NATURAL DISASTERS IN CROATIA AND THE ROLE OF THE HYDROMETEOROLOGICAL SERVICE IN PROTECTIVE MEASURES

Abstract

The growing number of natural disasters in recent years are threatening the world as a whole and are also not rare in Croatia’s climatic conditions. Each year, natural disasters claim almost 20 lives in Croatia and cause damage estimated at 254 million dollars. The greater part of the damage is caused by disasters linked to atmospheric processes, such as drought, hail, storms, floods, frost, etc. Such disasters account for almost 80% of the total damage and also indirectly influence meteorological natural disasters, such as forest fires, landslides, plant diseases and pests, and very often the extent of technical and technological disasters. The Hydrometeorological Service is a significant and indispensable link in the complex chain of protective measures against such harmful events. Most important among its many tasks is the analysis of meteorological events that may cause a natural disaster and the identification of risk zones, as well as weather forecasts and periodical warnings of threatening disasters.