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The thin line marks today, 29 September 2026.

Disaster

International Day for Disaster Risk Reduction

The International Day for Disaster Risk Reduction falls on 13 October. It marks what people and communities are doing to cut their exposure to disasters, and presses governments and investors to put money into resilience before the next flood, storm or earthquake rather than into recovery afterwards. UNDRR sets a theme for the day each year against the Sendai Framework targets.

2026

13 October 2026

Confirmed

Dates confirmed from the organiser’s announcement on 15 September 2026.

Organiser: UN Office for Disaster Risk Reduction (UNDRR)

Read the organiser’s pageAdd to your calendarJSON

When it falls

13 October, every year.

Also known as: IDDRR, DRR Day.

Where it came from

The International Day for Disaster Risk Reduction started in 1989, after the UN General Assembly called for a day to promote a global culture of risk awareness and disaster reduction. It is held every 13 October. UNDRR sets a theme each year, usually tied to one of the targets of the Sendai Framework for Disaster Risk Reduction 2015-2030, and governments, cities, businesses and civil society organise events and campaigns around it.

First observed in 1989.

The organiser’s account of the day

How organisations mark it

  • Register a local event on the UNDRR campaign site and use the year's social media toolkit.
  • Review your organisation's or household's plan against the year's theme, and publish what you changed.
  • Check that hazard warnings actually reach everyone in a building or household, in a form they understand.
  • Brief councillors or a board on local disaster losses and what investment in resilience would cost.

Why this exists

Disaster & climate

2 milliondeaths from weather, climate and water-related disasters, 1970 to 2021

Deaths from weather, climate and water-related hazards, 1970–2021 — worldwide, 2023. Source: World Meteorological Organization, Atlas of Mortality and Economic Losses from Weather, Climate and Water-related Hazards (1970–2021) (2023).

“The death toll is at 2 million, with 90% are in developing countries”

More figures for this hazard

ObservanceNextKindWhereHazards
World Tsunami Awareness Day5 November 2026 ExpectedDayWorldwideDisasterWater
National Preparedness Month1–30 September 2026 ConfirmedMonthUnited StatesDisaster

Sources

  1. International Day for Disaster Risk Reduction — UNDRR campaign site — iddrr.undrr.org, read 15 September 2026.
  2. International Day for Disaster Risk Reduction — United Nations observance page — www.un.org, read 15 September 2026.
  3. UNDRR announces "Resilience Starts at Home" as the 2026 theme — www.undrr.org, read 15 September 2026.
  4. 2026 Calendar of Selected United Nations Events — www.un.org, read 15 September 2026.

Page last confirmed against the organiser on 15 September 2026.