Coastal Areas Are More Vulnerable to Climatic Hazards Than Inland Areas. How Much Do You Agree?

Coastal areas are more vulnerable to climatic hazards than inland areas. How much do you agree? (30 marks)

Tropical storms, otherwise known as hurricane’s, cyclone’s or typhoons require specific conditions to develop. Including a low-pressure system of 100km +, that develops over warms seas of a minimum of 27oC and then therefore, produces high volumes of rain and winds up to 150 km/h. Although, in some circumstances a hurricane can adopt specific qualities, which then make each storm very different and even harder to predict and manage. Such as, Hurricane Ivan, on 7th September 2004,Grenada, Caribbean. This storm was a category 4 and had powerful winds of 220 km/h, but with a lack of rain, which defined it a dry hurricane. Meaning that there was no flooding but a large amount of damage to the South of the island. Such as buildings, blocked roads from debris and agriculture. Whereas, in comparison to Hurricane Jeanne, which was a wet hurricane and occurred at around the same time. Jeanne affected the Dominican Republic and Haiti with 2 days of heavy rain, causing rapid rising sea levels. As these are much poorer countries, many more die (550 people) and some of the devastation included rivers bursting their banks, crops ruined and immediate aid from the U.S was needed of $60,000. Even though both examples of these tropical storms are very different, the specific conditions and which one of then is being on a coastal area are essential for them to develop.

Different air masses originate from separate regions all over the world, when these collide with each other they form a front, which can be either warm or cold. The North East American Blizzard in February 2003 was caused by cold freezing air from Canada and North travelling cold moist air from the south. When collided with each other, around 70cm of snow over one day fell, with blizzard winds drifting it over 10mm, causing 27 deaths and $14 billion worth of damage. Both of these air pressures came from...