When I lived in Amman, Jordan, there wasn’t much concern over natural disasters impacting the area. As shown in the Nathan World Map, Jordan is in a Zone 2 for earthquakes. The earthquakes normally range from 4.0 to 5.0 and usually occur away from cities but can still be felt from within, yet never pose too serious of a threat. Just as the map displays, Jordan does face the risk of serious heatwaves, and droughts. Just last August, a strong heatwave accompanied by a sandstorm put the nation in serious conditions and temperatures peaked at 110+ degrees Fahrenheit. I feel like the map could be better broken down to a smaller scale of threats each area has potential to face.
The disaster I found was a Chlorine gas attack by ISIS in the Kirkuk Governorate of Iraq on March 12th 2016, that injured over 1500 people and killed more than 10, the damage was classified as “medium” on the website’s damage scale. In my opinion, ISIS poses a serious threat to Jordan considering its proximity to Syria and Iraq. However, Jordan’s military security is rather high and it has a more stable political system to counterbalance the vulnerability mentioned earlier. Amman has faced terror attacks on its soil before, but nothing on a serious scale for over 10 years. Amman houses over a million residents, however poorer areas are more vulnerable to hazards posed by ISIS due to low security.
As far as natural hazards go, I believe Jordan needs to better prepare for heatwave conditions, and even more for drought conditions. From living there, I can personally say that Jordan faces serious water shortage vulnerability, and I wouldn’t be surprised if it faced critical conditions within the next few years. The Jordanian government needs to better prepare to deal with a situation where water scarcity could be a long-term disaster. Water shortage threats in Jordan are obvious due to the serious lack of rain, inland water bodies, and even shores.
As mentioned above, the Jordanian government needs to better prepare for the hazards it is very likely to face. Engineers and officials are who I see best fit to tackle the task, however the government needs to push for this in order for it to be a possibility. As a Water Resources focus in Civil Engineering student, I believe I can use my education to design better water distribution among the city and its outskirts, as well as provide for villages that sometimes lack access to water. This is something I’d like to do with my degree in my life.
Hi Amir, check out my blog post here: http://geog030.dutton.psu.edu/2016/04y/01/hazards-in-my-hometown-kyle-hoke/
I was interested in your post since you talked about living in Jordan, and that is very different than where I grew up. It seems crazy to hear that heat and sandstorms were the biggest natural hazards to you. I can’t imagine what living somewhere where it can get to over 110 degrees outside! I think it’s awesome that you say you are going to use your degree to help solve a water crisis in your home.
Hi Amir! My name is Maura. Here is a link to my blog- http://geog030.dutton.psu.edu/2016/03/29/module-8-maura-mcgonigal/. The disaster you discussed is very upsetting and unfortunately is becoming a more common issue. As for your hometown, the issue of drought and water is of major concern. I applaud your goals to solve this issue- it is such an important issue that needs to be fixed! My town is at risk for tornadoes and winter storms. While our towns are at risk for different disasters, we both highlighted the importance of preparedness for the events in order to decrease vulnerability.
Hi, Im Chris and here is the link to my blog if you want to check it out: http://geog030.dutton.psu.edu/2016/03/31/module-8-how-do-deal-with-disasters/
My town in New Jersey never really experiences heatwaves, and I can’t even imagine what it would be like to be in a heat wave with 110 degree weather. Thats crazy! I also agree that the map was hard to read when trying to find an individual city or area, but i think it did a good job in displaying natural disasters that happen on a worldly scale. I think its awesome that you want to use your degree to go and help Jordan. I also believe the government is the place to go and the people who are best fit to fix major problems that places have, but this is often a difficult process and thing to get accomplished. Great post!