People living on the planet in different eras have repeatedly encountered various catastrophes, not least among which are tornadoes and their derivatives. The wind is a very powerful element, it's hard to argue with that. His strength is enough to demolish almost any structure built by man, lift into the air and carry cars, objects and people over long distances. Large-scale catastrophes of this kind happen relatively infrequently, so any hurricane, tornado, typhoon or tornado is an extraordinary event that attracts world attention.
Hurricanes: causes of natural disasters
What is a hurricane? This phenomenon is caused by the wind of great speed. The occurrence of hurricanes is explained simply: the wind appears due to the difference in atmospheric pressure. Moreover, the more expressive the amplitude of pressure, the greater the force of the wind. The direction of the air flow is from an area of high pressure to a place with lower rates.
Typically, hurricanes are caused by cyclones and anticyclones that move quickly from place to place. Cyclones are characterized by low pressure, anticyclones, on the contrary, are high. The winds in such huge air masses blow in different directions, depending on the hemisphere.
Relatively speaking, any hurricane is an air whirlpool. The causes of hurricanes are reduced to the appearance of a low pressure area into which air rushes at a frantic speed. Such phenomena occur throughout any season, but in Russia they most often appear in the summer.
Tornado, storm, hurricane: differences
Strong winds can be called differently: typhoons, hurricanes, storms, tornadoes or storms. They differ not only in name, but also in speed, method of formation and duration. For example, a storm is the weakest windy incarnation. The wind during a storm blows at a speed of about 20 m/s. The phenomenon lasts up to a maximum of several days in a row, and the coverage area is more than a hundred kilometers, while a hurricane can rage for about 12 days, bringing chaos and destruction. At the same time, a hurricane whirlwind flies at a speed of 30 m/s.
About the tornado, which the long-suffering Americans call a tornado, it is worth mentioning especially. This is a mesocyclone, an air vortex, the pressure in the center of which drops to record lows. A funnel in the form of a trunk or whip increases during movement and, sucking in earth and objects, changes color to a darker one. The wind speed exceeds 50 m/s, possessing enormous destructive power. swirl diameterthe column is sometimes hundreds of meters. A column descending from a thundercloud draws objects, cars and buildings into itself with truly gigantic force. A tornado sometimes captures hundreds of kilometers, destroying everything that is on the road.
Hurricanes, storms, tornadoes are sometimes observed on Russian territory. In particular, hurricanes most often occur in the northern regions: in Kamchatka, in the Khabarovsk Territory, in Chukotka, on Sakhalin Island. But tornadoes in Russia are an infrequent phenomenon. One of the first mentions of such a phenomenon dates back to the 15th century. The tornado of 1984 in the city of Ivanovo also brought significant damage. And in 2004 and 2009, the hurricane did not cause serious damage.
Strong winds in Russia
Although tornadoes are rare in Russia, hurricanes and storms, of course, do happen. In terms of strength, they, fortunately, are not as significant as the famous "Camilla" or "Katrina", but they also lead to destruction and casu alties. In addition to those mentioned, it is worth noting the most noticeable hurricanes in Russia.
| Date | Region | Damage |
| 1998 | Moscow | 8 killed, 157 injured. More than 2,000 buildings and power lines were damaged. The wind speed was 31 m/s. |
| 2001 | Perm region | Damaged residential buildings in Perm and the region, disrupted water supply, destroyed power lines. |
| 2001year | Kemerovo Region | Hail massively destroyed vast areas of agricultural land. Roofs were blown away from many residential buildings. The damage amounted to more than 50 million rubles. |
| 2001 September | Sochi | One person killed, 25 injured. Trees uprooted, some broken. Roofs damaged. |
| 2002 | Novosibirsk region | Windows shattered, roofs torn off. The wind exceeded the speed of 28 m/s. Power pylons destroyed, wheat crops damaged. |
| 2003 | Ryazan | Wind knocked down shields, 3 people lost their lives. In general, the area of the hurricane spread to the central regions of Russia. In Moscow, even the airport stopped its work. A bus was overturned in the Tula region, trees were knocked down, houses were damaged. |
| 2004 | Irkutsk Region | Six people died, 58 people were seriously injured. More than 200 power poles were knocked down, leaving thousands without electricity. |
| 2005 | Northern Europe | The hurricane also touched Russia: residential buildings were damaged in Moscow, the Neva River overflowed its banks in St. Petersburg, and a whirlwind knocked down the New Year tree in Kaliningrad. The Pskov region was almost completely de-energized. |
| 2006 March | SouthRussia |
The elements hit Vladikavkaz: many buildings were destroyed, a lot of trees were knocked down, 7 people were injured by the hurricane. Also, the wind flying at a speed of more than 30 m/s and abundant sleet de-energized the Kuban, Rostov region, Dagestan, Adygea, Stavropol and Kalmykia (a state of emergency had to be introduced in Elista). |
| 2006 May | Altai | A crazy whirlwind rushing at speeds of up to 40 m/s killed 2 people and massively damaged power lines. |
| 2006, August | Chita Region | A cyclone from Lake Baikal brought heavy rain and heavy squalls. People lost power supply, collectors on two streets were flooded, roofs were torn off houses. Teenager killed by electric shock. |
| 2007 May | Krasnoyarsk Territory | Cars were damaged, communication was interrupted for a while. |
| 2007 June | Volga and Ural | 52 injured, three killed. The wind tore off wires and roofs. Falling trees damaged power lines. |
| 2007 | Tomsk region | The squall demolished the roofs of houses, there are dead (woman), 11 people were injured. An emergency regime has been introduced. |
| 2007 July | Tatarstan | From the revelry of the elementsmore than 40 settlements were affected, residential and administrative buildings were damaged. |
Russian size
Based on the above information, we can conclude that there are hurricanes in Russia, but their scale is incomparable with those that rage in other parts of the world. Why is nature so merciful to Russian expanses? The consequences of hurricanes in Russian territories are, of course, painful for the victims, but still not as fatal and voluminous as in the USA or Australia.
The fact is that for a hurricane to occur, it is necessary that air filled with heat and water particles come into contact with cold air. And this should certainly happen over a cool surface. Therefore, most often tornadoes and hurricanes occur in the coastal areas of the southern seas. Russia does not fit into such a scheme.
When the ocean rages…
A hurricane at sea is called a storm. At the beginning of the 19th century, an admiral of the English fleet named Beaufort developed a special scale, with which to this day measure the strength of the wind. This grading system operates both at sea and on land. The scale has a 12-point gradation. Already from 4 points, waves up to one and a half meters high rise, then with the wind it is no longer possible to speak, and it is very difficult to go against the air flow. In a 9-point storm, the wind grows stronger up to 24 m/s, and the waves reach a height of 10 meters. The maximum, 12-point hurricane destroys everything in its path. Small and medium-sized ships are the first to be hit, for which there is almost no chance of surviving in such a wind. The sea is wildfoams and rages. The hurricane is moving at over 32 m/s.
Typhoon also has a relation to the oceans. This is a cyclone that occurs over the surface of the Atlantic, and it got its name in Asia. In translation, the word means too strong a wind. The Sakhalin region is hit by up to eight typhoons during the year. There are also Pacific typhoon hurricanes. This type of element has the most catastrophic consequences.
Some tropical cyclones are called supertyphoons because of their eccentricity and terrible strength. Typhoon Georgia is an example of such a hurricane. He suddenly collapsed in 1970 in the south of Sakhalin and mercilessly demolished everything that was possible. Unfortunately, no casu alties could be avoided.
The world's deadliest hurricanes
Examples of hurricanes, even over the past 20 years, we can often observe. The ten most destructive elements included such elements as:
- "Paulin", which raged in Mexico in 1997.
- "Mitch", in 1998, destroyed the countries of Central America; the force of the hurricane sometimes reached 320 km/h, human casu alties numbered in the tens of thousands.
- Hurricane Category 5 Kenna destroyed the city of Nayarit; the wind uprooted trees, destroyed buildings and roads, and only by a lucky chance people did not die.
- Typhoon Ivan hit the Caribbean and the US in 2004 and caused billions in damage.
- Wilma destroyed the coasts of Cuba and the United States in 2005; she claimed 62 human lives.
- A huge whirlwind with a length of 900km swept over the vastness of the United States in 2008; for 14 hours of rampant elements, enormous damage was caused; a wind of such strength was called "Ike".
- "Charlie" in 2004 took a walk in Jamaica, Cuba and the USA; wind force reached 240 km/h.
- In 2012, Hurricane Sandy killed 113 people; the elements raged in the eastern United States, especially the state of New York.
Tornado with a female character
Interestingly, the most destructive effects of hurricanes are observed from those elements that are named after women.
These are the most capricious and unpredictable hurricanes, reminiscent of a lady in a fit of hysterics. Maybe this is a prejudice, but judge for yourself:
- One of the worst hurricanes in history is Katrina. This deadly wind hit the US in 2005. Extensive floods, about 2 thousand human lives, hundreds of missing people - this is the tribute collected by the elements in that fateful year.
- An earlier but no less terrible hurricane hit India and Bangladesh in 1970. They called it strange - "Flea". More than 500,000 people died from floods provoked by an unprecedented storm.
- Chinese typhoon, romantically named Nina, devastated the great Bankiao Dam, causing flooding that killed an estimated 230,000 people.
- Camilla swept over the Mississippi in 1969. Meteorologists could not measure the strength of the wind, as the instruments were destroyed by the violent elements. It is believed that hurricane gusts reached340 km/h Hundreds of bridges were damaged, many houses were damaged, 113 people drowned, thousands were injured.
To be fair, the worst hurricane, named San Calixto, has nothing to do with women's names. Nevertheless, it became the deadliest recorded. Tens of thousands of people died, almost all the buildings were destroyed, the wind tore the bark from the trees before uprooting them. A huge tsunami washed away everything that blocked her path. Modern experts believe that the force of the hurricane was at least 350 km/h. This terrible event happened in 1780 in the Caribbean.
Storm! The storm is coming soon! Or how to measure the strength of a tornado
In order to measure the strength of the wind, again, the Beaufort scale is used, somewhat modified, refined and supplemented. An instrument called an anemometer measures the speed of air currents. For example, the last hurricane Patricia, recorded in Texas, had a force of 325 km / h. This was enough to blow a large train into the water.
The destructive force of the wind starts from 8 points. This corresponds to an air speed of 60 km/h. With such a wind, thick trees break. Further, the wind increases to 70-90 km/h and begins to demolish fences and small buildings. A 10-point storm uproots trees and destroys capital buildings. The wind force reaches 100-110 km/h. Strengthening, the element drops iron wagons like matchboxes, knocks down poles. A hurricane with a power of 12 produces total destruction, sweeping at a speed of over 130 km / h. SoDeadly hurricanes in Russia, fortunately, are extremely rare.
Disastrous consequences
Hurricane is a serious element, so immediately after the wind stops you should not leave the shelter, you have to wait a few hours before coming out into the light. The consequences of tornadoes, hurricanes, storms are very impressive. These are fallen trees, ripped roofs, flooded sewers, destroyed roads, damaged power pylons. In addition, the waves caused by the wind can turn into a tsunami, sweeping away everything that is alive and built by people. When dams collapse, global floods are inevitable, and if sewage gets into drinking tanks, this often provokes an uncontrolled growth of infectious diseases and even epidemics.
But life will gradually begin to recover, because emergency rescue units will take over the work, which ordinary residents can help. In order to minimize the consequences as much as possible, and at least avoid human casu alties, there are rules of conduct before, during and after the rampage of the elements.
Rules of conduct in emergency natural conditions
Proper and thoughtful actions during a hurricane can save the life of both the person himself and his loved ones. After meteorologists detect a hurricane and calculate its trajectory, this information is necessarily reported to the public. Usually the standard signal "Attention!" on all channels of television, radio broadcasting and the necessary public information is transmitted.
The preparatory phase includesincludes the following actions:
- sources of information remain on so as not to miss important points;
- students must be allowed to go home without fail;
- if the hurricane is already starting to rage, students take shelter in the basement;
- need to prepare supplies of water, food and medicine for about 3 days;
- lanterns, lamps, candles, portable stoves must be available;
- glasses are glued crosswise or in the shape of a star;
- storefronts are protected by large shields;
- balconies are cleared of objects and rubbish that can be blown away by the wind;
- Windowsills must be empty;
- in the villages, cattle are driven into a fortified barn, equipped with a supply of food and water; summer buildings are fixed as much as possible;
- windows on the windward side close tightly, and on the opposite side, on the contrary, remain open.
What action should be taken in case of a hurricane when you hear about its approach? First, turn off electrical appliances and gas stoves, fix the taps. Secondly, take a suitcase with the most necessary things and documents. Further, stocks of food, medicines, water should be transferred to a safe shelter and take refuge there with the family. If there is no such shelter, then in the house you need to hide under reliable furniture, in niches, doorways. In no case should you approach windows that must first be curtained.
In the event that the elements caught in an open area, any ravine ordeepening. Bridges, or rather places under them, can become an excellent shelter. Keep away from billboards, broken wires, narrow passages (danger of crowds), lowlands, as there is a possibility of flooding. Before the hurricane, be sure to agree with loved ones about the meeting place in case of various unforeseen circumstances.
After the end of the element:
- don't light matches as gas leaks are possible;
- untreated water should not be used as it may be highly contaminated;
- should find out if your neighbors need first aid.
Hurricanes in Russia happen infrequently, but you still need to know these rules, because natural disasters, due to climate change, tend to change their location.
