Population and Demographics of California
California, population (total 37, 691,912)
For many years, Southern California was America’s “Promised Land”, an ideal fuelled by the warm sunshine, golden beaches, and the mystery, glamour and romance of the film industry. Now it seems that the state is cursed by natural disasters, and Los Angeles, with its 13 million inhabitants, has become known as ‘hazard city’. The summary diagram has explained the interrelationships between the hazards which threaten Los Angeles, but it is necessary to give some more detail about how they affect the daily life of the residents of LA. All communities - urban or rural - are vulnerable to most hazards. However, different regions will be more prone to certain types of hazards than others. Floods and windstorms are the hazards that most frequently lead to disasters in Asia, the Pacific, Europe and North America, while it is droughts and epidemics that are reported in African countries. In contrast, Pacific and Caribbean islands are most vulnerable to the effects of tropical cyclones. El Niño events, floods, volcanic eruptions and earthquakes affect in greater degree the Andean and Meso-American countries. Even within a specific region, such as the Pacific, the frequency and intensity of specific hazards varies from one country to another. Hydrometeorological hazards are most common and floods alone account for two-thirds of people affected by natural hazards
Physical hazards
Human hazards
Earthquakes; Not only does the San Andreas Fault, marking the conservative margin between the Pacific and North American plates, cross Southern California, but LA was built across a myriad of transform faults. These include the Santa Monica fault, the San Fernando fault, and the Northridge/Santa Barbara fault.
Tsunamis; The 1964 Alaskan earthquake caused considerable damage in several Californian regions.
Landslides and Mudflows; They can be caused by earthquakes, heavy rain, deforestation and fires, or over urbanisation. They
For many years, Southern California was America’s “Promised Land”, an ideal fuelled by the warm sunshine, golden beaches, and the mystery, glamour and romance of the film industry. Now it seems that the state is cursed by natural disasters, and Los Angeles, with its 13 million inhabitants, has become known as ‘hazard city’. The summary diagram has explained the interrelationships between the hazards which threaten Los Angeles, but it is necessary to give some more detail about how they affect the daily life of the residents of LA. All communities - urban or rural - are vulnerable to most hazards. However, different regions will be more prone to certain types of hazards than others. Floods and windstorms are the hazards that most frequently lead to disasters in Asia, the Pacific, Europe and North America, while it is droughts and epidemics that are reported in African countries. In contrast, Pacific and Caribbean islands are most vulnerable to the effects of tropical cyclones. El Niño events, floods, volcanic eruptions and earthquakes affect in greater degree the Andean and Meso-American countries. Even within a specific region, such as the Pacific, the frequency and intensity of specific hazards varies from one country to another. Hydrometeorological hazards are most common and floods alone account for two-thirds of people affected by natural hazards
Physical hazards
Human hazards
Earthquakes; Not only does the San Andreas Fault, marking the conservative margin between the Pacific and North American plates, cross Southern California, but LA was built across a myriad of transform faults. These include the Santa Monica fault, the San Fernando fault, and the Northridge/Santa Barbara fault.
Tsunamis; The 1964 Alaskan earthquake caused considerable damage in several Californian regions.
Landslides and Mudflows; They can be caused by earthquakes, heavy rain, deforestation and fires, or over urbanisation. They