Hallo eco-aware viewers and welcome to Planet Earth: Our Loving Home. Today in the first of a two-part series, we focus on the devastating effects of floods on people and our planet.

Floods occur when enormous amounts of water partially or fully inundate land surfaces through such events as excessively heavy rainfalls, cyclones, tsunamis, storm surges, icesheet and glacier melting, and so on. Experiencing a serious flood can be a truly terrifying experience, as conditions are ever-changing and uncertain.

Is it safe to drive through a flooded street? Can one walk through the high waters and not encounter dangerous sharp objects or worse, lose footing and be swept away by the swift currents? Will people be able to survive the time without access to clean water and food?

In its numerous reports, the United Nations Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) has observed that around the world there have been widespread increases in heavy rainfall events, even in places where the total amount of rain received annually has been decreasing.

Prominent scientists everywhere point to global warming as the reason for this worrisome phenomenon. Climate change researchers have found that animal agriculture is overwhelmingly responsible for the warming of our planet. This harmful activity releases immense quantities of lethal greenhouse gases and the industry is also the primary cause of the majority of the world’s deforestation and land degradation.

The alterations to the planet’s atmosphere and land surfaces from livestock raising have wreaked havoc on the natural interactions between ecosystems and the hydrological cycle.

Climate models cited in Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change reports project that deleterious human actions such as factory farming which elevate the amount of greenhouse gases in the air will mean a continual upward trend in the number of violent weather events in many parts of the world, including those marked by excessively heavy precipitation.

Rising sea levels caused by climate change worsen the effect of storm surges and other similar weather extremes in coastal areas by increasing the chances that an inundation will occur. What's more, in the past 30 years over 2.8 billion people have been affected by floods worldwide, with over 95% of them residing in Asia.

Last year hydrological disasters were the most frequent type of natural disaster comprising over 53% of all such events globally. Of the 180 reported hydrological disasters worldwide, 149 were floods and 31 were wet mass movements like landslides, with over 57.3 million victims. Compared to 2008, the number of persons affected increased by 27.4%. The continent with the largest occurrence of floods in 2009 was Asia.

ASIA

From July 11 to 17, 2009 unusual torrential rains hit Sichuan and Hunan provinces and Chongqing Municipality in China, triggered frightening floods and landslides. Nearly two million people were affected, and at least 17 perished.

On July 25, 2009 seven cities and other parts of Hunan were flooded, affecting 1.3 million people, with at least 12 fatalities, 3,200 homes collapsed and 14,000 others damaged.

Typhoon Morakot struck Formosa (Taiwan) on August 7 and 8, 2009 triggering severe floods and landslides. Many roads and bridges were swept away, stranding thousands in places like remote mountain villages. At least 121 people perished, 45 were injured and more than 50,000 troops worked to rescue some 15,000 stranded persons.

Floods deeply impact families, homes and livelihoods. Widespread crop damage caused by flooding can have an immensely negative effect on a nation’s ability to feed itself, and injures social welfare and a country’s economy.

In September 2009 high tides flooded the Mekong Delta regions in Âu Lạc (Vietnam). Thousands of hectares of vegetable crops were submerged in salt water in the provinces of Cà Mau, Kiên Giang and An Giang along with buildings that were flooded in the region’s largest city of Cần Thơ.

Landslides also occurred in many sections of Cà Mau’s eastern coastline as well as along 40 meters of levees in An Giang province, with trees that were swept away by huge wave surges. Losses endured by the region in 2008 due to climate change resulted in over 100 fatalities and damage to more than 30,000 hectares of rice fields.

Incessant downpours triggered floods from August 19 through August 21, 2009 and affected hundreds of villages in eastern Nepal’s Jhapa district. Eight people lost their lives, and over 6,000 families were displaced as hundreds of homes were damaged or swept away and over 1,000 hectares of crops were destroyed.

Unusual rains in early September 2009 triggered floods in Laghman and Nangarhar provinces of eastern Afghanistan. At least 15 perished and several hundred homes, agricultural land and fruit trees suffered damage.

Numerous makeshift shelters in and around the Somali capital of Mogadishu were swept away in late October 2009 after two days of downpours triggered flash floods. Thousands of persons displaced by civil war lost everything and were foodless. Some 6,000 families, or 36,000 people, in the southern coastal city of Kismayo faced similar conditions, making them vulnerable to mosquitoes and rain.

When we return, we will continue our examination of the ruinous effects of climate change-induced flooding. Please stay tuned to Supreme Master Television.

This is Planet Earth: Our Loving Home on Supreme Master Television where we are focusing on the disturbing trend of increased flooding worldwide due to climate change. Major floods can devastate infrastructure, thereby hampering rescue efforts and the delivery of much needed aid to those caught in the rising waters.

In late December 2009 Lebanon struggled through floods and disruption. Heavy rainfalls and high winds caused widespread flooding across Lebanon, particularly in the Beirut and Mount Lebanon regions.

Extreme traffic congestion was noted as roads became impassable due to high waters or landslides. Some schools were also evacuated as the water found its way into buildings. Government ministries and other agencies worked fervently together to bring relief to the affected.

Torrential rains in September 2009 caused loss of life for two people in the Mexican capital of Mexico City as heavy rainfall flooded 20 neighborhoods and city officials evacuated 1,500 people from their homes. Four subway stations also became inoperable due to flooding, and cars on some streets were found floating in up to one and a half meters of water.

Floods surprised Australian residents in mid-January 2010. In what is normally a dry central region, torrential rains caused stranding of hotel visitors as well as closure of highways and rail service. A family of five was found and rescued via helicopter several days after they had tried to drive through the floodwaters.

Devastating deluges can mean the fast spread of water borne diseases. In tropical and sub-tropical regions across the globe dengue fever threatens the lives of flood victims. It is transmitted by mosquitoes that reproduce quickly in pools of standing water. Dengue fever is marked by high fever, vomiting, rashes, nausea and other serious symptoms and there is no known treatment.

The World Health Organization estimates that annually 50 million people are infected worldwide. Malaria, another disease transmitted by mosquitos, is also of serious concern following flooding. One million children in Africa died in 2008 due to this disease. In addition, diarrhea which can be fatal to very young children, can occur if water supplies become contaminated by the flood waters.

THE MIDDLE EAST

On Wednesday, November 25, 2009 some of the worst rains in years caused flooding in the western port city of Jeddah, Saudi Arabia on the Red Sea. At least 48 people perished and 900 had to be rescued from stranding as buildings and vehicles were submerged in several meters of floodwaters.

Downpours also struck the holy city of Mecca, where some 2 million Muslim pilgrims were on the annual hajj pilgrimage at the time. More than 70 of the flood victims contracted the swine flu virus, with four succumbing to the illness.

In October 2009, Kenya was overcome by unexpected floods due to heavy El Niño rains, causing at least two fatalities and displacing 500 families in the coastal Magarini District as homes and vast fields of crops were destroyed.

Following the disaster, affected resident Jillo Galgalo stated, “Most pit latrines have been washed away because nobody expected any floods to occur this soon. We are in dire need of clean water because most water points are now filled with all sorts of waste, including human waste and cow dung.”

Another heartbreaking reality is that animals, like humans, also fall victim to unrelenting downpours and floods. Animal companions may be left behind in homes with no food or water in the rush to evacuate. If there is no higher ground, animals living in fields such as horses may have nowhere to turn with rising flood waters.

Heavy monsoon rains that began in early July 2009 triggered a flood in the Barpeta District of Assam, India, causing people and animals to perish, with over half a million villagers affected as many lost their bamboo homes.

On September 21, 2009 the southeastern US state of Georgia was inundated by downpours, causing creeks and rivers to burst their banks. At least 10 people and four canine companions lost their lives as metro Atlanta and surrounding areas were flooded, forcing hundreds to evacuate their homes. Georgia Insurance Commissioner John Oxendine estimated US$500 million in losses were incurred in the region and over 20,000 homes and buildings were substantially damaged.

The floods that we have recapped today are just a small fraction of these climate-change induced events that have occurred recently. While endeavors to forecast floods to prevent loss of life and property are becoming more fine-tuned, and though emergency responders give their utmost to safeguard their communities, truly the best way to save precious lives from future natural disasters is to prevent them in the first place.

The key step for all to take right now is the adoption of the eco-conscious organic vegan diet which will dramatically reduce greenhouse gas emissions, end deforestation, restore habitats and quickly end climate change. Our planet’s weather patterns will again stabilize and flooding will no longer be a concern.

Earth-wise viewers, thank you for your company on today’s program. Please join us next Wednesday on Planet Earth: Our Loving Home for part two of our program on floods. Coming up next is Enlightening Entertainment after Noteworthy News. May all lives be filled with heavenly bliss and abundant love.