Natural Disasters Quiz Questions GK Pdf
1. Which of these is used to categorize hurricanes by their wind speeds?
A. Richter scale
B. Saffir-Simpson scale
C. Fujita scale
2. Who started the trend of naming hurricanes?
A. Clement Wragge
B. William Shakespeare
C. Theodore Roosevelt
3. The Sepik river is located in which country?
A. Papua New Guinea
B. Indonesia
C. New Zealand
4. What type of natural disaster wiped out entire villages in Iran in 1972?
A. Blizzard
B. Earthquake
C. Wildfire
Yes, it snowed in the Middle East. And yes, it wiped out entire villages.
5. In 1976, a 7.8 magnitude earthquake struck, killing over 240,000 people. Which country housed this earthquake?
A. China
B. Turkey
C. Kazakhstan
6. In what country did the highest-magnitude earthquake occur?
A. Chile
B. China
C. Cambodia
7. One of the worst typhoons occurred in September, 1959, and occurred in which country?
A. China
B. Japan
C. Australia
8. What type of natural disaster nearly destroyed the Valley of Geysers?
A. Mudflow
B. Earthquake
C. Hurricane
9. What caused the crash of Pan American Airlines aircraft in the 8th of December, 1963?
A. Lightning
B. Hurricane
C. Tornado
10. All of the following are true about disasters except…
A. A disaster may be domestic or international
B. A disaster may be caused by nature or have human origins
C. A disaster always receives widespread media coverage
11. What type of natural disaster lay waste to a city on Christmas day in 1974?
A. Earthquake
B. Tropical Cyclone
C. Volcanic Eruption
12. Where do droughts occur?
A. In any climate
B. In cold climates
C. In dry, arid climates
13. Which natural disaster can produce the fastest winds on Earth?
A. Cyclone
B. Hurricane
C. Tornado
14. When and where did the Hatepe eruption occur?
A. 180 CE / New Zealand
B. 1925 CE / Indonesia
C. 32 BCE / Caribbean Islands
15. What are the odds of being struck by lightning in one year?
A. 1 in 700,000
B. 1 in 7,000,000
C. 1 in 70,000
16. What are the odds of being struck by lightning in a lifetime?
A. 1 in 3,000
B. 1 in 30,000
C. 1 in 300
17. How often does a lightning strike occur worldwide?
A. 2 to 3 times every second
B. 50 to 100 times every second
C. Once every hour
18. Natural disasters frequently result in all of the following except…
A. Damage to the ecological environment
B. Displacement of populations
C. Sustained public attention
As previously stated, natural disasters don’t necessarily attract media coverage.
19. Where did a major earthquake occur in the early 1900s?
A. San Francisco, California
B. Riga, Latvia
C. Athens, Greece
20. One of the deadliest diseases in history killed at least 50 million people in the 20th century is known as…
A. The Spanish flu
B. Polio
C. Smallpox
21. Where did the strongest earthquake on Earth occur?
A. Japan
B. United States
C. Chile
22. What is the deadliest natural disaster in recorded history?
A. The Eruption of Krakatoa
B. The Bubonic plague
C. The Yangtze-Huai River floods
23. According to the United Nations, there were ___ annual natural disasters that occurred between 1992 and 2002 worldwide.
A. 300
B. 500
C. 700
24. Which type of cloud can form a tornado?
A. Stratus
B. Cumulonimbus
C. Cumulus
25. The distress call ‘mayday’ is internationally used in radio communications to signal a life-threatening emergency. What language does this come from?
A. French
B. German
C. English
26. What two disasters tormented London, England in the mid-1600s?
A. Plague and Fire
B. Earthquake and Drought
C. Hailstorm and Sinkhole
The capital city of England was almost destroyed by the Great Plague of London, and the subsequent Great Fire (of London).
27. How did the Black Death spread?
A. Airborne bacteria
B. Flea-carrying rodents
C. House flies
The parasite ‘oriental rat-flea’ is blamed for the spreading of the Black Death.
28. Which natural disaster is not caused by shifts in the Earth’s tectonic plates?
A. Earthquake
B. Tornado
C. Tsunami
29. The decision to offer humanitarian aid is determined by:
A. Theories of social justice
B. Teleological reasoning
C. All of the above
30. Which volcano erupted in 1980, and was one of the most publicized volcano eruptions in history?
A. Mount Saint Helens
B. Mount Pinatubo
C. Mount Kīlauea
31. Which country was struck by Cyclone Bhola, the world’s deadliest cyclone?
A. Afghanistan
B. Bangladesh
C. China
32. Which event does a violent rotating column of air extending from a thunderstorm to the ground cause?
A. Drought
B. Tornado
C. Earthquake
33. A torrent of rain ruined several magnificent art pieces in which Italian city in the November of 1966?
A. Florence
B. Rome
C. Venice
34. Which type of natural disaster in Galveston, Texas occurred in the 20th century and is still considered the deadliest in the United States’ history?
A. Hurricane
B. Earthquake
C. Wildfire
35. Which of the following cities has never been destroyed by a fire?
A. Paris
B. Rome
C. Moscow
36. Who is the Texas governor tasked with rebuilding his state after hurricane Harvey?
A. Greg Abbott
B. George W. Bush
C. Rick Perry
37. Where do avalanches mostly occur?
A. In the oceans
B. On the mountains
C. In deserts
38. The word “tsunami” comes from which language?
A. Japanese
B. Hindi
C. Chinese
39. What is the main cause of most wildfires?
A. Sunlight
B. Lightning
C. People
40. Which natural factors may lead to flooding?
A. Rain duration
B. Rain intensity
C. Both
41. All thunderstorms typically occur with which phenomenon?
A. Hail
B. Lightning
C. Tornado