Disaster Hotspot - California

A disaster hotspot is a place at risk from 2 or more hazard types with a high vulnerability to disasters due to the size, density and/or the poverty and wealth of the population.

Basic facts about California:

• It is a HIC (High income country)
• It has a population of approx 39 million (2014)
• It's avg. GDP per capita is $40,000
• It is the wealthiest state in the USA
• The coastal regions are inhabited by many people e.g. LA, San diego and San Francisco
• It is a major tectonic hotspot (lies on a conservative plate boudary - san andreas fault)
• Extreme weather brought by el nino (flooding) and la nina (droughts)
• The north of California has a lot of forest cover - prone to wildfires
• The coastal area of California is prone to landslides - development on coast

California is a disaster hotspot as it is vulnerable to many different hazard types such as droughts, earthquakes,landslides, wildfires, and flooding.

Vulnerability of California:

• 20% of its residents live below the poverty line
• Big established economy - large economic losses if disaster hits
• Buildings on unstable land e.g slopes which causes increased risk of landslides
• 70% of residents live within 50km of the fault line

California lies on a conservative plate boundary (san andreas fault). At this plate…