There are various impacts of and responses to natural hazards caused by tropical cyclones depending on a country’s level of development — Edexcel GCSE Geography A
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There are various impacts of and responses to natural hazards caused by tropical cyclones depending on a country’s level of development explained
There are various impacts of and responses to natural hazards caused by tropical cyclones depending on a country’s level of development covers 3 specification points, including A.
Read the full explanation
Reasons why tropical cyclones are natural… and B. Different social, economic and…. Open a point below for its explanation and revision guidance.
a. Reasons why tropical cyclones are natural weather hazards (high winds, intense rainfall, storm surges, coastal flooding and landslides).
This statement asks why tropical cyclones are classed as natural weather hazards, and requires you to explain five named hazards: high winds, intense rainfall, storm surges, coastal flooding and landslides. A hazard is a natural event that threatens people, property or environments. High winds damage buildings and uproot trees. Intense rainfall, from warm moist air rising around the storm, causes flash and river flooding. A storm surge is an abnormal rise in sea level, caused by low pressure and winds pushing water towards the coast. Coastal flooding occurs when this surge combines with high tides and waves. Landslides happen when heavy rain saturates slopes. Method: for each hazard, state the process that generates it, then explain why it threatens people.
b. Different social, economic and environmental impacts that tropical cyclones can have on a named developed and a named emerging or developing country.
Tropical cyclones cause social, economic and environmental impacts, and these differ between countries. Social impacts affect people: deaths, injuries, displacement and disrupted schools or health care. Economic impacts affect money and livelihoods: damaged homes, roads, ports, power networks, businesses and lost farm or tourism income. Environmental impacts affect the natural and built landscape: storm surge flooding, coastal erosion, contaminated water and damaged mangroves or reefs. Use one named developed and one named emerging or developing country, each with a specific cyclone, such as Hurricane Katrina in the USA (2005) and Typhoon Haiyan in the Philippines (2013). Explain why the impacts differ by linking them to building standards, insurance cover, warning systems and available resources.
c. Different responses to tropical cyclones of individuals, organisations and governments in a named developed and a named emerging or developing country.
Responses to tropical cyclones come from individuals, organisations and governments, and they differ between countries. Individuals prepare homes, follow evacuation orders, buy insurance or shelter with family. Organisations, such as charities, non-governmental organisations and businesses, provide food, water and shelter or support rebuilding. Governments run warning systems, evacuation plans, building regulations, emergency services and disaster funding. Use one named developed and one named emerging or developing country, each linked to a specific cyclone, such as Hurricane Katrina in the USA (2005) or Typhoon Haiyan in the Philippines (2013). Explain the differences by linking them to wealth, technology, governance and access to insurance.
Your focus
- Explain how tropical cyclones generate high winds and intense rainfall.
- Describe how a storm surge forms and how it contributes to coastal flooding.
- Explain why heavy rain from a tropical cyclone can trigger landslides.
Show all 9 objectives
- Identify social, economic and environmental impacts of a tropical cyclone in a named developed country.
- Compare these impacts with those in a named emerging or developing country using specific case study evidence.
- Explain why the impacts differ, linking them to building standards, insurance cover, warning systems or resources.
- Identify responses to a tropical cyclone made by individuals, organisations and governments in a named developed country.
- Compare these responses with those in a named emerging or developing country using specific case study evidence.
- Explain why the responses differ, linking them to wealth, technology, governance or insurance cover.
There are various impacts of and responses to natural hazards caused by tropical cyclones depending on a country’s level of development exam tips
Marking Points
- Explains that high winds from the storm's rotation can destroy buildings, uproot trees and throw debris.
- Explains that intense rainfall results from warm moist air rising and condensing, causing flash and river flooding.
- Explains a storm surge as an abnormal rise in sea level caused by low pressure and winds pushing water onshore.
- Links coastal flooding to a storm surge combining with high tides and waves.
- Explains that heavy rain saturates slopes and reduces their stability, triggering landslides.
- States why each hazard is a natural hazard by showing it threatens lives, property or livelihoods.
- Identifies social impacts such as deaths, injuries and displacement in both named countries.
- Identifies economic impacts such as damage to infrastructure, business disruption and lost income in both named countries.
- Identifies environmental impacts such as storm surge flooding, coastal erosion and contamination of water supplies.
- Links each impact to a specific named cyclone and country, such as Hurricane Katrina in the USA or Typhoon Haiyan in the Philippines.
- Explains why impacts differ between the developed and the emerging or developing country, using building standards, insurance cover, warning systems or resources.
- Identifies individual responses such as preparing homes, evacuating and buying insurance in both named countries.
- Identifies organisational responses such as charity aid, shelter provision and rebuilding support in both named countries.
- Identifies government responses such as warning systems, building regulations, emergency services and disaster funding in both named countries.
- Links each response to a named country and a specific named cyclone, such as Typhoon Haiyan in the Philippines.
- Explains why responses differ between the developed and the emerging or developing country, using wealth, technology, governance or insurance cover.
Examiner Tips
- 💡Write one explanation chain per hazard: cause, process, then impact on people or property.
- 💡Cover all five named hazards, or clearly justify any you omit, rather than only listing them.
- 💡Use precise terms such as storm surge and state its cause instead of vague phrases such as 'the sea floods'.
- 💡Prepare one developed and one emerging or developing case study with dates, and recall at least two impacts in each category.
- 💡Label each point as social, economic or environmental before you write it, so that all three categories are covered.
- 💡Finish each point with a comparison phrase, for example compared with the developing country, to show the difference clearly.
- 💡Plan a three-row grid for individuals, organisations and governments, then fill each row for both named countries.
- 💡Use one developed and one emerging or developing case study with dates, and recall at least two responses for each group.
- 💡End each paragraph with a because explanation that links the difference to a factor such as insurance cover or building standards.
Common Mistakes
- Describes a storm surge as a tsunami caused by an earthquake; correct to a surge generated by low pressure and wind acting on the sea surface.
- Treats coastal flooding and storm surge as identical; correct to the surge being the rise in sea level, with coastal flooding being the inundation of land that can result.
- Lists high winds as a hazard without explaining how they harm people; correct to linking wind damage to buildings, transport and power supply.
- Treats all impacts as the same in both countries, so no difference is shown; compare the type and scale of impacts in each named case.
- Refers to a developed country without naming it, so the answer cannot be credited as case study evidence; name the country and a specific cyclone.
- Describes only deaths and damage, ignoring one of the social, economic or environmental categories; check all three categories before finishing.
- Confuses responses with impacts, describing evacuation or aid as an effect of the cyclone; keep impacts as outcomes and responses separate.
- Confuses responses with impacts, describing deaths or flooding instead of what people, organisations or governments did; keep actions and outcomes separate.
- Describes only government responses, omitting individuals and organisations; cover all three groups in both countries.
- Gives generic responses with no named country or cyclone, so the difference cannot be shown; name each country and a specific event.
- Lists responses without explaining why they differ between countries; add a comparison linked to wealth, technology or governance.