LESSON ONE
DISASTER PREPAREDNESS
Disaster preparedness involves forecasting and taking precautionary measures prior to an imminent threat when advance warning is possible. Preparedness planning improves the response to the effects of a disaster by organizing the delivery of timely and effective rescue, relief and assistance.
Preparedness involves the development and regular testing of warning systems and plans for evacuation or other measures to be taken during a disaster alert period to minimize potential loss of life and physical damage. It also involves the education and training of officials and the population at risk, the training of intervention teams, and the establishment of policies, standards, organizational arrangements and operational plans to be applied following a disaster.
Disaster preparedness refers to measures taken to prepare for and reduce the effects of disasters, that is, to predict and prevent them, mitigate their impact on vulnerable populations; and respond to and effectively cope with their consequences.
Disaster preparedness is a continuous and integrated process resulting from a wide range of activities and resources rather than from a distinct sectoral activity by itself. It requires the contributions of many different areas—ranging from training and logistics, to health care to institutional development.
OBJECTIVES OF DISASTER PREPAREDNESS
1. Increasing the efficiency, effectiveness and impact of disaster emergency response mechanisms at the community, national and Federation level. This includes:
a) the development and regular testing of warning systems (linked to forecasting systems) and plans for evacuation or other measures to be taken during a disaster alert period to minimize potential loss of life and physical damage.
b) the education and training of officials and the population at risk
c) the training of first-aid and emergency response teams
d) the establishment of emergency response policies, standards, organizational arrangements and operational plans to be followed after a disaster
2. Strengthening community-based disaster preparedness through National Society programmes for the community or through direct support of the community's own activity. This could include educating, preparing and supporting local populations and communities in their everyday efforts to reduce risks and prepare their own local response mechanisms to address disaster emergency situations.
3. Developing activities that are useful for both addressing everyday risks that communities face and for responding to disaster situations—for example, health, first aid or social welfare programmes that have components useful for disaster reduction and response.
The definition of hazards, disaster and vulnerability are important in understanding disaster preparedness.
A disaster is an extreme disruption of the functioning of a society that causes widespread human, material, or environmental losses that exceed the ability of the affected society to cope using only its own resources. Events such as earthquakes, floods, and cyclones, by themselves, are not considered disasters. They become disasters when they adversely and seriously affect human life, livelihoods and property. Disaster preparedness, therefore, seeks to prepare for and reduce these adverse effects.
A hazard, on the other hand, refers to the potential occurrence, in a specific time period and geographic area, of a natural phenomenon that may adversely affect human life, property or activity to the extent of causing a disaster. A hazard occurrence (the earthquake, the flood, or the cyclone, for example) becomes a disaster when it results in injuries, loss of life and livelihoods, displacement and homelessness and/or destruction and damage to infrastructure and property. A cyclone that surges over an uninhabited island does not result in a disaster; however, it would be a disaster if it hit the populated coast of Bangladesh
Structural or physical vulnerability is the extent to which a structure is likely to be damaged or disrupted by a hazard event. For example, a wood frame house with large headed, roofing nails, rafter tie-downs, anchor bolts and a solid foundation is less vulnerable structurally to severe cyclone winds than a similar-looking house which does not have these structural details.
Human vulnerability is the relative lack of capacity of a person or community to anticipate, cope with, resist and recover from the impact of a hazard. Factors that increase human vulnerability to disasters include;
· rapid urbanization
· population growth
· Lack of knowledge about how to effectively resist the effects of disasters and poverty. Of all the factors, poverty is perhaps at the root of what makes most people vulnerable to the impact of most hazards.
Human capacities are the qualities and resources an individual or community can use and develop to anticipate, cope with, resist and recover from the impact of a hazard. Human capacities include material resources (i.e. food, animals, cash, tools); social and organizational capacities (i.e. leadership, previous organizing experience, community based organizations and networks); and attitudinal capacities (i.e. beliefs, motivations, work values, ideas, creativity, efficacy). All people and all communities have resources and capacities and therefore a foundation for preparedness and risk reduction that National Societies can support and help build.
DISASTER CLASSIFICATION
There are different ways to classify disasters. Disasters are often classified according to their cause, their speed of onset (sudden or slow) and whether or not they are due to "acts of nature" or "acts of humans"—a classification which is often contested, because it is argued that human actions, in fact, also precipitate natural disasters.
Hazards causing disasters
Disasters classified according to cause are named after the hazard which results in the disastrous social and economic consequences. Thus, this classification includes
· earthquakes
· flood
· cyclones
· tornadoes
· landslides
· mud flows
· droughts
· pest and insect infestations
· Chemical explosions, etc.
Speed of onset
The speed of the disaster's onset is another way to distinguish between disasters and the types of responses that may be required.
A rapid onset disaster refers to an event or hazard that occurs suddenly, with little warning, taking the lives of people, and destroying economic structures and material resources. Rapid onset disasters may be caused by earthquakes, floods, storm winds, tornadoes, or mud flows.
Slow onset disasters occur over time and slowly deteriorate a society's and a population's capacity to withstand the effects of the hazard or threat. Hazards causing these disaster conditions typically include droughts, famines, environmental degradation, desertification, deforestation and pest infestation. The El Niño phenomenon is an example of one such disaster.
Disaster preparedness measures
Disaster preparedness, as already stated, is a broad concept that describes a set of measures that minimizes the adverse effects of a hazard including loss of life and property and disruption of livelihoods. Disaster preparedness is achieved partially through readiness measures that expedite emergency response, rehabilitation and recovery and result in rapid, timely and targeted assistance. It is also achieved through community-based approaches and activities that build the capacities of people and communities to cope with and minimize the effects of a disaster on their lives.
A comprehensive disaster preparedness strategy would include the following;
1. Hazard, risk and vulnerability assessments | 2. Preparedness plans or planning | 3. Institutional framework |
4. Information systems and management | 5. Resource base or mobilization | 6. Early warning systems |
7. Response mechanisms and strategies | 8. Public education and training and rehearsals | 9. Community-based disaster preparedness. |
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