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<br />INTRODUCTI ON <br /> <br />No human settlement is free from risk to life and property from natural <br />hazards. In the United States an estimated average of $5 billion and 600 <br />lives each year are lost to these destructive events in nature. An important <br />step in planning to reduce losses from hazards is to collect relevant data. <br />Unfortunately, such data are not always readily available or in a useful <br />fonn. <br /> <br />In May 1977, at the Natural Hazards Data Resources Research (NHDR) <br />workshop, organized by the Natural Hazards Research and Applications Infor- <br />mation Center, a special panel explored the adequacy of available natural <br />hazards data to meet users' needs and proposed ways of promoting more syste- <br />matic collection and use of natural hazards data. A draft working paper, <br />"A Partial Inventory of Federal Agency Data Resources for Natural Hazards <br />Assessment," was prepared for the NHDR workshop held in April 1978. One <br />of the recommendations of that workshop was to complete the present inventory.' <br /> <br />SCOPE <br /> <br />A natural hazard may be defined as a rare or extreme event in nature <br />that adversely impacts human life, property, or activity. There are several <br />types of data that would be useful in planning for such hazards: (1) charac- <br />ter of the event including its frequency, expected magnitude, and duration; <br /> <br />'See NatllI'aZ Hazards Data ResollI'ces: Uses and Needs, Susan K. <br />Tubbesing, ed., Institute of Behavioral Science, Univ. of Colorado, <br />Boulder, CO 80309 (workshop summary). <br />The inventory has several precursors: FederaZ EnvironmentaZ Data: <br />A Directory of SeZected Sources, Capital Systems Group, Inc., Nov. 1977 <br />(available from National Technical Information Service, Springfield, VA <br />22161: Directory of Disaster-ReZated TechnoZogy, A-Z, Federal Disaster <br />Assistance Administration, HUD Report No. 401-FDAA, U.S. Government <br />Printing Office, Washington, DC 20402, 1975; Some GuideZines for DeveZop- <br />ing an Office of Emergency Preparedness CZearinghoUIJe for Emergency-ReZated <br />Research, Charles E. Fritz, Institute for Defense Analysis, Paper P-824, <br />Arl ington, VA 22202, 1971. <br /> <br />1 <br />