Natural Disaster Database

Objective

Natural disaster risk management is commonly based on two central questions. Firstly, what kind of disaster is likely to happen where and when? And secondly, how could the society get best protected from such a risk? Consequently, knowledge about the magnitude and frequency of natural hazard events is an essential part of every disaster risk mitigation strategy. It is important to know regional differences of the occurrence in order to better understand the regional distribution of risk and the controlling factors. Many hazard mapping concepts rely on statistical approaches of hazard locations, in particular landslide hazard mapping. Event inventories also provide information about the social and economic impact of hazard events and can thus be used for further detailing risk estimates based on hazard event size.

The compilation requires a standardized database structure and the commitment to a steady and long term data input. The data must comprise records of the type of event, the location, time of occurrence, and, if available, local geological conditions, information on the number of casualties and damages and losses. In contrast to other international activities, the project’s database also records smaller events without casualties, making it unique in Indonesia.

The database records the following hazard types: Volcanic eruptions, earthquakes, tsunamis, landslides, floods, land subsidence and lahars.