Talking about Disasters: English Vocabulary List

a violent storm with winds moving in circles

"The cyclone hit the coastal town."

"The coastal town was evacuated as the powerful cyclone approached with winds moving in circles at high speed."

a tropical storm with violent winds moving in a circle that form over the western Pacific Ocean

"A typhoon is a tropical storm."

"The powerful typhoon destroyed hundreds of homes and forced thousands of people to evacuate the coastal area."

a long period of time when there is not much raining

"The drought killed all the crops."

"A drought is a prolonged period of abnormally low rainfall"

a large, intensely hot, and uncontrollable fire

"The inferno burned the forest."

"Firefighters struggled to control the inferno that spread quickly through the dry forest."

a sudden rise of seawater onto the shore driven primarily by strong onshore winds, often compounding the normal tidal cycle

"A tidal wave hit shore."

"Strong onshore winds caused a significant tidal wave that inundated the coastal areas."

a swirling mass of fluid with a rotating motion, often forming a funnel shape

"Water formed a vortex."

"The powerful drain created a dangerous vortex that pulled debris down into the pipes."

large amounts of snow falling from mountains

"The avalanche swept down the mountain"

"The avalanche buried the village under several meters of snow."

a large amount of mud and other materials that quickly moves down a hill, usually triggered by heavy rain or earthquake

"The mudslide blocked the road."

"Following the intense rainfall, a massive mudslide swept down the mountainside, cutting off access to the village."

the number of individuals who die as a result of an accident, war, etc.

"The death toll from the hurricane rose to over a hundred people."

"The death toll is the officially recorded number of fatalities resulting from a specific disaster"

an individual, such as a paramedic, police officer, or firefighter, trained to provide immediate assistance and care in emergencies or crisis situations

"A first responder arrived quickly to help the injured man."

"A first responder is a trained emergency professional who arrives at an accident scene to provide immediate medical assistance."

a tremor or earthquake that occurs beneath the ocean floor

"The seaquake caused a tsunami warning."

"A seaquake is an earthquake that occurs under the seabed"

the action of transferring people or being transferred to somewhere else to be safe from a dangerous situation

"The evacuation saved many lives."

"An evacuation is the urgent withdrawal of people from a dangerous place to a safer location"

a large fire that spreads fast and causes much destruction

"The wildfire spread quickly through the dry forest and destroyed many homes."

"The wildfire forced thousands of people to leave their homes."

a storm with heavy snowfall and strong winds

"The blizzard closed all the schools."

"A blizzard is a severe snowstorm with sustained high winds and very low visibility"

a strong wind, mostly in a desert, that lifts particles of sand and blows them around

"The sandstorm covered everything in dust."

"A sandstorm is a meteorological phenomenon where strong winds lift enormous quantities of sand into the air"

a very high wave or series of waves caused by an undersea earthquake or volcanic eruption

"The tsunami caused terrible damage to the coastal villages after the earthquake."

"A tsunami is a series of huge ocean waves triggered by an undersea earthquake or volcanic eruption"

the sudden outburst of lava and steam from a volcanic mountain

"The volcano's eruption was huge."

"The sudden eruption of Mount Vesuvius buried Pompeii in ash and pumice."