This timely book reviews the hydrological aspects of different types of disaster and considers measures required to protect people and property against such events as well as disaster prediction, forecasting and monitoring. Its publications coincide with the start of the United Nations Decade for Natural Disaster Reduction. It comprises twenty-seven papers by experts from a wide range of countries and organizations presented at the Technical Conference convened by the World Meteorological Organization in Geneva in November 1988. The contributions are grouped into five sections covering hydrological problems of extreme floods and droughts, consequences of accidental water pollution, hydrological problems of dam and levee rupture, hydrological consequences of volcanic eruptions and hydrological consequences of earthquakes, landslides and avalanches. By drawing together work on a wide range of hydrological problems, this book is a valuable reference source for all scientist, engineers and policy- makers whose work touches on this diverse field.