"Twister rips through Kansas town. Homes vanish, debris fills the air, and sirens wail as chaos reigns."
Natural disasters are events that occur due to inherit hazards in nature - things like floods, earthquakes, volcanoes or hurricanes for example.
When a natural disaster happens, it can cause widespread destruction. In this post, we will explore some ideas about natural disasters and look at some examples of how to describe a natural disaster for the IELTS Speaking test.
Natural Disasters EssayThe following questions are about: types of natural disasters, natural disasters happening more often now than in the past, preventing natural disasters, the role of government in natural disaster management, preparing for natural disasters, and learning from natural disasters.
Can you describe a natural disaster you saw or heard about?
I saw the destruction caused by Typhoon Haiyan in my hometown Tacloban. It had a devastating impact on our community, but I was happy to see that many people recovered and rebuilt their homes with the help of charities from other countries.
The natural disasters we experience can be very destructive but it is heartening to know there are organisations out there willing to lend a hand when needed.
We heard warnings abut Typhoon Haiyan on the radio and television. In our family, we decided to stock up on goods before it hit because my Mom was afraid there would be a shortage of food after the storm passed.
When the Typhoon Haiyan finally hit us, we stayed in our house for a few days with no electricity or clean water. We were very lucky and the damage to our home was minimal, but we saw houses completely destroyed by trees that had fallen on them during the storm.
I don't think I will ever forget what it felt like when Typhoon Haiyan struck. All of us kids ran into shelter.
The typhoon caused widespread destruction but fortunately most people were able to recover quickly with help from international charities and organisations like UNICEF.
I feel natural disasters are something that many people fear. I think it is good to know that there are organisations out there willing and able to help people in need of assistance with natural disasters.
Natural hazards can have a big impact on our environment and the way we live. It's important to be aware of these risks when living near rivers or other sensitive environmental spots. We need to be prepared for natural disasters or we risk being impacted.
So, natural disasters often cause serious destruction and have catastrophic consequences. They occur as a result of natural phenomena, but they can also happen when humans interfere with natural processes. Humans rarely focus on prevention, because the effects of disasters aren't always anticipated until it's too late.
Natural disasters can be caused by floods or drought for example. These natural disasters could harm human life and disrupt the environment in many ways such as destroying structures like homes or businesses and affecting wildlife habitats which would lead to even more problems in the future if not handled properly.
Natural Disasters
Here are some Examples of IELTS speaking test questions related to natural disasters. These questions come from Part 3 of the IELTS speaking exam.
In Part 3 of the IELTS speaking test candidates are asked some questions which are loosely related to the topic they talked about in Part 2 of the test.
What are the types of natural disasters that sometimes occur?
I think the most common ones that people would immediately think of are earthquakes, hurricanes, floods, tsunamis and recently there's been a lot of news about wildfires. Then you have drought and famine and other natural disasters.
The ones you normally see on the news are usually quite devastating and unexpected, although there are some areas of the world where drought and famine exist almost permanently, but because it's not sensational it doesn't make the headlines as much.
Do you think these types of events are happening more often now than in the past?
No, not really. They've always happened, ever since history was first recorded. There are stories of great plagues, floods and natural disasters in many historical documents.
I think why people feel that these events are happening more often now is because technology has made it easier and faster to report when things like this happen. Major news channels have the story almost instantly and with video footage and graphic pictures telling the story.
That's much more impacting than simply reading about it in a newspaper in black and white print a few days after the event.
Do you think there is much we can do to prevent these disasters?
To prevent them, no. They are after all 'natural' disasters. Nobody makes them happen, they are part of nature.
However, there are always things that people can do to minimize the impact of such events. Preparation is important, both by people and by the authorities. Especially if people are living in a zone which is prone to natural disasters.
They need to be ready with essential supplies like food and clean water, medical supplies and emergency shelter.
These things can be planned for so that at least if something does happen the people are able to eat, drink and shelter themselves until disaster aid can be arranged.
What does your government do when a natural disaster occurs?
Like most governments they have a disaster planning department and various plans for dealing with natural disaster events such as evacuation, emergency shelter, medical services and supplies, and essential things like food and water.
Obviously it's impossible to plan for everything, but they have various emergency teams on standby and they have a plan of action ready just in case.
What seems to happen quite often though is that the scale of the disaster never seems to be anticipated, even with all the predictive technology we have available nowadays.
Do you think what your government does could be improved in any way?
I think that's difficult to say. I'm not an expert and I don't know what all their plans are or all the resources they have available. I think the important thing is that they learn from previous natural disasters and never repeat the same mistakes.
One of the problems is that no two natural disasters are exactly the same so it's not easy to provide a 'perfect' response always, but most people think that the government do a good job overall with disaster management when such an event does happen.
Can people do anything to prepare for such events?
Well, like I said before, yes. People can do some sort of emergency planning even at a family or community level. They can make sure that they have easy access to emergency supplies and a plan of action to help each other stay safe and alive until professional aid arrives.
Do you think anything can be learned from dealing with these types of situations?
Each situation is different but there are some lessons that can be learned from each event. Some common factors are things like the need for emergency medical services, clean water, food, safety for citizens, controlling looting and other such things which are common after most natural disasters.
If lessons are learned then the response to these aspects of natural disasters can be improved. Sharing knowledge between different countries or organizations about natural disasters and ways of responding is also a good idea.
How would you describe a natural disasters?
- What examples would you choose?
- Can you remember a natural disaster which appeared in the news recently?
- Can you describe what happened?
Good luck with your IELTS exam!