Perfect Storms

In 1900, the island city of Galveston, Texas is on the verge of greatness. Nicknamed the New York of the South it boasts the second most millionaires per capita of any city in the nation. Then everything changes. On September 8th a massive category 4 hurricane makes landfall. Warnings about the approaching storm have been ignored. When the only bridge to the mainland is wiped out, the city's 37,000 inhabitants are trapped. The next morning, 8,000 - 10,000 are dead. It remains the deadliest natural disaster to ever strike the United States.

Dark Age Volcano examines a massive 6th-century volcanic eruption in El Salvador, and its devastating impact on the Maya people living within its range and beyond. The program follows Dr. Robert Dull as he tries to prove his theory that this eruption is behind a worldwide climate change event that occurred in 536 AD. Across the globe, the Roman Empire was experiencing an equally devastating event in the sixth century-the onset of bubonic plague, which eventually brought the Empire to its knees.

September 1, 1923. A 7.9 magnitude earthquake strikes off the coast of Japan. The shockwaves devastate Tokyo, Yokohama and surrounding areas. In the rubble, thousands of fires break out and are quickly whipped into a firestorm, aided by strong winds from a typhoon lurking offshore. In a downtown open space where earthquake survivors had taken refuge, the firestorm triggers an extremely rare "dragon twist" - a tornado filled with burning debris - which kills an astounding 35,000-40,000 people in just 15 minutes. Known as the Great Kanto Earthquake, this disaster remains the deadliest in Japanese history, killing between 120,000 to 140,000 people. In the political and social chaos that follows, Japan is set on a new militaristic path towards the Second World War.