Forces of Nature

Forces of Nature
Q:
Part 1:
Find one of each of the following
Earthquake
Volcano
Hurricane
Tornado
Part 2:What has made it so famous? What kind of rating did it get (fajita, Richter, etc...)? What kind of damage did it cause? How many people were injured/died?
Part 3:
Use your knowledge of the earth to explain the earthquake and volcano examples and then use your knowledge of the atmosphere to explain how a tornado and hurricane works.

A:
Part 1
Earthquake: Shaanxi (Shensi) Earthquake
Volcano: Mount Pelee
Hurricane: Hurricane Galveston
Tornado: Waco Tornado

Part 2
  The Shannxi Earthquake occurred in the Shaanxi Province in China on February 14, 1556.  This earthquake was estimated to have a magnitude of an 8.  The quake killed around 830,000 people and is known as the most devastating earthquake on record affecting around 500 miles of land and around 10 provinces.
  Mount Pelee is located in the Caribbean.  In 1902 it erupted in and killed around 30,000 people, destroying the town of Saint-Pierre.  A series of larger eruptions occurred earlier, leading up to the largest eruption on May 8.  This specific volcano was specifically identified because of its pyroclastic
flow that caused so much devastation.
  Hurricane Galveston was famous due to its size and devastation.  The hurricane occurred in 1900, so they did not have the technology to record its ferocity.  The hurricane was so severe though, that the city in which it hit (Galveston, Texas) was nearly wiped off the map.
  The Waco Tornado hit Waco, Texas in May of 1953.  The tornado killed around 600 people and injured about 114 more.  The tornado ranked about a F5 on the Fujita scale.  This tornado was estimated to be about 1/3 of a mile wide with its total devastation measuring around 23 miles. 

Part 3
  Earthquakes occur in response to plate movement in the Earth's crust at fault lines.  In
the Shaanxi Earthquake, I would estimate that it was in a subduction zone.  I would also go farther and claim it was most likely a "megathrust" quake due to its overall destruction and possible moment magnitude of a 9.0.
  Volcanoes are a response to diverging plates in the Earth's crust where magma then rises to the surface.  I would label Mount Pelee as a composite/stratovolcano because of its devastation due to lava flows.
  Hurricanes form near the equator near warm water.  A hurricane is the result of temperatures rising above 80 degrees, the occurrence of weather disturbances, and light, steady winds in the upper atmosphere.  These three things must coincide in order for a hurricane to happen.  Even though these things may be present, a hurricane may not form.  Once the temperature rises to the correct degree however, the system will officially enter the hurricane stage
  A tornado will develop when a change in wind direction and speed occurs before a thunderstorm.  With an increasing height added to the mix, a invisible-like, horizontal spinning effect occurs in the lower atmosphere.  Within the thunderstorm, an updraft of rising air will tilt the rotating air from horizontal to vertical.  As the thunderstorm moves now, the circumference of the rotation increases and strong winds begin rotating within.  This, now vertical rotation of air, forms a tornado.