Again and again, our lives are shaken by disasters. Some catastrophes are caused by immense natural forces, which even today remain largely out of our control, while others are brought about through human agency.

The magnitude of harm done is often barely comprehensible. Tsunamis engulf entire islands, hurricanes wipe clean broad stretches of land, and earthquakes and volcano eruptions cover large regions with ash and debris.There are other kinds of disasters, as well: disease and epidemics, technical errors and terrorist attacks all claim thousands of lives, and at the same time deeply unsettle our belief in the panacea of progress.

This book presents some of the greatest disasters that have taken place in history throughout the world, in an informative and objective manner. At the same time, the spectacular pictures and eyewitness reports heighten our sensitivity to the devastating consequences of the events.

Time and again, disastrous events - epidemics,earthquakes and tsunamis, volcano eruptions,tornadoes and hurricanes, but also those brought about by human actions, such as terrorist attacks or technical accidents - have disrupted or claimed the lives of people all over the globe.

In chronological order, this book presents some of the most spectacular disasters in history,many of which have extracted an enormous toll in human lives, or at least deeply shaken our faith in technology:

·The plague, past and present

·The Great San Francisco Earthquake

·The sinking of the Titanic

·Influenza, the underestimated threat

·Atomic bombing of Hiroshima and Nagasaki

·Oil spills on European coasts

·The AIDS epidemic

·The super outbreak of tornadoes in the USA

·Agent Orange and the Seveso poisoning

·The eruption of Mount St. Helens

·Chemical disaster in Bhopal

·The explosion of the Challenger

·Nuclear meltdown at Chernobyl

·The mysterious sinking of the Estonia

·Concorde lost in flames

·Explosion on board the submarine Kursk

·Nine eleven - terrorist attacks on the USA

·The tsunami in Sumatra

·Katrina, one of the deadliest hurricanes ever

Preface

The Black Death - Still a Threat

The Daythe Sky Caught Fire

The End of a Luxury Liner

Flu: The Underestimated Threat

Nuclear Holocaust

Oil on the Coasts of Europe

Avoid Infection at All Costs

Swathes of Destruction

Agent Orange anti the Seveso Dioxin Cloud

A Mountain Explodes

A Deadly Cloud at Midnight

A Ball of Fire

Nuclear Meltdown

A Colcl Death in the Baltic Sea

The Demise of a Symbol of Peace

The Pride of the Russian Navy Sinks

Nine-Eleven

Wiped Out by a Monster Wave

A Storm's Terrifying Trail of Destruction

Picture Credits