A hazard is a potentially damaging physical event, natural process, technological accident, or human-induced activity that can cause loss of life, injury, property damage, environmental degradation, and disruption of social and economic activities. Hazards may be natural, such as earthquakes, floods, cyclones, droughts, landslides, and tsunamis, or human-made, such as industrial accidents, chemical spills, fires, and nuclear disasters. A hazard alone does not necessarily result in a disaster unless it affects vulnerable communities. Risk refers to the probability of harmful consequences resulting from the interaction between a hazard and exposed elements such as people, infrastructure, livelihoods, and the environment. It is commonly expressed as the likelihood of occurrence of a hazardous event multiplied by its potential consequences. Disaster risk increases when hazards are frequent or intense, exposure is high, and communities are unable to cope effectively. Thus, risk is dynamic and varies across locations and time depending on changing environmental and social conditions. Vulnerability is the degree to which individuals, communities, institutions, or systems are susceptible to the damaging effects of hazards. It is determined by physical, social, economic, environmental, and institutional factors. Poor housing, poverty, lack