1)Hazard is a condition/event that has potential for causing injury/ loss of life or

damage to property/environment.

Disaster is an event that occurs suddenly/unexpectedly in most cases and disrupts

the normal course of life in affected area; results in loss or damage to life property or
environment and is beyond the coping capacity of local affected population/society
and therefore requires external help.

The hazards are termed as disasters when they cause widespread destruction of
property and human lives. Once a hazard becomes active and is no longer just a
threat, it becomes a disaster.

Both hazards and disasters are natural as well as manmade.

We can prevent hazards becoming disasters if we learn to live in harmony with

nature and take precautionary steps.

Imagine you are in the desert and earthquake occurs. Now earthquake is a hazard
but in open desert it does not make in damage to you. No threat to your life. So it
does not become disaster. It remains as a hazard. Now imagine earthquake in a city.
There buildings collapse, people die or are injured, normal life is dirupted. This is
disaster situation.

2)Capacity refers to all the strengths, attributes and resources

available within a community, organization or society to manage
and reduce disaster risks and strengthen resilience.
It is important to emphasize people's capacity to anticipate, cope with, resist and
recover from disasters, rather than simply focusing on the vulnerability that limits
them. Like vulnerability, capacity depends on social, economic, political,
psychological, environmental and physical assets and the wider governance regimes
and like vulnerability it can be described using different terms.

For instance, capacity is sometimes described as the opposite of vulnerability, but

this overlooks the fact that even poor and vulnerable people have capacities. Indeed,
the starting point for capacity development is the existing knowledge, strengths,
attributes and resources individuals, organizations or society has. Capacity may
include infrastructure, institutions, human knowledge and skills, and collective
attributes such as social relationships, leadership and management

A related concept is ‘coping capacity’, which is the ability of people, organizations

and systems, to use available skills and resources, to manage adverse conditions, risk
or disasters