In April, forest fires consumed the colorful port city of Valparaiso in Chile. This disaster resulted in the deaths of 16 people and the destruction of approximately 2,000 homes. An estimated 756 hectares were destroyed and 10,000 people had to be evacuated. Tremendous amounts of resources have been spent trying to put out these fires, and today even more are being used to rebuild Valparaiso. This demonstrated once again the ability of natural disasters to wreak havoc in towns or cities that have done nothing wrong. It also raised the key question of how to minimize the damage caused by them. In 2012, 357 natural disasters were recorded, 9,655 people were killed and 124.5 million people were victims worldwide. Research and statistics have shown that over the past decade, India, Indonesia, China, the United States of America and the Philippines have been the most affected countries. What is important to note is that of the top ten countries in terms of disaster mortality in 2012, six are classified as low or lower middle income countries. In 2012, Asia accounted for 64.5% of global disaster victims, followed by Africa (30.4%). Compared to annual averages for the period 2002-2011, the number of victims in 2012 increased in Africa and Oceania, but decreased in the Americas and Europe. This further focuses attention on countries that are not as strong economically as they are that are facing most of the problems. While richer countries continue to accumulate the technology needed to deal with disasters, it is the poorer countries that suffer and need help. The estimated economic damage in 2012 was approximately $157 billion. Natural disasters, whether earthquakes, tornadoes... middle of paper.... Large-scale mudslides covered the city of Armero, killing almost the entire population. An estimated 20,000 out of 29,000 people lost their lives. • 1991 – The cyclone that hit Chittagong in 1991 is considered one of the deadliest cyclones ever seen. The death toll was estimated at 138,000 while nearly 10 million people were homeless. • 1992 – Hurricane Andrew in 1992 proved to be one of the most destructive hurricanes to ever hit the United States. The storm caused approximately $27 billion in damage in South Florida and $250 million in damage in the Bahamas. • 2000- The 2000 Mozambique flood was a natural disaster that occurred between February and March 2000. The catastrophic flooding was caused by heavy rains that lasted five weeks and rendered many homeless. About 800 people were killed. 1,400 km² of arable land was affected and 20,000 head of livestock were lost.