Weather and natural disasters in Ukraine

            Natural disasters

Natural disasters like earthquakes, tornado, tsunami and floods happen more frequently nowadays. There are many reasons why they occur, but the main one is related to human activity on Earth which often has a negative impact on our       environment.

All kinds of disasters are usually very damaging. Many dwellings, roads and even whole streets and cities are ruined. The number of victims usually terrifies as hundreds or even thousands of people get injured or die in disasters. However, each disaster has a different nature.

For example, an earthquake is the result of the tectonic plates’ movement which leads to the shaking of a certain area on land. Earthquakes destroy buildings and people usually become victims because they get stuck or killed under the rubble.

Tornado is also a natural disaster which looks like an enormous column of the wind which lifts cars, bicycles, furniture and many other things. It is also called a twister and it can be very dangerous if touches the surface of the ground or water.

Volcanic eruptions occur when hot red magma erupts from the earth’s crust and flows from the top of the volcano. It also throws volcano ashes into the air which are harmful to inhale for human beings and animals.

A tsunami is a series of dangerous huge ocean waves, usually caused by underwater earthquakes. This natural disaster attacks the shore all of a sudden and often results in thousands of deaths. The height of the waves can reach 30 metres.

Weather in Ukraine

The territory of Ukraine is in the temperate climate zone in the temperate continental climate. And only on a narrow strip of the Southern coast of Crimea the climate similar to subtropical Mediterranean type was formed. At the same time, the temperate continental climate has significant differences in the main indicators (air temperature and precipitation) in different parts of Ukraine. Over the plains of the country from northwest to southeast, the continentality of the climate increases: in this direction, the average temperatures of the summer months increase, and winter – decrease, the annual rainfall decreases. 

Natural disasters in Ukraine

– Tectonic catastrophes – earthquakes

– Topological catastrophes – landslides, floods

– Meteorological catastrophes – frosts, heat, showers, hail, wind, etc …

Natural disasters in Ukraine

According to forecasts of meteorologists, droughts and dry winds will become more frequent in Ukraine. The hail period will shift to spring and autumn. The intensity of drought in Ukraine, according to forecasts of meteorologists, in the coming years will grow by 15-30%. Dry winds will become more frequent. There will be more hailstones, which, moreover, will shift to seasons previously uncharacteristic for such weather phenomena – spring and autumn.

For Ukraine, floods are a traditional element. The infamous flood in Transcarpathia in 1998 is considered to be the most catastrophic in its consequences. After heavy rains, the rivers Tisza, Tereblya, Teresva, Borzhava and others came out of the banks. One third of the region’s population – about 350,000 people – was in the disaster zone. Losses reached 800 million hryvnias.

Another catastrophe in Ukraine, no less destructive for farmers, is fires. If once this phenomenon was purely natural, now the fire is spread mainly by humans. Despite constant warnings from farmers and emergency workers, Ukrainians still burn dry grass or leaves, as well as rubbish on both sides of fields and forests, on pastures and meadows. This is the main reason for the spread of fire on crops. After all, such fires kill crops, wild animals, and sometimes people. In the height of the season – April-May – rescuers are forced to extinguish almost a hundred such fires every day on tens of hectares!