Seldom seen in disaster area (4)
I believe the answer is:
rare
'seldom seen' is the definition.
(something seldom seen is seen rarely)
'in disaster area' is the wordplay.
'in' indicates a hidden word.
'RARE' is hidden in the letters of 'disaster area'.
(Other definitions for rare that I've seen before include "Occurring infrequently" , "Rear up, being scarce" , "Seen once in a blue moon" , "Excellent; uncommon" , "Special" .)