Not all countries in the world have four seasons. Most tropical countries have only two seasons; the dry season and the wet or rainy season. During the wet season, rainfalls of different intensities frequently occur. Sometimes, heavy rains fall for days, and the risks of disaster during rainy season increase.
Therefore, government agencies and people living in tropical countries must be more aware of the potential hazards during the wet season. In addition, authorities or government agencies must have an excellent disaster mitigation system and early disaster warning system.
Risks of Disaster During Rainy Season
What happens in rainy season? During the rainy season, heavy rains fall almost every day. Sometimes, it is hot during the day and rain falls in the afternoon. Other times, it rains all day. Moreover, storms often occur in the wet season.
Due to this weather, various disasters take place in the wet season. What are they?
Floods
One of the most common disasters during the rainy season is the flood. It is an overflow of water that submerges dry areas. Heavy rains cause this disaster. However, rains of lower intensity can also lead to flooding if an area has some triggering factors.
These triggering factors are debris jams, rapid urbanization, topographical factors, dam/levee failures, and lack of water management infrastructure. Based on the causes, floods come in two types; flash floods and river floods.
The former occurs when heavy rain causes a rapid rise in water levels or a dam/levee fails. Meanwhile, the latter happens when rain makes a river slowly flood its surroundings.
Floods can cause loss of life and properties. In addition, they can reduce crop yields. Floods also cause livestock to have health problems and difficulties in getting enough food.
Landslides
Another common disaster during rainy season is the landslide. It is the downslope movement of a mass of earth, rocks, and debris. However, not all landslides occurred after heavy rains. In many cases, earthquakes and volcanic eruptions also cause landslides.
How rainwater can cause a landslide? Rainwater seeps into the soil of sloping areas. Consequently, this soil will hold too much water during heavy rains that last for hours or days. The water makes the slope unstable and slides down eventually.
A landslide can kill many people because this hazard occurs quickly. Therefore, those living or under a slope don’t have time to evacuate the location. In addition, a landslide can cause structural damage, economic loss, and transportation problems.
Thunderstorms
A thunderstorm also frequently occurs in the rainy season or monsoon season. This storm has two characteristics, i.e., the presence of lightning and thunder. In addition, heavy rains and strong winds typically accompany thunderstorms.
This weather condition can cause several hazards.
Cloud-to-Ground Lightning: Lighting strikes can cause fatalities to people working outside. In addition, cloud-to-ground lightning can create wildfires.
Downburst Winds: These winds are strong and particularly hazardous for unstable or weakly constructed buildings, old trees, and crops. Moreover, downburst winds can cause flight delays and endanger an aircraft trying to land or take off.
Flash Floods: An intense rainfall during a thunderstorm may cause a flash flood in an urban area. This flood can damage parked vehicles and cause bridges to collapse.
Other Hazards During a Rainy Season
Other hazards may happen in the rainy season.
Soil Erosion: Intense rainfall can create soil erosion. This condition can result in sinkholes and unstable constructions.
Electrical Hazards: Rainwater that seeps into power outlets and chords will cause short circuits. These conditions may lead to fires.
Falling Objects: Big trees, billboards, and other objects can fall during heavy rains and strong winds.
Transportation Problems: Rainwater can make roads slippery and shorten visibility. Therefore, the risk of road accidents increases.
Tips to Minimize Risks of Disaster Caused by Rain
Authorities and people living in areas with the rainy season can follow the following tips to minimize the fatalities of rain disasters.
Clean rivers, waterways, gutters, and drains from debris to prevent floods.
Create bio pore holes to minimize the risk of flash floods.
Trimming trees to minimize the risk of downed trees.
Regularly checking water management infrastructure, dam, and levee.
Install water level or water meter sensors and a flood early warning system to minimize the number of flood victims.
Create an early weather warning system and ensure the system can disseminate warnings effectively.
Stay alert to the potential of extreme weather.
The most common disaster during rainy season is the flood. A flood typically happens because of heavy rains. Moreover, other factors fueling this disaster are the bad drainage system, rapid urbanization, and topographical factors. Other potential factors during this season are landslides and thunderstorms.
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