LESSON TWO:
Hazard, risk and vulnerability assessments
All planning and implementation of disaster preparedness measures should be based on an assessment and prioritization of the hazards and risks that people face, as well as their ability or inability to cope with and withstand the effects of those hazards. This assessment should:
1. Identify the characteristics, frequency and potential severity of the hazards a community faces
2. Identify the particular geographical areas and communities that are most susceptible and vulnerable to those hazards
3. Identify the main sectors of a community (population, infrastructure, housing, services, etc.) that would be affected by a specific type of hazard and anticipate how they might be affected
4. Assess the ability of those sectors to withstand and cope with the effects of hazardous phenomena
Response mechanisms and strategies
There are many preparedness mechanisms and strategies that will strengthen and increase the effectiveness of an emergency response. These include development or formation of:
1. evacuation procedures (including how to disseminate these procedures to the public)
2. search and rescue teams (including plans for training them)
3. assessment teams (including plans for training them)
4. an assessment process and information priorities for an emergency response
5. measures to activate special installations, such as emergency or mobile hospital facilities
6. procedures for activating distribution systems
7. preparations for emergency reception centers and shelters
8. procedures for activating emergency programs for airports, harbours and land transport
9. preparations for storing or making arrangements for rapid acquisition of emergency relief supplies and equipment.
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Preparedness planning
The concept of preparedness planning is very important for those involved in disaster management. During an actual emergency, quick and effective action is required. This action often depends on having made and implemented preparedness plans. If appropriate action is not taken or if the response is delayed, lives may be needlessly lost. In a preliminary plan, even though the details of a disaster remain uncertain, you can identify emergency shelter sites, plan and publicize evacuation routes, identify emergency water sources, determine chains of command and communication procedures, train response personnel and educate people about what to do in case of an emergency. All of these measures will go a long way to improving the quality, timing and effectiveness of the response to a disaster.
Disaster preparedness planning involves identifying organizational resources, determining roles and responsibilities, developing policies and procedures and planning preparedness activities aimed at ensuring timely disaster preparation and effective emergency response. The actual planning process is preliminary in nature and is performed in a state of uncertainty until an actual emergency or disaster occurs. The aim of preparedness planning is to identify assignments and specific activities covering organizational and technical issues to ensure that response systems function successfully in the event of a disaster. The ultimate objective is not to write a plan but to stimulate on-going interaction between parties, which may result in written, usable agreements. The written plan is an instrument, but not the main goal of the planning process.
Coordination
National Society plans ideally should be coordinated with the plans and intentions of other agencies and organizations. Effective disaster response requires mutual trust and coordination of efforts and resources among the many agencies and people involved in emergency response including the affected local population and local community based organizations, Civil Defense and government emergency structures, fire brigades, health departments and clinics, Red Crescent/Red Cross Societies, international agencies, NGOs and others.
It often occurs that other agencies and organizations have mandates and activities that overlap with those of the National Society. For example, a Red Crescent Society, a local religious centre and an international NGO may all provide first aid, shelter and food to disaster-affected populations. In this case, clear coordination of activities is required to ensure that the maximum number of people is assisted in the shortest possible time and to avoid unnecessary duplication of services. One person from each agency should have responsibility for each major type of response activity. Through direct coordination, agencies can clearly divide responsibility for different operations and plan their actions accordingly.
Representatives of various agencies working in one sector (health, shelter and food provision) may organize sub-groups or systems. Working on disaster preparedness planning prior to the disaster helps involved agencies better understand each other's aims, objectives and capacities. Such understanding and communication result in more coordinated efforts, and help avoid duplication and identify gaps and weaknesses in necessary services during an actual emergency response.
Memoranda of understanding, institutional policies, and joint preparedness planning can serve as the basis for coordination. National Societies should also review national legislation or policies delineating the role and relationship between public and non-public institutions, and any specific references dealing with the National Society's role and access to government resources. Besides their involvement on the national, division and local level disaster committees, National Societies can also liaise actively with the appropriate government ministries and agencies.
Information management
Disaster preparedness and response depend on gathering, analyzing and acting on timely and accurate information before (hazard and early warning information), during (disaster needs assessment) and after disasters (progress of post-disaster recovery). This requires that National Societies pre-determine what information they need, how it will be collected, who will collect it, who will analyze it and how it will be integrated into a timely decision-making process.
If National Societies are to respond to disasters in a timely fashion, they will need to develop procedures and mechanisms for obtaining, analyzing and responding to early warning information related to hazard detection, forecasting and alerts. Once a disaster strikes, National Societies must conduct initial assessments that are timely and that inform emergency responders about critical and immediate life-saving needs.
Disaster needs assessments should develop a picture of where people are, what condition they are in, what they are doing, what their needs and resources are, and what services are still available to them. After an initial assessment, more in-depth needs assessments should collect information related to critical sectors and technical areas of concern.
Early warning systems
The purpose of early warning systems is to detect, forecast, and when necessary, issue alerts related to impending hazard events. In order to fulfill a risk reduction function, however, early warning needs to be supported by information about the actual and potential risks that a hazard poses, as well as the measures people can take to prepare for and mitigate its adverse impacts.
Early warning information needs to be communicated in such a way that facilitates decision making and timely action of response organizations and vulnerable groups. Early warning information comes from a number of sources: e.g. meteorological offices; Ministries of Health (for example, disease outbreaks) and Agriculture (for example, crop forecasts); local and indigenous sources; media sources and increasingly from Internet early warning services.
All too often, those who need to heed early warning alerts have little faith in the warnings. This may be due to a human inclination to ignore what appears inconvenient at the time, to a general misunderstanding of the warning’s message or to frustration with yet another false alarm. When developing public early warning systems, planners must account for the public's perceptions of warnings, their experience related to reacting to warnings in the past, and general public beliefs and attitudes regarding disasters and public early warnings.
Resource mobilization
National Societies should develop strategies, agreements and procedures for mobilising and acquiring emergency funds, supplies and equipment in the event of a disaster. A preparedness plan should spell out the policies for acquisition and disbursement of funds, use of outside equipment and services, and emergency funding strategies. Well before a disaster occurs, National Societies should establish procedures for activating the appeals process for requesting funding support from National Society headquarters, government and Federation funds. International relief appeals are made through the International Federation by the affected country's National Society to the Secretariat.
Public education and training
Disaster preparedness must be supported by public education campaigns, training of response teams and rehearsals of emergency response scenarios. The aim of public awareness and education programmes is to promote an informed, alert and self-reliant community, capable of playing its full part in support of and in co-operation with government officials and others responsible for disaster management activities. An essential part of a disaster preparedness plan is the education of those who may be threatened by a disaster. Although television, radio and printed media will never replace the impact of direct instruction, sensitively designed and projected messages can provide a useful supplement to the overall process.
Rehearsals
As the preparedness plan is being developed, and upon completion, it is important to rehearse its major elements. Rehearsals invariably expose gaps that otherwise remain overlooked. Rehearsals are most effective when they are system wide and engage as many of the disaster response players as possible. Rehearsals also keep the plans fresh, during extended periods of time when no disaster strikes. Rehearsals might simulate search and rescue operations, first aid provision, response or needs assessment, coordination meetings between major organizational players and population leaders, relief transport and logistics, and many other aspects of an emergency response.
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