A multi-hazard historical catalogue for the city-island-state of Malta (Central Mediterranean)

Geoff Main (), Ritienne Gauci (), John A. Schembri () and David K. Chester ()
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Geoff Main: University of Exeter
Ritienne Gauci: University of Malta
John A. Schembri: University of Malta
David K. Chester: University of Liverpool

Natural Hazards: Journal of the International Society for the Prevention and Mitigation of Natural Hazards, 2022, vol. 114, issue 1, No 25, 605-628

Abstract: Abstract The city-island-state of Malta is traditionally viewed as a low-hazard country with the lack of a long historical catalogue of extreme events and their impacts acting as an obstacle to formulating evidence-based policies of disaster risk reduction. In this paper, we present the first multi-hazard historical catalogue for Malta which extends from the Miocene to 2019 CE. Drawing on over 3500 documents and points of reference, including historical documentary data, official records and social media posts, we identify at least 1550 hazard events which collectively have caused the loss of at least 662 lives. Recognising that historical materials relating to Malta are complicated by the presence of a strong temporal bias, we establish a four-point reliability indicator and apply this to each of the 1065 recordings, with the result that some 79% show a high degree of reliability. For an island state where there are significant gaps in the knowledge and understanding of the environmental extremes and their impacts over time, this paper addresses and fills these gaps in order to inform the development of public-facing and evidence-based policies of disaster risk reduction in Malta.

Keywords: Malta; Environmental hazards; Historical catalogue; Disaster risk reduction (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2022
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Citations: View citations in EconPapers (1)

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DOI: 10.1007/s11069-022-05403-x

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