The hurricane season of 2005 in the Gulf Coast of the United States was very active, while 2006 was very calm. Burma was hit in May 2008 by a category 3 storm: Cyclone Nargis. Despite its moderate size in comparison to the devastating 2005 Hurricane Katrina, Cyclone Nargis caused extensive damage and a very large death toll. The disaster was made especially acute owing to the poverty of the country and the political leaders with priorities other than aid. Therefore, there is an urgent need for a review of the science of past great storms (also including hurricanes, typhoons, tropical cyclones) and their impact on humans. It is imperative for improved preparedness to future events. Such an effort is really timely as a controversy is ongoing on the nature of the impact of global warming on the frequency and the magnitude of hurricanes worldwide. In order to obtain a longer record than the instrumental one, a combination of historical sources and geological sequences can be tackled. Despite their limitations, both bring their own type of information. The impact of natural hazards on past ecosystems and societies as well as the ways these societies recovered should be an integral part of any future research (Leroy, 2006a).
展开▼
