Fourth Edition, Wikipedia and the Encyclopedia of American History. Retrieved June 04, 2010, from Answers.com Web site: http://www.answers.com/topic/disaster


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