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-Earthquakes(Charleston had a severe one a long time ago)
-Hurricanes(Hurricane Hugo)
-Lightning(fires get started that way)
-Flooding(low-lying areas)
San Francisco and Los Angeles are prone to natural disasters, such as earthquakes. However, the area of Los Angeles is severely affected if there will be an el nino this year, along with the strong Santa Ana winds it has. New Orleans may subject natural disasters due to hurricanes, but more importantly, global warming. With sea levels on the rise and the elevation of many buildings so low, New Orleans faces a very high risk of being submerged under the sea within the next few decades.
Cities like Oklahoma City face severe tornado warnings in the spring-summer time, and is in the path of destruction during tornado season. Perhaps this is not a very good place to live if you wish to live a quiet life.
Perhaps New York City is well-suited for a man-made disaster, such as a terrorist attack or any other type of accident. With New York's center for America's economy and the vast number of skyscrapers in NYC, any disaster would be catastrophic, especially if it was in Midtown or Lower Manhattan.
You have me confused with someone you are feuding with. I am truly trying to give a valid response to the poll.
Regarding "disaster" cities, I exclude most tornado cities as the damages tend to be more localized, I exclude earthquake cities as although they can be large and disruptive, the most prone areas are the most prepared and therefore the potential loss of life is minimized. Other disasters (man-made, etc) are random, so I consider the effects contained and low (relative to an entire community). The most likely disaster scenarios are the result of flooding, either due to rainfall, tropical systems, system failures (dams, levees), or all of the above.
Hurricanes and Tropical storms are the greatest periodic natural risks for causing flooding, so in looking at all of the cities along the Gulf and East Coast, Florida, Texas, and Louisiana cities all vie for the most likely. I could have picked New Orleans due to its location below sea level, but the population growth and distribution of people represents a threat from both storm surge in the Southeast sections up thru the Ship Channel and rainfall upstream. A single system can cause both. SE Texas and Louisiana are subject to similar topography and weather conditions, but the population is in the Houston area.
In the years I have lived in Houston, in different parts of town: my place of business has had its roof peeled back like a sardine can (NW Houston), stayed at friend's apartment where water rose into living room (SW Houston), and I had no electricity for a week (Alicia); I had water up to my weep holes at my home and had to dig a hasty drainage ditch to drain my yard but lucked out before home flooded (Clear Lake) (Chantal); had a car flooded out on my own street (Clear Lake)(unnamed tropical system); had friends' homes flooded twice in one week (Friendswood) (Allison); had backyard tree uprooted, fences down, electricity out, some home damage (Montrose), one co-worker's home in literally swept away (Bolivar), another co-worker's home gutted by surge and waves (Shore Acres) (Ike); and evacuated my family at least 2 or 3 times from home (Gilbert, Rita, others I don't remember).
Yet I would still rather live in Houston than Dallas. Maybe I should have used the possibility of disaster in my calculations, but I have about as much fondness for Dallas as Mrs. Kennedy, but I at least now no longer live in a flood or storm surge zone.
All this tells me is that you have very bad luck. I've lived in Houston over 25 years and haven't experienced any damage from any storms. I lost electricity for a few days following Ike. But that's it.
I have a feeling that no matter what city you live in you would be a victim.
Also that business you worked at in NW Houston must have the worst quality building material being used. How the heck has it had it's roof peeled off twice? Is the roof made of cardboard?
As a property claims adjuster at the time working in Houston / Galveston during Ike, despite its anticipated force being significantly reduced prior to landfall, I saw quite a bit of damage and terribly sad stories
IMO hurricanes (and water related events) are more of a threat than earthquakes, in the US.
I don't know why LA has more votes than SF. Isn't SF more in danger of earthquakes and closer to the fault line?
I believe SoCal is more at risk for a "big one" than Nor Cal is.....
You'd be surprised how inadequate much of the housing built from the 60s - 80s in LA is for a quake.... so many apartments are built on thin little pillars to allow for parking below.
The best buildings in LA are surprisingly the much older ones, from the late 1800s to the 1950s, and then of course from the late 90s to now - built after the devastating 1994 quake.
Nobody really knows the extent of the damage that will occur during the next "Big One". It's one of the most terrifying aspects of earthquakes. Simply waiting and having no control over what happens.
LA needs to input a Mexico City like early earthquake warning system.
That said, Oklahoma City, LA, San Francisco, New Orleans, and Miami are almost all neck and neck in my book for disasters.
Anchorage, Alaska is a big one to look at.
-A severe earthquake has already happened there, and could happen again.
-With the earthquakes, chances for a tsunami
-Risks for flooding
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