Disaster Management Community Research Articles

Satellite remote sensing of earthquake, volcano, flood, landslide and coastal inundation hazards

Satellite remote sensing is providing a systematic, synoptic framework for advancing scientific knowledge of the Earth as a complex system of geophysical phenomena that, directly and through interacting processes, often lead to natural hazards. Improved and integrated measurements along with numerical modeling are enabling a greater understanding of where and when a particular hazard event is most likely to occur and result in significant socioeconomic impact. Geospatial information products derived from this research increasingly are addressing the operational requirements of decision support systems used by policy makers, emergency managers and responders from international and federal to regional, state and local jurisdictions. This forms the basis for comprehensive risk assessments and better-informed mitigation planning, disaster assessment and response prioritization. Space-based geodetic measurements of the solid Earth with the Global Positioning System, for example, combined with ground-based seismological measurements, are yielding the principal data for modeling lithospheric processes and for accurately estimating the distribution of potentially damaging strong ground motions which is critical for earthquake engineering applications. Moreover, integrated with interferometric synthetic aperture radar, these measurements provide spatially continuous observations of deformation with sub-centimeter accuracy. Seismic and in situ monitoring, geodetic measurements, high-resolution digital elevation models (e.g. from InSAR, Lidar and digital photogrammetry) and imaging spectroscopy (e.g. using ASTER, MODIS and Hyperion) are contributing significantly to volcanic hazard risk assessment, with the potential to aid land use planning in developing countries where the impact of volcanic hazards to populations and lifelines is continually increasing. Remotely sensed data play an integral role in reconstructing the recent history of the land surface and in predicting hazards due to flood and landslide events. Satellite data are addressing diverse observational requirements that are imposed by the need for surface, subsurface and hydrologic characterization, including the delineation of flood and landslide zones for risk assessments. Short- and long-term sea-level change and the impact of ocean-atmosphere processes on the coastal land environment, through flooding, erosion and storm surge for example, define further requirements for hazard monitoring and mitigation planning. The continued development and application of a broad spectrum of satellite remote sensing systems and attendant data management infrastructure will contribute needed baseline and time series data, as part of an integrated global observation strategy that includes airborne and in situ measurements of the solid Earth. Multi-hazard modeling capabilities, in turn, will result in more accurate forecasting and visualizations for improving the decision support tools and systems used by the international disaster management community.

A strategic plan for disaster medicine in Australasia.

Disaster epidemiology reveals epidemic increases in incidence of disasters. Rare disasters with catastrophic consequences also threaten modern populations. This paper profiles natural disasters, transportation incidents, emerging infectious diseases, complex disasters and terrorism for their historical and future potential impact on Australasia. Emergency physicians are in a position to assume leadership roles within the disaster management community in Australasia. The Australasian College for Emergency Medicine is in a position to lead medical specialty advances in disaster medicine in Australasia. To optimize its impact in disaster medicine, the specialty and its College have opportunities for advances in key areas of College administration, intra and interinstitutional representation, disaster preparedness and planning, disaster relief operations, education and training programs, applied clinical research, and faculty development.

Disaster Management and Community Planning, and Public Participation: How to Achieve Sustainable Hazard Mitigation

The paper offers first a brief historical overview of disaster management planning. Second, it reviews Australian and American research findings and show that they urge the field of disaster management to shift its focus from response and recovery to sustainable hazard mitigation. It is argued that in order for this shift to occur, it is necessary to integrate disaster management and community planning. Current practice seldom reflects such a synthesis, and this is one of the reasons why hazard awareness is absent from local decision-making processes. Third, it is asserted that if mitigative strategies are to be successfully implemented, then the disaster management process must incorporate public participation at the local decision-making level. The paper concludes with a case study of California's Portola Valley, which demonstrates that when public participation is integrated into disaster management planning and community planning, the result is sustainable hazard mitigation.

Disaster Management - Approach and Emerging Strategies in India

In India, the colossal loss of life and property, the social and economic disruptions caused by the increasing frequencies and severity of natural disasters has increased awareness on natural disaster management at all levels including political circles. However, the terrorist attack over World Trade Centre in USA and the spread of anthrax fear in its aftermath has shifted our attention towards potential danger of the biological and other manmade disasters. It is in this context that disaster management as an important issue draws attention of various stakeholders in the disaster management community to introspect how prepared we are to tackle this type of disasters. The present paper aims at giving a comprehenvsive account of the disaster management mechanism in our country. It also briefly discusses the efforts made and major challenges and various issues of disaster management in our country. In addition, it gives an account of the emerging strategies in managing future disasters - both natural and manmade. The various aspects covered in this paper will provide valuable inputs to the planners, policy makers, administrators, scholars and other stakeholders.

Integration of remote sensing data and geographic information system technology for emergency managers and their applications at the Pacific Disaster Center

Craig LabenPacific Disaster Center590 Lipoa Parkway, Suite 259Kihei, Maui, Hawaii 96753E-mail: claben@pdc.orgAbstract. As new remote sensing data and geographic information sys-tem (GIS) technology becomes available, it is increasingly possible todevelop and provide effective products, services, and tools to the emer-gency management community. GIS technology has become increas-ingly affordable and provides the ability to capture, organize, manipulate,display, and analyze complex collections of geographic data and infor-mation. The Pacific Disaster Center (PDC) has historically provided de-cision support products and services to local, state, federal, and regionalemergency managers in the Pacific Region to assist in all four phases ofdisaster management: mitigation, preparation, response, and recovery.The PDC’s current mission includes the integration of scientific knowl-edge, remote sensing data and tools, modeling and simulation technol-ogy, weather analysis, digital and information technology, and systemsengineering processes in support of the disaster management commu-nity. Current activities and methods are presented in this paper.

Planning for Uncertainty: The Case of local Disaster Planning

Abstract Adoption of good disaster preparedness practices (practices) can mitigate recurrent problems in community disaster management. However, there are obstacles to adoption of such practices; these obstacles include lack of experience with disasters (experience) and lack of an effective planning process (planning). Since the uncertainty that results from insufficient experience is a given, while planning reflects an organizational choice, this study investigates whether effective planning compensates for lack of experience in promoting the adoption of good practices. Analyses of survey data reveal that jurisdictions with the most experience tend to have effective planning and to have adopted good practices. Among jurisdictions with little experience, those with effective planning are significantly more likely to have adopted good practices than those without it. Process-oriented planning activities, such as multidisciplinary simulations and task forces, are more effective than technical activities, such as writing standard procedures. Public agencies can therefore undertake planning activities that increase opportunities to prepare effectively for uncertain future events.