Scope

This Research Guide will lead you to information on natural disasters such as floods and severe storms. It also includes biological disasters and transportation accidents.

Overview

Encyclopedia Americana
College Library Reference Collection: AE 5 E333 2001
Refer to "Disasters" volume 9, pages 161-166

Encyclopedia of Environmental Issues
College Library Reference Collection: GE 10 E52 2000 volume 1-3

Encyclopaedia Britannica Online 1992 (updated daily)
Britannica Online is a searchable collection of authoritative references, including Britannica's latest encyclopedia articles. Basic instructions for Encyclopædia Britannica Online

Manmade Catastrophes: Revised Edition
College Library Reference Collection: D 24 D38 2002

Pollution A to Z
College Library Reference Collection: TD173 P65 2004
Refer to "disasters" in index, page 363

World Book Encyclopedia
College Library Reference Collection: AE 5 W55 2003
Refer to "Disaster," "Earthquake," "Flood," "Hurricane," "Shipwreck," "Tornado," "Tsunami" and "Volcano," in various volumes

Finding Journal and News Articles

Below are links to databases that cover this subject area. The truncation symbol for all of them is an asterisk (*) unless otherwise noted.

Sample searches for databases:

natural disasters
disaster relief
food relief
foreign aid

emergency management
(severe storms or natural disaster*) and floods and relief
(natural disaster* or storm) and environment* and (agricultur* or farm* or food*)
hurricane* and coast* and (aid* or assistance or help)
Atlantic and hurricane and season
earthquakes and California and building
earthquakes and tsunamis
dam and disaster*

Recommended Databases:

Academic Search 1984 - to date (updated daily)
This library database indexes approximately 3,100 popular magazines and academic journals and provides the full-text articles from approximately 1,000 journals. Basic instructions for Academic Search

Engineering Index (EI COMPENDEX) 1970 - to date (updated monthly)
Contains references to scholarly journal articles, technical reports, conference proceedings, and some books in every engineering discipline, plus some related disciplines. Basic instructions for Engineering Index

General Science Full Text 1984 - to date (updated monthly)
Indexes 150 popular and scholarly periodicals, as well as the Science section of the New York Times. Subjects include biology, chemistry, earth sciences, environment, nutrition, genetics, medicine and health. Basic instructions for General Science Full Text

ProQuest Newspapers Dates Vary (updated weekly)
Indexes articles from 41 national and Wisconsin newspapers; includes full text for most. The truncation symbol is a question mark (?). Basic instructions for ProQuest Newspapers

ProQuest Research Library 1988 - to date (updated daily)
Indexes over 2,000 general-interest and academic journals. Nearly 1,000 periodicals are full-text. Dates vary, but many full-text journals go back to 1988. Basic instructions for ProQuest Research Library

More Databases:

CQ Researcher November 1991 - to date (updated weekly)
Contains weekly reports from Congressional Quarterly that cover the most current and controversial issues. Basic instructions for CQ Researcher

Lexis/Nexis Academic Universe Dates Vary (updated daily)
Contains the full-text articles from U.S. and international newspapers (including the New York Times, June 1980 - to date), as well as some news and business magazines and trade journals. The truncation symbol is an exclamation point (!). Basic instructions for Lexis/Nexis Academic Universe

Readers' Guide Full Text and Retrospective 1890 - to date (updated monthly)
Indexes 240 popular magazines in a wide range of subject areas. Full-text coverage of 131 titles begins with 1994. Basic instructions for Readers' Guide Full Text

Finding Books

MadCat
Books on Disasters can be found in MadCat, the UW-Madison library catalog.

Sample keyword searches:

"natural disaster?" and management
"disaster relief" and emergency
"food relief" and famine
survival and shipwreck?
disaster? and tornado?
emergency management
disaster and planning

Internet Sites

| Metasites | Accidents | Biological Disasters | Droughts and floods | Hurricanes and tropical storms | Meteorological disasters | Tornadoes and severe storms |

Metasites

Wisconsin State Climatology Office
http://www.uwex.edu/sco/office.html
Resource for weather and climate information.

Insurance Information Institute
http://www.iii.org
Site gives information on the worst worldwide disasters.

ReliefWeb
http://www.reliefweb.int
ReliefWeb is a project of the United Nations Department of Humanitarian Affairs.

Earthweek
http://www.earthweek.com
Site gives location and type of natural and manmade events.

International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies
http://www.ifrc.org
Site features worldwide disasters.

FEMA: Preparedness
http://www.fema.gov/hazard/index.shtm
Web page created by the U.S. Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA). Provides list of types of disasters and links to FEMA publications.

Natural Hazards Center
http://www.colorado.edu/hazards
Comprehensive site.

Accidents

National Transportation Safety Board
http://www.ntsb.gov
This site offers data on current and historic accidents in the U.S. by transportation mode--aviation, highway, marine, rail, pipeline & hazardous materials.

Biological Disasters

National Center for Preparedness, Detection, and Control of Infectious Diseases
http://www.cdc.gov/ncpdcid/
Provides disease information complied by the National Center for Preparedness, Detection, and Control of Infectious Diseases (NCPDCID)

Droughts and floods

National Drought Mitigation Center
http://enso.unl.edu/ndmc
Provides information about U.S. drought conditions.

Dartmouth Flood Observatory
http://www.dartmouth.edu/%7Efloods/index.html
Provides information about floods worldwide.

Hurricanes and tropical storms

Hurricane/Tropical Data
http://weather.unisys.com/hurricane/index.html
Provides access to a wealth of hurricane information.

National Hurricane Center
http://www.nhc.noaa.gov
Current and historical data.

Hurricanes, Typhoons, and Tropical Cyclones FAQ
http://www.aoml.noaa.gov/hrd/tcfaq/tcfaqHED.html
Site provides lists and data about tropical storms.

Meteorological disasters

National Climatic Data Center
http://www.ncdc.noaa.gov
Detailed reports of extreme U.S. weather events.

Tornadoes and severe storms

Tornado and Storm Research Organisation
http://www.torro.org.uk
Lists severe weather events in Europe and the UK.

The Tornado Project Online
http://www.tornadoproject.com
Description and statistics of U.S. tornadoes.

Statistics

Statistical Universe 1973 - to date (updated monthly)
Contains the full text of more than 800 U.S. government statistical publications. Lexis-Nexis Statistical Universe is available to UW-Madison registered users.

Facts.com 1940 - to date
http://www.2facts.com/stories/mainmenu.asp
FACTS.com includes 75,000 full-text news articles, weekly updates from the Facts On File World News Digest, and regular wire-service updates from Reuters.

Sample searches:

natural disasters
disasters
environmental disasters

Also try specific types of disasters such as tornado and hurricane.

Statistical Abstract of the United States
College Library Reference Collection: HA 202 U5
Refer in the index to "disasters" to find the table number.

World Almanac
College Library Reference Collection: AY 67 N5 W7
Refer to "Accidents and Disasters"

Organizations

American Red Cross National Headquarters (ARC)
http://www.redcross.org
1621 N. Kent St., Fl. 11
Arlington, VA 22209
Phone: (703) 248-4222
Email: info@redcross.org

Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA)
http://www.fema.gov/
500 C Street SW
Washington DC 20472
Phone: (202) 566-1600
Email: FEMAOPA@dhs.gov

Doctors Without Borders
http://www.doctorswithoutborders.org
6 East 39th St., 8th Floor
New York, NY 10016
Toll Free: 888-392-0392
Email: doctors@newyork.msf.org