人類社會是一個充滿人為及意外災害的社會，世界各國的災變可分為：一、自然災難，如風災（含颱風、颶風及龍捲風）、水災、地震、土石流、火山爆發、海嘯等。二為人為災難，如火災、核能災害、化學災害、恐怖攻擊事件（如美國911事件）社會暴亂、重大空難及交通事故等。據美國學者之研究，光是在美國一地，自然災變所引起的死亡人數及財產損失金額在公元2000年時約為1200人及150億美金，而2005年發生於美國東南部五洲的卡崔娜颶風（Hurricane Katrina）及2013年發生美東三洲的珊迪颶風（HurricaneSandy）所帶來的損失，合計高達美金4000億以上。在其他實施災難管理政策比較落後的國家，其人命的傷亡及財產的損失更是驚人，如中國唐山大地震（死亡25萬人）及汶川大地震（死亡8萬七千多人）、台灣九二一大地震、日本阪神大地震、及311大地震（死亡一萬九千人）、中東及中南美國家之大地震，如2010海地大地震（死亡31萬人），2004年的南亞海嘯（死亡28萬人），以及2015年尼泊爾大地震（死亡上萬人）等。由以上舉例來看，災害對人類生命與財產之影響甚大，其危害甚至不亞於戰爭，故世界各國政府無不積極面對此一重大公共議題並且謀求因應與解決之道。

Human society is a society full of man-made and unexpected disasters. Disasters in various countries around the world can be divided into: 1. Natural disasters, such as wind disasters (including typhoons, hurricanes and tornadoes), floods, earthquakes, landslides, volcanic eruptions, tsunamis, etc. The second is man-made disasters, such as fires, nuclear energy disasters, chemical disasters, terrorist attacks (such as the 911 incident in the United States), social riots, major air crashes and traffic accidents, etc. According to research by American scholars, in the United States alone, the death toll and property losses caused by natural disasters were approximately 1,200 people and US$15 billion in 2000. The total losses caused by Hurricane Katrina in the five southeastern US continents in 2005 and Hurricane Sandy in the three eastern US continents in 2013 totaled more than US$400 billion. In other countries with relatively backward implementation of disaster management policies, the casualties and property losses are even more staggering, such as the Tangshan Earthquake in China (250,000 deaths) and the Wenchuan Earthquake (more than 87,000 deaths), the September 21 Earthquake in Taiwan, the Great Hanshin Earthquake in Japan, and 3 11 major earthquakes (19,000 deaths), major earthquakes in the Middle East and Central and South American countries, such as the 2010 Haiti earthquake (310,000 deaths), the 2004 South Asian tsunami (280,000 deaths), and the 2015 Nepal earthquake (10,000 deaths), etc. Judging from the above examples, disasters have a great impact on human life and property, and their harm is no less harmful than war. Therefore, governments around the world are actively facing this major public issue and seeking responses and solutions.

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