23 amazing pics of natural disasters in India and the world

New Delhi: Natural disastersor/ calamities occur all over the world. They have caused massive destruction and damage to life and property. With the change in climatic conditions and due to man made reasons, the intensity of disasters have increased. Here are some amazing pictures which can leave you spellbound. 1. Uttarakhand disaster, 2013 More than 5000 people lost their lives in a humungous cloud burst in the Uttarakhand region in the month of June, 2013. The floods and landslides shook the region particularly the Kedarnath pilgrimage as torrents of river water took the lives of thousands of people destroying homes and buildings. 2. Tsunami, India, 2004The Indian Ocean earthquake that occurred on 26th December, 2004 is the third largest earthquake recorded ever. More than 15,000 people lost their lives. The epicenter of the earthquake was the west coast of Sumatra, Indonesia. Within hours of the quake centred at Aceh, Indonesia, the tsunami wrecked Nicobar, Sri Lanka, Tamil Nadu and Kerala coasts, and the debris spilled away as far as the African coast. 3. Gujarat earthquake, 2001 Occurred on India's 52nd Republic Day, the earthquake rocked Gujarat on a magnitude between 7.6 to 7.7 Richter scale. It killed 20,000 lives and destroyed 400,000 homes. Thousands of families perished, and schoolchildren who had come out to join the R-Day parade in a Gujarat town died in the quake. 4. Eyjafjallajokull Volcano, 2010 (Iceland) The Eyjafjallajokull Volcano was an ostensive explosion of magma, lava, rock and ash in the sky. It caused lot of trouble for air passengers delaying flights. It caused highest level of air travel disruption in Europe. 5. Landslide Closed Highway 1 in California, 2011 (US) A big chunk of California's highway 1 had fallen into the sea after a landslide in 2001. Nearly 40 foot section of the highway tumbled into the Pacific Ocean. 6. Kīlauea volcanoes, Hawaii Kīlauea has been a site of 61 volcanic eruptions since 1823. Situated in Hawaii, it has a history of massive volcanic activity. The oldest exposed lavas date back 2,800 and 2,100 years in the area. 7. Undersea Volcano in Tonga, 2009 (Polynesian) An undersea volcano erupted near Tonga, a Polynesian sovereign state. The gases spewing out of the sea was a spectacular sight. Four days after the start of the eruption a strong earthquake measuring 7.6 on the Richter scale also struck the region.The eruption occurred on March 16, 2009. 8. Volcano eruption, Chile 2008 Volcanic eruptions occurred in May, 2008 in Chaiten. The reuptions occurred in the middle of the night killing 1 person while others were displaced. The gases spread over Chile and Argentina contaminating water supplies. 9. Tsunami, 2004, Indonesia The 2004 calamity was an undersea earthquake, December 26, 2004 with an epicenter off the west coast of Sumatra, Indonesia.The destructive tsunamis along the coasts of most landmasses bordering the Indian Ocean, killing over 230,000 people in fourteen countries and inundating coastal communities with waves up to 98 ft. high. 10. Hurricane Force Winds, 2012 (US) Hurrciane Sandy, the deadliest hurricane of 2012, occurred in the US. Developed from a tropical wave in Western Carribean on October 22, the hurricane killed atleast 54 and left 200,000 people homeless. 11. Eruption of Mount St. Helens, 1980 (US) A volcanic eruption occurred at Mount St. Helens, Washington, US in 1980. The eruption spread across all 48 states of the country. Nearly 57 people were killed in the catastrophe. 12. 2009 California wildfires They were a series of 63 wild fires in California, US in 2009. The area of the massive destruction was nearly 336,020 acres from July to November. Two people were killed. 13. Alabamas Tornado, 2011, US The destructive tornadoes killed 348 people. Fierce storms have obliterated large areas of land from Mississippi to Georgia in the U.S., wiping out homes and businesses. 35 tornadoes blew across the state. 14. Tsunami, 2011, Japan The massive earthquake and subsequent Tsunami in 2011 caused a lot of destruction. Given the situation, ships and aircraft from the Ronald Reagan Strike Group provided humanitarian assistance off the coast of Japan. 15. Hurricane Katrina, 2005, US The hurricane formed over Bahamas on August 23, 2005 causing deaths and flooding in Mexico. August 29, in southeast Louisiana, Katrina caused severe destruction along the Gulf coast from central Florida to Texas, much of it due to the storm surge. 16. Earthquake, 2012 (Philippines) On February 6, 2012, at least 52 people were killed when a 6.9-magnitude earthquake hit Negros and Cebu (Philippines), causing landslides, creating huge cracks in highways, and violently shaking buildings. 17. Earthquake, 2010 (Haiti) On January 12, 2010, the Haiti earthquake was a catastrophic magnitude 7.0 MW earthquake with an epicenter near the town of Léogâne, approximately 25 km. west of Port-au-Prince, Haiti's capital. The earthquake caused major damage in Port-au-Prince, Jacmel, and other settlements in the region. 18. Pakistan flood, 2010 The floods in Rajanpur district in Pakistan occurred on August 9, 2010 left 20 million people homeless. 19. The Buang Valley on the Upper Ridge of the Mayon Volcano, 1984 (Philippines) In the Legaspi City on September 14, 1984 lava floed from the Mayon volcano in the Philippines. The flows traveled about 4 km. to the lower flanks of the volcano, adjacent to previous flows from eruptions in 1968 and 1978. 20. Supercell Thunderstorm in Montana, 2010 (US) The jaw dropping super cell formed on July 28, 2010. The super cell did not cause any damage to life and property. 21. Double cyclone, 2006 Iceland The spiral storms also form at mid-high altitudes. Two such cyclones formed in tandem in November 2006. This image shows the cyclones south of Iceland. Scotland appears in the lower right. The larger and perhaps stronger cyclone appears in the east, close to Scotland. 22. Lightning Storm in Roswell, New Mexico, 2010 (US) The tropical storm Bonnie made landfall in Mexico in 2010. Powerful storm had wreaked havoc in the area. Though it was deadly, but few pictures have been captured which are really beautiful. 23. Bengal famine of 1770 It was a major catastrophic famine that hit Bengal, parts of Odisha and Bihar. The state of Bengal was badly hit by a famine that caused about 1 crore deaths.