Top 10 Most Frightening Natural Disasters

Natural disasters are the worst things on earth which cannot be controlled despite of all the high-tech developments and advancements. Science is able to forecast most of the catastrophes, but it is unable to control them in full extent. Every one of us fears the moment to get caught in one. This list presents the top 10 most frightening natural disasters happened so far.

1. Tambora Eruption: 1815

In south Indonesia on Sumbawa Island, lies Mt. Tambora. It erupted in 1815, from 6th April 6 11th. Its worst consequences were seen 10 to 11. It was the history’s most powerful eruption rated 7 on Volcanic Explosivity Index. It was 4 times more powerful as compared to the 1883 eruption of Krakatoa. As a matter of fact, it was 52,000 times stronger as compared to the Hiroshima Bomb. It uprooted or incinerated all the vegetation on Island; washed out to sea mixed with ash. The trees transformed into rafts across the area of 3 miles. Around 92,000 people died, mostly by starvation. It was the record loss in any volcanic eruptions so far.

2. Lituya Bay Megatsunami: 1985

Till 9th July, 1958, megatsunamis were only hypothesized. In a very slim fjord of the Alaskan panhandle, Lituya Bay, an earthquake of 7.7’s magnitude trembled 90 million tons of glacial ice and rock off the slope at the bay’s head. It fell down almost vertically, all at once, and dropped off as a sarsen into deep headwaters of the bay. This produced the highest wave of 1,720 feet, the maximum height ever recorded. It is 470ft taller than the tip of the Empire State Building’s antenna. Traveling from the bays’ head towards the open ocean, the wave shattered all the trees above the ground. Out 3 fishing boats, it sank one, killing two on board. The wave travelled with a speed of 600 mph.

3. Bridge Creek F5 Tornado: 1999

On 3rd May, 1999, there was a tornado outbreak which lasted for three days. It was an F5 which started with a bang, and reached to its full form at 7:12 PM according to local time. At 318 mph, it was the history’s most powerful windstorm so far. While traveling northeast from Amber, it slayed 36 people. It crossed through Moore and Bridge Creek. It destroyed some 8,000 houses. It torn large vehicles with wreckages, and then swathed them around poles, tossed them entirely through warehouses and thrashed 2x4s through wheel hubs. First time in the history, the local radios alarmed that everyone who is not underground, is prone to death.

4. Tunguska Explosion

On 30th June, 1908, a comet or asteroid plunged over the Lower Tunguska River, Russia. It is a distant area of Siberia. The asteroid exploded at a height of 3 – 6 miles. It detonated exploding the energy of the largest thermonuclear bomb ever tested by United States, which totaled 10-15 megatons. It is 1/3rd to the energy of Tsar Bomba, the largest thermonuclear weapon ever exploded. The airburst collapsed around 80 million trees spanning the area of 772sq miles and rated 5.0 on the Richter Scale. However, no one was killed. For 100 miles around the epicenter, the shockwave blew off people’s feet, scorched their clothes, shattered the windows and blew down the trees. The detonation was enough to destroy the whole population of Japan.

5. The Great Flood

It was the most lethal natural disaster ever recorded in central China in 1931. 3 major rivers drain this area, the Huai, the Yellow and the Yangtze. All 3 flooded terribly, because there were heavy winter snowfalls in the mountains surrounding the river basins, and the start of spring melted this snow. Consequently, it flowed into the rivers. The spring was accompanied by heavy rainfall. Subsequently the cyclone season, which normally brings 2 storms each year, brought 10 storms; among which 7 were in July only. All of this water increased the quantity of 3 major rivers, particularly the Yellow River. Around 3.7 – 4 million people were drowned. The capital city of Nanjing City, became an island bounded by more than 100,000sq kilometers of water. It was greater than the area of Indiana State, or the entire Portugal.

6. The Storm of the Century

From 12th to 13th March, 1993, a cyclonic storm made off the east coasts of US, so huge in size that it created an exclusive jumble of stark weather. Hardly does a solo storm system made snowstorms from the U.S./Canada border to Birmingham, except this storm. There was 12’’ – 16’’ snowfall in Birmingham in 24 hours. The snowstorms were convoyed by hurricane-force wind. In the middle of this snowstorm, the tornedo killed 5 people. In the eastern half of the republic, 300 individuals froze to death.

7. The European Heat Wave: 2003

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Hot summers are not normal in Europe. They almost never happen in Europe. But in 2003, a hot summer stroke Europe with such intensity that the southeastern US or the Australian wilderness sat back and marveled. In North Carolina, hot summers are expected and the living system is set in a way that people use to get prepared for them. But in Europe, majority of houses constructed within last 50 years before 2003 did not have air conditioners, because they were not needed ever. Presently, almost half of them are ready for upcoming future. The heat wave killed almost 14,802 people just in France; majority of them included people in old houses, or single families residing in houses lacking the cooling ability. Most of the Europe was dried up by this heat and numerous fires broke out in forests in Portugal. In Portugal, the heat killed around 2,000 people. About 300 died in Germany, 141 in Spain, and 1,500 in the Netherlands. The heat wave broke many temperature records since 1700s. 75% of wheat crops in Ukraine were parched to death.

8. The Chile Earthquake: 1960

On 22nd May 22, 1960, it was the strongest earthquake ever documented near Valdivia, Chile. It killed almost 6,000 people. According to the eyewitnesses, the whole world seemed as if God had detained one part of it like a rope, and hanged it as stiff as he could. In Valdivia, 40pc homes were destroyed to the ground. A neighboring active volcano, Cordon Caulle, was torn open and enforced to erupt. The intensity of earthquake was 9.5, and it caused 35ft high waves some 6,000 miles away. It triggered 82ft high waves which traveled down the Chilean shore. It completely destroyed Hilo, Hawaii. The surface energy possessed by the quake was the Indian Ocean quake of 2004, and equaled 178 billion tons of TNT. By using this energy, the whole US could be powered for 740 years.

9. The Limnic Eruption of Lake Nyos

Limnic eruptions are among the strangest natural disasters identified. The conditions necessary for one to happen make them very infrequent. Lake Nyos lies in a very distant location of the Cameroonian forest. It is a small lake, only 1.2 miles by 0.75 miles; however it is very deep, 682ft. Under the bed, there is a lava chamber leaking CO2 into the water. This transforms the water into carbonic acid. The density of carbon dioxide is twice the density of air, therefore it will not escalate from the lake’s bottom, except thrust up by another force. The Earth compasses only 3 such lakes. On 21st August, 1986, the CO2 at the lake’s bottom unexpectedly erupted all instantaneously.

It was 1.6 million tons. As a result, a cloud of CO2 was released from the lake. Because of being denser than air, his cloud enfolded the ground outlines, spread out of the lake at the speed of 60 mph, moved downhill covering the entire area at a speed of 30 mph, and banished all the oxygen in numerous small villages, suffocating 1,700 – 1,800 people. This figure does not include their livestock. The strength of the gas ejection also crippled the lake water itself, causing an 80 feet high tsunami that destroyed the shrubs, trees, and soil at one part of the coast.

10. Typhoon Tip

Pacific typhoons are normally more dominant than Atlantic storms, because the typhoons possess more water providing them this much strength. On 12th October, 1979, Tip faced the lowest air pressure ever documented on Earth at sea level: 870 mbars. Normal air pressure at sea level is 1,013.25 mbars. Even the Hurricane Andrew made it only to 922 mbars. Tip had 1 minute continued winds of 190 mph. It slayed 99 people, a lesser amount compared to other disasters on our list, but it should be treated in the viewpoint of a long warning afore the raids by typhoon. There were 44 fatalities which were fishermen in open Pacific. 8 ships were sunk or grounded. It was not just the strongest cyclone, it was also the largest ever documented. It was almost half the size of US, not including Alaska.