National Geographic Nature s Fury

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00:00:18 That has got to be
00:00:23 Get those kids in that basement.
00:00:28 Get away from the windows.
00:00:30 Get away! Get away!
00:00:37 People underneath the girders
00:00:41 They're still hanging on.
00:00:49 Oh my God, we're having an
00:00:51 Wait a minute. Hold on. Hold on.
00:00:53 Can you feel that?
00:01:10 We have a major fire burning near
00:01:20 We have the band now
00:01:27 So we're just starting the long
00:01:31 when we're going to experience
00:01:49 Can we spend most of our lives
00:01:52 and our environment?
00:02:02 And suddenly, you wake up with
00:02:03 I am not in control.
00:02:57 In cities all across the world,
00:03:02 secure in our surroundings,
00:03:04 confident that our lives are
00:03:09 But at any moment, that confidence
00:03:12 as nature demonstrates that
00:03:18 When we least expect it,
00:03:20 when we're least prepared,
00:03:24 And few disasters are as unsettling
00:04:07 The quake that hit San Francisco
00:04:11 was actually centered
00:04:14 near a mountain called Loma Prieta.
00:04:17 Even in an area accustomed to
00:04:19 this one struck like a hammer.
00:04:23 It was tremendous, believe me.
00:04:31 There was a sudden movement
00:04:34 shaking, whole store rattling.
00:04:36 I mean, the roof, everything,
00:04:38 My TV screen popped out,
00:04:43 you know, things like that.
00:04:44 Big marble table flew
00:04:46 and shattered like glass almost.
00:04:53 The Loma Prieta earthquake lasted
00:04:57 but in that quarter minute,
00:04:59 northern California suffered
00:05:02 and 62 people lost their lives.
00:05:16 Earthquakes are not nice.
00:05:18 The ground is moving beneath one
00:05:19 the very essence of stability
00:05:24 And that's quite apart
00:05:27 the destruction, the deaths.
00:05:29 There's something awful about
00:05:32 and it's not fun at all.
00:05:33 My guess is that earthquakes are
00:05:36 because you don't have any warning.
00:05:38 It's the only thing besides
00:05:43 one second you're living
00:05:45 and ten seconds later, it's flat.
00:05:49 Earthquakes leave their trail of
00:05:53 In 1948, the city of Fukui, Japan
00:05:56 was leveled by a tremor
00:05:58 more powerful than atom bombs that
00:06:09 Mexico city was struck by a huge
00:06:13 Nearly 10,000 died in the greatest
00:06:25 In September 1993,
00:06:27 a quake devastated the Indian state
00:06:31 In spite of warning shocks,
00:06:34 when their houses collapsed
00:06:45 Every day the earth is shaken by
00:06:49 Most go unnoticed.
00:06:51 They usually occur along the
00:06:54 that cover the earth
00:06:57 Driven by the heat deep within the
00:06:59 the plates grind against each other
00:07:04 When the plates find their motion
00:07:08 Finally the fault gives way.
00:07:12 The released energy races through
00:07:14 in the form of seismic waves.
00:07:19 One place where the boundary
00:07:22 is dramatically evident
00:07:23 is the 700-mile-long
00:07:27 This is the source for most of
00:07:31 But for California,
00:07:34 the movement of plates like these
00:07:36 is also an indispensable
00:07:40 If we didn't have earthquakes,
00:07:41 if we didn't have
00:07:43 from the interior of the earth,
00:07:44 the earth would be a cold,
00:07:48 If it wasn't for this great flow
00:07:50 there'd be no continents,
00:07:53 the earth would be as dead and dry
00:07:57 Everywhere you look in California,
00:07:59 the hills are really created
00:08:00 by, by the action of
00:08:04 It's really the earthquakes
00:08:05 that create the topography,
00:08:08 control the river streams,
00:08:12 Earthquakes have been shaping the
00:08:17 It's only
00:08:20 that civilization has gotten
00:08:23 Around the turn of the century,
00:08:25 San Francisco was
00:08:28 an emblem of California's newfound
00:08:37 But on April 18, 1906,
00:08:39 that prosperity was shattered
00:08:42 in American history.
00:08:49 Most of the city was destroyed
00:08:52 and the fires that followed.
00:08:58 Much of charred rubble from
00:09:00 was pushed into San Francisco Bay,
00:09:05 that eventually became
00:09:09 Today, that landfill lies beneath
00:09:13 This was the area hardest hit
00:09:17 The problem here is the rubble
00:09:22 buried underground.
00:09:23 Shaken by the new quake,
00:09:27 and so did much of
00:09:33 The practice of building on
00:09:36 is a problem throughout the world.
00:09:39 Mexico city was built on top of
00:09:43 The 1985 quake was actually
00:09:47 but it turned the soft land
00:09:50 into a nearly liquid mass.
00:09:53 The buildings simply collapsed;
00:09:55 victims were crushed under
00:10:00 It's a modern nightmare:
00:10:02 urban infrastructure crashing down
00:10:05 As geologists and engineers
00:10:09 earthquakes don't kill people,
00:10:15 Certain structures,
00:10:18 are especially vulnerable
00:10:21 In San Francisco's quake,
00:10:22 most of the deaths occurred
00:10:26 when a one-and-a-half mile section
00:10:29 on the roadway beneath.
00:10:33 Ed McVey was driving a freight
00:10:38 There was no traffic.
00:10:39 I was doing about 55,
00:10:40 and all of a sudden
00:10:44 I had no control over the truck.
00:10:46 Luckily, there was nobody beside me
00:10:47 because I was just all over
00:10:50 I hit the brakes.
00:10:51 In the rearview mirror,
00:10:52 I could see what looked like the
00:10:55 and that didn't make any sense.
00:10:58 I saw cars and trucks disappearing
00:11:00 And I just knew I was dead.
00:11:03 I had no way of getting out of it.
00:11:16 McVey was lucky that day:
00:11:18 his truck just happened to stop
00:11:20 under the only section of freeway
00:11:26 I don't deal with it
00:11:30 I can be driving along anywhere,
00:11:33 and all of a sudden I've got
00:11:39 Ed McVey escaped without a scratch.
00:11:42 Forty-two other motorists died.
00:11:47 Five years later,
00:11:50 there was a similar freeway
00:11:53 Fortunately, the tremor struck
00:11:56 when the road was virtually empty.
00:11:59 Next time this could happen
00:12:06 Yet overall,
00:12:09 and the loss of some apartment
00:12:12 San Francisco and Los Angeles
00:12:15 extremely well...
00:12:17 largely because most of their
00:12:20 with earthquakes in mind.
00:12:24 Too often, in other parts of
00:12:30 In December of 1988,
00:12:32 a relatively mild tremor struck
00:12:36 and its acres of cheap,
00:12:40 Eighty percent of the city was
00:12:43 and more than 25,000 people killed.
00:12:46 Specially trained dogs
00:12:48 to help locate survivors
00:12:51 standard practice in such
00:13:01 Fortunately, Leninakan was a
00:13:05 Tang-shan, in northern China,
00:13:09 Just before dawn, on July 28, 1976,
00:13:13 an earthquake tore through
00:13:16 It was the first quake in modern
00:13:19 to score a direct hit on
00:13:30 As nearly as anyone can tell,
00:13:32 it left close to a quarter of
00:13:35 Entire families were wiped out,
00:13:37 so it was impossible to find out
00:13:40 exactly how many had perished.
00:13:45 Besides falling buildings,
00:13:47 earthquakes create other special
00:13:51 broken gas lines spark fires,
00:13:53 and broken water mains can make
00:13:57 We have a major fire brewing
00:13:59 in San Francisco's Marina District.
00:14:01 In the 1989 quake,
00:14:03 the San Francisco
00:14:04 battled 34 major blazes
00:14:08 With underground water supplies
00:14:11 fireboats had to be used to pump
00:14:18 Unfortunately, earthquakes in
00:14:21 with their accompanying horrors,
00:14:25 When you look at a map of the world
00:14:29 and plot the truly great cities
00:14:32 and compare it with a map
00:14:33 of the great
00:14:37 of the last thousand years,
00:14:38 there's an almost one-to-one
00:14:41 I think we may find ourselves
00:14:44 a large number of
00:14:46 in the next
00:14:49 that is going to
00:14:57 The next great urban earthquake
00:15:01 This vast metropolis, with its
00:15:05 lies near the busy intersection of
00:15:10 Small tremors are an everyday
00:15:13 and big ones strike all
00:15:19 In 1923, Tokyo was nearly
00:15:24 Much of the destruction,
00:15:28 were not caused
00:15:31 but by the fires that raged on
00:15:39 September 1, the anniversary of
00:15:43 is commemorated every year as
00:15:47 Fire departments and emergency
00:15:52 while ordinary citizens can get
00:15:54 what a major earthquake feels like,
00:15:56 and try their hands at
00:16:00 The Japanese are proud of their
00:16:03 and they have good reason to be.
00:16:06 Modern Tokyo boasts some of
00:16:09 earthquake-resistant architecture
00:16:12 Its skyscrapers are
00:16:14 incorporating features
00:16:16 like motion stabilizers
00:16:24 But the vast majority of Tokyo's
00:16:28 are older, wood-frame structures.
00:16:31 They're squeezed along narrow,
00:16:33 that could prove to a night mare
00:16:37 To make matters worse,
00:16:39 the city is fringed
00:16:40 by an incendiary jumble
00:16:43 fuel storage tanks,
00:16:46 much of it constructed atop
00:16:51 In short, even earthquake-conscious
00:16:53 Tokyo is a disaster waiting
00:17:05 The unsettling reality is that
00:17:09 is completely safe from
00:17:11 not even areas where tremors
00:17:14 and preparations nonexistent.
00:17:17 The eastern United States
00:17:19 are hardly hotbeds of seismic
00:17:24 but large quakes have occurred
00:17:28 at one time or another,
00:17:30 and unlike lightning,
00:17:35 It's just a matter of time.
00:17:54 No other force in nature
00:17:56 can come close to matching the
00:17:59 except one.
00:18:01 Tornadoes strike with the
00:18:04 and the surgical precision of a
00:18:10 They have the power to fascinate
00:18:13 and with the advent of video
00:18:15 the terror is being well documented
00:18:20 This is in Haysville, Kansas.
00:18:26 It's gonna hit our house, Mom.
00:18:30 Just looking for it to hit
00:18:33 Sometimes a cameraman gets
00:18:37 On a lakeshore in Minnesota...
00:18:39 an idyllic summer afternoon is
00:18:42 by the arrival of a tornado.
00:18:45 Look at that funnel.
00:18:48 Within seconds, curiosity will be
00:18:52 Look here.
00:18:54 A power line just went out.
00:18:55 A power line just went out.
00:18:59 This is cool.
00:19:01 There it goes. Here it comes.
00:19:03 Here it comes. It's right out here.
00:19:06 I'm ten feet from it
00:19:09 all the power lines are going.
00:19:12 I'll film from the inside.
00:19:16 Hold it right there.
00:19:21 There goes the windows.
00:19:25 Tree just blew over.
00:19:30 Get away. Get away! Get away!
00:19:35 Where is everybody?
00:19:39 Oh no!
00:19:41 Where is everybody?
00:19:47 Oh, my God.
00:19:48 Are you guys okay?
00:19:53 These tornado victims were
00:19:56 there were no injuries,
00:20:00 The devastation is usually
00:20:06 A tornado can strike
00:20:09 But more twisters develop over
00:20:13 than anywhere else.
00:20:18 And in their wake,
00:20:19 they leave a trail
00:20:37 Simulated in a laboratory,
00:20:38 a tornado
00:20:42 It's really a whirlpool of
00:20:45 upwelling warm air confronts
00:20:49 dry air encounters moist;
00:20:52 winds aloft
00:20:57 In nature, that produces torrential
00:21:01 and hail storms, and violent winds
00:21:10 Tornadoes travel fast,
00:21:12 especially across
00:21:16 When a television news crew
00:21:17 found themselves trapped
00:21:21 their only sensible option was to
00:21:26 Let's go, let's go, let's go.
00:21:29 Go, go, go.
00:21:30 You better floor it.
00:21:32 We're all right. Just stay here.
00:21:34 You're okay. You're okay.
00:21:38 Keep going, man, keep going.
00:21:40 Faster?
00:21:41 Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah.
00:21:43 Lots faster, lots faster!
00:21:48 Lots faster.
00:21:50 You gotta go, buddy.
00:21:53 You gotta really go.
00:22:00 You gotta blaze, buddy.
00:22:03 We want to get in front of the van.
00:22:04 Get under here!
00:22:05 Keep rolling.
00:22:11 Got it?
00:22:14 Get up under the girders!
00:22:16 Get up under the girders!
00:22:18 Is that where we want to go?
00:22:19 Yes.
00:22:25 Keep rolling.
00:22:35 Hang onto the girders.
00:23:03 You're all right. You're okay.
00:23:09 Tornadoes are among the most
00:23:11 of all natural phenomena,
00:23:13 and in the United States alone,
00:23:15 they're responsible for dozens of
00:23:19 But a tornado cuts a narrow path,
00:23:21 and rarely lasts for more than
00:23:27 Even more devastating
00:23:30 by tropical cyclones,
00:23:32 called typhoons in the Pacific
00:23:34 and hurricanes in the
00:23:37 These monster storms can be
00:23:41 and last for days,
00:23:42 tearing vast swaths of destruction.
00:23:46 Tropical cyclones visit some parts
00:23:49 with frightening regularity,
00:23:51 and cause staggering losses of life
00:23:57 In 1970, a huge typhoon struck
00:24:02 leaving more than 300,000 dead.
00:24:05 Frustrated in part by the slow pace
00:24:08 the people of the region seceded
00:24:11 and created the new nation
00:24:15 Bangladesh continues to be pummeled
00:24:19 made worse by storm surges
00:24:21 - wind-driven walls of seawater
00:24:28 In the Western Hemisphere,
00:24:32 and the southeast coast
00:24:34 are prime targets for hurricanes.
00:24:36 And the most destructive natural
00:24:40 was Hurricane Andrew...
00:24:42 We have the band now
00:24:47 So we're just starting the long
00:24:51 when we're going to experience
00:25:03 When Andrew struck Florida
00:25:07 its winds were clocked at 164 miles
00:25:12 and they were still climbing
00:25:15 at the National Hurricane Center.
00:25:19 The storm hit hardest
00:25:22 Though it came and went here
00:25:24 Andrew, like all natural disasters,
00:25:30 It created massive
00:25:32 that could last for generations.
00:25:35 For the survivors,
00:25:39 No insurance. My car is devastated,
00:25:42 but I'm not the only one. You know,
00:25:44 there's quite a few people that are
00:25:46 Look all around.
00:25:51 It's a very lost feeling.
00:25:59 Pictures of the family.
00:26:25 Before it began its rampage across
00:26:28 Andrew was born,
00:26:31 as a cloud
00:26:34 Swirling storms are formed when
00:26:39 The storms grow larger and faster
00:26:42 developing into violent cyclones
00:26:45 that can rip through the west
00:26:48 The hurricane's center,
00:26:53 but the eye walls are packed with
00:26:56 that generate fierce, gusty winds.
00:26:59 And winds have rarely been as
00:27:13 The storm left a total of
00:27:16 And it left parts of South Florida
00:27:20 This hurricane caused more
00:27:24 than any other natural disaster
00:27:26 in the history
00:27:28 We're talking in the order of
00:27:34 It could have been much worse.
00:27:36 Andrew missed the densely
00:27:39 by only 20 miles.
00:27:42 As it was, 160,000 people were
00:27:54 Besides the thousands of personal
00:27:57 there was an immense
00:27:59 In one day,
00:28:00 hurricane Andrew created at least
00:28:05 There was enough burnable debris
00:28:07 at more than a hundred sites
00:28:15 The smoke was bad enough,
00:28:17 but Andrew created other,
00:28:25 Mike Palmer's specialty
00:28:27 is containing hazardous and
00:28:30 After Andrew,
00:28:32 through devastated neighborhoods
00:28:38 Now, what you may normally see
00:28:41 and the typical chemicals
00:28:44 a small thing of acetone or
00:28:47 and here's some clear stain-
00:28:50 you'd say well what's the big deal?
00:28:52 what's - how bad could this really
00:28:56 Well, you know,
00:28:58 and I poured it on the ground here,
00:29:00 you know, would it absolutely
00:29:03 for this whole area?
00:29:04 No, it probably wouldn't.
00:29:05 But we don't have that here.
00:29:06 What we got here is we've got these
00:29:09 in every single house.
00:29:11 And if this equipment comes in here
00:29:16 and it goes in the environment
00:29:18 it is too much.
00:29:28 This is only a fraction of the
00:29:30 recovered from the wreckage of
00:29:34 No one knows how much toxic
00:29:41 In the chaos following a natural
00:29:45 human survival is
00:29:49 But animals are victims too.
00:29:52 Miami's Metrozoo lay directly
00:29:56 The zoo suffered serious losses,
00:29:59 including hundreds of prized
00:30:02 and five large mammals.
00:30:04 Miraculously, most of the animals
00:30:08 even though they were out
00:30:10 exposed to the fierce intensity
00:30:13 No one knows quite how they
00:30:16 because no one was around
00:30:22 Many of the zoo's exhibits were
00:30:25 And it will take decades to replace
00:30:28 But the long process of recovery
00:30:33 I've received checks and letters
00:30:35 from every state in the country
00:30:39 People who've never heard
00:30:40 People who've never been here.
00:30:43 And I think one of the most moving
00:30:47 I received a check one day,
00:30:48 and I noticed the return address
00:30:51 And Homestead is here in
00:30:53 and it was probably the most
00:30:55 from Hurricane Andrew.
00:30:57 And I opened the letter,
00:31:00 and it said, "Please,
00:31:02 in memory of our daughter,
00:31:04 who was killed in the storm."
00:31:10 You feel almost guilty that
00:31:14 because there's tragedy's
00:31:15 And here you have a lady sending
00:31:17 in the memory of her
00:31:19 who happened to have been a
00:31:22 volunteered her time.
00:31:23 And I said, "Ms. Browning, why?"
00:31:26 And through her tears,
00:31:27 and as she was crying on the phone
00:31:29 she said, "Ron, prior to this beam
00:31:33 the only thing she kept saying
00:31:36 'Mom, I'm so worried about the
00:31:47 In the aftermath of a hurricane,
00:31:49 the survivors must try to make
00:31:53 It's a long, slow process,
00:31:55 restoring shattered lives
00:32:00 But the residents of South Florida
00:32:02 with the certainty that another
00:32:06 perhaps next year,
00:32:12 The long-term problem is that
00:32:14 people build their homes in areas
00:32:19 All across the globe, if coastal
00:32:24 more and more people will find
00:32:26 in the paths of major hurricanes
00:32:30 and those storms could be
00:32:33 and more deadly than ever.
00:32:46 Most natural disasters are
00:32:49 earthquakes last only seconds.
00:32:55 Tornadoes rarely touch down
00:33:01 Even hurricanes come and go
00:33:06 But a flood is a disaster
00:33:10 It can last as long as the rain
00:33:13 as long as the water continues
00:33:18 Some floods are of biblical
00:33:21 dragging on for weeks or
00:33:29 Such a flood was the one
00:33:31 that struck the Mississippi Valley
00:33:35 The people who live here
00:33:36 are accustomed to the river's
00:33:40 They've often joined battle
00:33:42 to preserve their homes.
00:33:44 They refuse to remain passive
00:33:48 But 1993 brought the worst deluge
00:33:53 The Mississippi became a
00:33:56 and the struggle would last
00:34:16 The waters from nearly one quarter
00:34:19 drain down the upper Mississippi
00:34:22 In the spring of '93,
00:34:24 their tributaries were overwhelmed
00:34:27 turning the land between the rivers
00:34:30 a "sixth Great Lake."
00:34:32 By mid-July, with record crests
00:34:36 dozens of town downriver faced the
00:34:41 - towns like Ste. Genevieve,
00:34:47 Founded by French settlers
00:34:50 Ste. Genevieve is the oldest
00:34:53 on the western banks of the
00:34:55 Some of its French colonial
00:34:59 in the United States.
00:35:00 And if the river had its way,
00:35:02 that rich heritage
00:35:07 Where the waters were held at bay,
00:35:09 the town owed its safety to a
00:35:13 - and an extraordinary volunteer
00:35:16 People from all walks of life-
00:35:18 from the locals
00:35:20 - joined hands to try to save
00:35:27 The battle raged all summer long,
00:35:31 But in one way, the people of the
00:35:35 As they waited for each new crest,
00:35:37 they could prepare
00:35:44 But many floods happen fast,
00:35:48 In southern France in 1992,
00:35:51 torrential rains raised river
00:35:54 in just a few hours.
00:35:56 The resulting flash floods
00:36:00 and dozens drowned.
00:36:09 The people of Ste. Genevieve
00:36:11 to meet
00:36:13 and they were ready for the worst.
00:36:16 One of those leading the fight was
00:36:20 Vern was president of the
00:36:23 the agency responsible for
00:36:26 now swallowed by the river.
00:36:29 He coordinated the efforts to save
00:36:34 Did you get any sleep tonight?
00:36:36 Well, what 15 minutes or what?
00:36:39 We got contractors.
00:36:41 We got the National Guard in here,
00:36:44 and a lot of civilian help
00:36:48 And we got-we just start
00:36:51 trying to get the unions to
00:36:53 And it's just a minute...
00:36:57 Sonny, we're gonna need
00:36:59 we're gonna need...
00:37:03 The rising tide had brought a flood
00:37:07 nearly 10,000
00:37:15 But in spite of all their efforts,
00:37:17 after two and a half months
00:37:19 more than half of
00:37:23 Temporary levees wove through town
00:37:28 A man-made island rose
00:37:29 where Wehner Street had once met
00:37:32 the work of four families
00:37:35 in a desperate battle to save
00:37:38 And they seemed to be winning,
00:37:41 But in the struggle to hold back
00:37:43 the families had faced a
00:37:47 only the homes of those
00:37:49 and fight were protected by
00:37:52 It was agreed all at one time
00:37:55 Then later one house was not
00:37:58 and I really feel bad
00:38:01 It belongs to Henry, Henry Stackle,
00:38:05 And he was always one
00:38:10 A few years ago, he probably led
00:38:13 Now, he's-the river just keeps
00:38:18 and he's not as young as
00:38:27 He's a very hard fighter,
00:38:35 and I guess this is the first one
00:38:51 This skirmish had been hard-won,
00:38:53 but the compound was, at best,
00:38:55 only a makeshift substitute
00:38:59 the ones that had failed.
00:39:01 Those had been built by the Army
00:39:03 as part of a vast network designed
00:39:08 Over the course of a half-century,
00:39:10 the corps had constructed
00:39:11 some 2,200 miles of
00:39:15 and earthen embankments, designed
00:39:19 and "correct" the river's
00:39:22 The farmers themselves, together
00:39:26 had built thousands miles more.
00:39:29 But the plan created new problems.
00:39:32 For 10,000 years,
00:39:34 the great floodplains of the
00:39:36 served as a natural spillway
00:39:40 Only in the last few centuries has
00:39:43 on the river's domain.
00:39:45 As the river walls were extended
00:39:48 they cinched the flow tighter
00:39:51 and the speed and pressure of the
00:39:54 When the river could no longer
00:39:57 it would strike with a force
00:39:58 and impact multiplied by the
00:40:02 That's what happened in the summer
00:40:05 at places like Kaskaskia Island,
00:40:09 There, no amount of effort
00:40:11 or save the town.
00:40:13 It was an amazing sight.
00:40:15 The Mississippi River flexing its
00:40:19 Dozens of homes and other buildings
00:40:21 including the town's church,
00:40:25 Some islanders believe the flood
00:40:28 whose history goes back nearly
00:40:38 Now all of Kaskaskia's inhabitants,
00:40:41 human and animal,
00:40:44 on the only high ground available:
00:40:46 the very levee that
00:40:50 Yeah, there's water on the whole
00:40:54 Probably the only part right now
00:40:58 are the very high ridges out
00:41:00 and the water's going to continue
00:41:03 It's continual rain up north,
00:41:05 and a lot of dikes are broken
00:41:09 So I'm sorry to tell you honey,
00:41:16 I love you, sweetheart.
00:41:17 We'll see ya later, okay?
00:41:22 I just wanted to get off.
00:41:28 My furniture's all still there.
00:41:30 Everything we worked for.
00:41:39 But I got my family.
00:41:49 My husband
00:41:53 I don't want to come back.
00:42:07 All over the mid-west levees
00:42:10 security for the growing
00:42:14 By the end of the summer
00:42:17 2/3 of all the levees have been
00:42:20 As the river continue disturbed your sort.
00:42:24 Throughout the world,
00:42:26 people have always settled on
00:42:29 taking advantage
00:42:31 and the rivers' own resources.
00:42:33 In many places they must be
00:42:37 and levees have a tendency to fail,
00:42:40 sometimes with
00:42:43 In China, in the 1930s,
00:42:45 floods breached the levees
00:42:49 The Yangtze floods killed three
00:42:53 in one of the greatest natural
00:43:02 Around Ste. Genevieve,
00:43:04 even where the levees were higher
00:43:07 the river could still find a way
00:43:10 After eight waterlogged weeks,
00:43:12 trouble spots were cropping up
00:43:16 Better get some bags here quick.
00:43:20 Even a small seep of water could
00:43:26 In just minutes, this situation
00:43:31 Unwilling to give in
00:43:34 Vern Bauman took one last gamble,
00:43:46 With luck,
00:43:48 and buy time for those families
00:43:51 whose homes stood
00:43:58 He took earth from wherever
00:44:00 even the footings of the levee
00:44:03 As hard as he worked,
00:44:31 Soon, the outcome was clear.
00:44:33 All that remained was to pull men
00:44:36 the crumbling embankment and
00:44:53 There was two chances, slim and
00:45:00 What amazed me about the whole
00:45:33 Throughout the Midwest, the floods
00:45:38 $10.5 billion in damage,
00:45:41 56,000 home flooded or destroyed.
00:45:44 306,000 square miles underwater,
00:45:48 and some 50 lives
00:45:53 As for the town of Ste. Genevieve,
00:45:55 it had been saved,
00:45:58 But hundreds buildings were lost
00:46:02 Ste. Gen can't afford many more
00:46:10 There were important lessons to be
00:46:13 and some people took them to heart.
00:46:15 In the past,
00:46:18 and rebuilt as a matter of course,
00:46:25 In some places,
00:46:26 the river will be allowed to
00:46:29 Thousands of acres of low-lying
00:46:33 for future flooding.
00:46:38 Many families
00:46:40 have decided to
00:46:42 and move to higher ground
00:46:44 where they'll be safe
00:46:50 These changes in practice and
00:46:54 that we can't fight nature and win.
00:46:57 It's finally becoming clear that
00:47:02 but perhaps we can learn how to
00:47:17 In California, scientists are
00:47:22 The site is the sleepy little town
00:47:26 Just about every 22 years,
00:47:28 a powerful earthquake rumbles
00:47:31 And when the next on hits,
00:47:33 seismologist Allan Lindh hopes to
00:47:36 Parkfield will really be our first
00:47:39 to really capture an earthquake
00:47:42 to really be sitting there waiting
00:47:45 and sharpened and waiting to go.
00:47:49 The U.S. Geological Survey
00:47:51 has spent millions of dollars
00:47:54 All over the valley, highly
00:47:57 like this laser, are poised to
00:48:01 along the San Andreas Fault.
00:48:08 If the earth shifts even a few
00:48:13 seismologists may be able to issue
00:48:16 The parkfield experiment is not
00:48:20 when an earthquake will happen,
00:48:21 but also exactly
00:48:25 It's based on an idea called the
00:48:30 Seismic gap theory is really just
00:48:35 And all it says is
00:48:36 since motion is occurring all
00:48:39 there are gonna be earthquakes
00:48:41 And the places that haven't and 'em
00:48:45 to have them "next-est."
00:48:48 By pinpointing places with the
00:48:51 scientists and urban planners can
00:48:55 and people.
00:48:56 But geologists can't create an
00:49:00 The only way for them to
00:49:02 is to wait for one to happen,
00:49:04 and hope they're still around
00:49:08 Panning back. I've got to get this
00:49:13 Observing tornadoes presents its
00:49:17 Every spring and summer,
00:49:20 an army of amateur storm chasers
00:49:23 And video cameras are now
00:49:26 That has got to be
00:49:29 Going head-to-head with a twister
00:49:31 for both amateur storm chasers
00:49:35 It may look like fun, but it pays
00:49:39 about the birth and behavior of
00:49:45 There goes the windshield.
00:49:52 Just as important as direct
00:49:55 are remote sensing techniques
00:49:58 Over the past two decades,
00:50:00 Doppler radar has revolutionized
00:50:04 First used by the military to
00:50:07 Doppler is so sensitive
00:50:09 it can track the movement of
00:50:13 In the field, portable Doppler
00:50:16 to record data at dangerously
00:50:22 I'm on the left side of that tight
00:50:30 With the information they've
00:50:32 scientists are creating computer
00:50:36 to learn even more about their
00:50:43 As with earthquakes,
00:50:44 the key to avoiding catastrophe
00:50:48 At the National Weather Service,
00:50:52 the "next generation" of advanced
00:50:55 NEXRAD's enhanced imagery
00:50:58 to spot tornadoes as they form,
00:51:02 in alerting those
00:51:11 Hurricane prediction is also
00:51:14 as scientists gain a new
00:51:18 with the help of powerful new tools
00:51:21 like the space shuttle and
00:51:23 And as the accuracy of
00:51:26 hurricane fatalities are declining.
00:51:30 The beginning of the hurricane
00:51:33 anytime after dark this evening.
00:51:38 Today when hurricanes form
00:51:40 the National Hurricane Center
00:51:43 as a central clearinghouse
00:51:45 analyzing data,
00:51:48 and, most important,
00:51:50 broadcasting warnings,
00:51:53 There's a fine line
00:51:54 between alerting the community
00:51:58 Evacuations are expensive,
00:52:00 and false alarms can damage
00:52:04 But in the face of
00:52:06 it's a good idea
00:52:13 Like floods, earthquakes,
00:52:16 hurricanes remind us that there are
00:52:24 We have not conquered nature
00:52:30 But perhaps we can learn to survive