We explain what danger is, its various causes, examples and what types exist. Also, how it relates to risk.
What is danger?
By danger we understand, according to the dictionary, "the risk or the imminent contingency that some evil happens", that is, the real possibility that we suffer some physical, emotional or other type of harm.
With this word, from Latin periculum ("Test", "risk" or "attempt"), we also call the places, situations or things that put us in risk, that is, to things that are dangerous, or that put our properties or the environment at risk. This risk can be real and imminent (that is, in the short term), or possible and abstract (in the medium or long term).
In life, we are normally surrounded by danger. The contagion of diseases, domestic accidents, poor emotional decisions, bankruptcy, a terrorist attack, a fall in the bathroom, the list of imaginable dangers is infinite and diverse, but the urgency with which we perceive them always depends on the context in which we find ourselves and our ability to perceive said risk as something probable, possible or imminent.
In fact, we have designed a whole series of idioms with which to warn third parties about unsuspected or imperceptible dangers, such as traffic signs (danger of collapse, for example, or dangerous curves), or warnings of chemical hazard, toxic or biological in laboratories and hazardous waste.
The sense of danger, moreover, linked to fear and anguish, is a key element in the survival of the species, especially in the wild world where predators abound. In the world of humanity, instead, the prevention and planning are collective responses to lessen danger and try to live in a safer environment.
Types of hazards
The way to classify hazards is according to their imminence, that is, to the true risk they entail, as follows:
- Latent dangers. Those that are in a state of latency, that is, they could be capable of causing damage and ailments, but have not yet manifested themselves and there are no signs that they are occurring. For example, a set of highly flammable waste that is far from any heat source is a latent danger, as there is no real and immediate reason to think that a fire could occur, but there is still the future possibility that it will occur in some way. .
- Potential hazards. Those that have the potential to cause damage and suffering, even if they have not yet occurred, that is, they exist in a real and concrete way, but have not happened. For example, an old pump from the WWII that it is discovered buried under a park is a potential danger, since it has not detonated and there is no way to know if it will, but it could do so and hurt many people.
- Active hazards. Those that are occurring continuously, causing damage as time goes by, and that merit some kind of action to counteract them. For example: a forest fire that advances devouring more and more trees in its path, generating all kinds of toxic gases and destroying the local fauna and flora.
- Hazards mitigated. Those that have already been identified, and with respect to which measures have been taken to reduce or prevent their damage, that is, whose consequences have been mitigated through strategies prevention. For example: before a hill whose structure is at risk of collapse, a retaining wall is built to reduce the area affected in the event of such collapse.
- Public dangers. Those who put the open risk population of a town or a Condition, without discriminating between who may be affected or why. For example: a highly contagious epidemic is a danger of public health, which if not stopped in time can turn into a catastrophe.
Risk and danger
In the world of prevention and planning, a distinction is made between categories of risk and danger, depending on the degree of control that humans can exercise over potentially harmful activity.
Therefore, we speak of danger to refer to an element or condition intrinsic to a process or activity, and that can interrupt it or damage life or property. While a risk depends on the odds and the ability to control an already identified hazard.
In other words: a gas leak is a danger, but we run the risk of explosion and fire if we do not attend to it in time. A radioactive element is a danger, but we run the risk of radioactive poisoning only if we do not take the respective safeguards, such as an insulating suit and lead containers.
Causes of danger
The danger can have many causes, but in general they can be organized into three categories, according to its origin:
- Natural hazards, when they derive from elements, processes and dynamics of natural functioning, whether they are obvious or unexpected hazards. An example of this is an active volcano in the vicinity of a city, whose risk of eruption puts the lives of thousands of people in jeopardy.
- Anthropic hazards, when they come from human activities or are a consequence of Lifestyle human on the planet. The best example of this is the climate change that affects the entire planet, and whose dizzying speed is a consequence of the accumulation of industrial gases in the atmosphere.
- Dangers of an activity, those that have to do with the immediate performance of a trade, an activity or a task. In this case the danger ceases as soon as these activities cease. An example of this is the risk of burning a firefighter runs when putting out a fire.