Emergency Management Planning Research Articles

Safety Intelligence and Security Management in Public Secondary Schools in Epe Local Government Area, Lagos State

The research adopted a descriptive survey design. The respondents were selected via simple random sampling. Four hundred participants including 19 principals and 381 students were the targeted population for this study. Findings from this study show that majority of schools have the basic safety and security apparatus but lack the knowledge and experience to employ them in the event of a disaster. Results also show that there is no subject in the school curriculum from kindergarten to secondary level that teaches on safety and security management. Public secondary schools in Epe LGA do not also have constituted disaster management committees or an emergency management plan. Most students however do not know how to use safety and security gadgets in their school premises. The study therefore recommended that a disaster/emergency management curriculum should be inaugurated in public school to teach students on how to respond in cases of emergencies and prevent emergencies.

DeepCrowd: A Deep Model for Large-Scale Citywide Crowd Density and Flow Prediction

Predicting the density and flow of the crowd or traffic at a citywide level becomes possible by using the big data and cutting-edge AI technologies. It has been a very significant research topic with high social impact, which can be widely applied to emergency management, traffic regulation, and urban planning. In particular, by meshing a large urban area to a number of fine-grained mesh-grids, citywide crowd and traffic information in a continuous time period can be represented with 4D tensor (Timestep, Height, Width, Channel). Based on this idea, a series of methods have been proposed to address grid-based prediction for citywide crowd and traffic. In this study, we revisit the density and in-out flow prediction problem and publish a new aggregated human mobility dataset generated from a real-world smartphone application. Comparing with the existing ones, our dataset holds several advantages including large mesh-grid number, fine-grained mesh size, and high user sample. Towards this large-scale crowd dataset, we propose a novel deep learning model called DeepCrowd by designing pyramid architectures and high-dimensional attention mechanism based on Convolutional LSTM. Lastly, thorough and comprehensive performance evaluations are conducted to demonstrate the superiority of the proposed DeepCrowd comparing to multiple state-of-the-art methods.

Quantifying National-Scale Changes in Agricultural Land Exposure to Fluvial Flooding

This study quantifies the exposure of agricultural land in Aotearoa-New Zealand’s (A-NZ) flood hazard zones (FHZs). We developed a spatio-temporal flood exposure framework to quantify the extent of the area and yearly earnings before income and tax (EBIT) for arable, forestry, horticulture, sheep and beef, and dairy land in FHZs between 1990 and 2016. In 1990, ~1.57 million hectares of agricultural land were exposed, decreasing slightly to ~1.50 million hectares by 2016. However, there was a change in the lower-value types of agricultural land uses being exposed, such as for sheep and beef farming and forestry, toward dairy farming (from ~364,000 hectares in FHZs in 2008 to ~471,000 hectares in 2016). Dairy farming is more intensively staffed with larger amounts of fixed assets, making them less resilient to flood impacts. Despite this, conversion to dairy farming even within the identified FHZs has been driven by the increasing profitability of the enterprise. As a result of both the production value change and land area increases, the dairy EBIT values within FHZs rose rapidly from NZD 382 million to NZD 1.25 billion between 2008 and 2012, creating significantly more economic exposure for A-NZ. This trend is particularly evident in the Southland, Canterbury, and Waikato regions. Similarly, in the Marlborough, Tasman, and Hawke’s Bay regions, there was an increase in high-value horticultural land—predominantly viticulture—in FHZs (a increase of NZD 321 million in annual EBIT for exposed horticulture across the three regions). Identifying sub-national trends in agricultural flood exposure allows for a detailed analysis of the likely impacts in high-risk areas, which can inform emergency management plans and mitigative actions that diminish the economic impacts from flood events.

Road Extraction in Mountainous Regions from High-Resolution Images Based on DSDNet and Terrain Optimization

High-quality road network information plays a vital role in regional economic development, disaster emergency management and land planning. To date, studies have primarily focused on sampling flat urban roads, while fewer have paid attention to road extraction in mountainous regions. Compared with road extraction in flat regions, road extraction in mountainous regions suffers more interference, due to shadows caused by mountains and road-like terrain. Furthermore, there are more practical problems involved when researching an entire region rather than at the sample level. To address the difficulties outlined regarding mountain road extraction, this paper takes Jiuzhaigou county in China as an example and studies road extraction in practical applications. Based on deep learning methods, we used a multistage optimization method to improve the extraction effect. First, we used the contrast limited adaptive histogram equalization (CLAHE) algorithm to attenuate the influence of mountain shadows and improve the quality of the image. Then the road was extracted by the improved DSDNet network. Finally, the terrain constraint method is used to reduce the false detection problem caused by the terrain factor, and after that the final road extraction result is obtained. To evaluate the effect of road extraction comprehensively, we used multiple data sources (i.e., points, raster and OpenStreetMap data) in different evaluation schemes to verify the accuracy of the road extraction results. The accuracy of our method for the three schemes was 0.8631, 0.8558 and 0.8801, which is higher than other methods have obtained. The results show that our method can effectively solve the interference of shadow and terrain encountered in road extraction over mountainous regions, significantly improving the effect of road extraction.

Management of acute exposure to toxic gases in the oil & gas industry -a practical approach

The objective of this work is to present the key elements in the design of emergency management and response plans in scenarios where there has been loss of containment of chemical agents of acute effect focused in the protection of not routinely exposed in a determined occupational environment. To this purpose, a validation of the current criteria for the management of accidental releases is carried out, taking into account hypothetical risk scenarios. The essential elements of the emergency management system are stated, from a systemic perspective and the corresponding risk control actions; recommendations for their implementation are showed, taking as prototype hydrogen sulfide, a highly toxic gas. Non controlled emissions of toxic gases of acute effect from an occupational standpoint represents a priority because of their human and financial high toll. Design and implementation of an appropriate emergency plan for uncontrollable emissions of toxics chemical agents must be addressed

Dynamic maps of human exposure to floods based on mobile phone data

Abstract. Floods are acknowledged as one of the most serious threats to people's lives and properties worldwide. To mitigate the flood risk, it is possible to act separately on its components: hazard, vulnerability, exposure. Emergency management plans can actually provide effective non-structural practices to decrease both human exposure and vulnerability. Crowding maps depending on characteristic time patterns, herein referred to as dynamic exposure maps, represent a valuable tool to enhance the flood risk management plans. In this paper, the suitability of mobile phone data to derive crowding maps is discussed. A test case is provided by a strongly urbanized area subject to frequent flooding located on the western outskirts of Brescia (northern Italy). Characteristic exposure spatiotemporal patterns and their uncertainties were detected with regard to land cover and calendar period. This novel methodology still deserves verification during real-world flood episodes, even though it appears to be more reliable than crowdsourcing strategies, and seems to have potential to better address real-time rescues and relief supplies.

A resilience-based framework for decision making based on simulation-optimization approach

The functioning of infrastructure systems and buildings in the aftermath of a disaster is critical to the modern urban center. A system study of interdependent networks response and understanding the process of post-disaster recovery is the corner stone of an effective emergency management plan. Exposure to stressors such as chaotic circumstances, budgetary restrictions, time limitations, resource constraints, high-level uncertainty and complexity in the recovery process of a community, highlighting the necessity for comprehensive decision-making framework in the aftermath of disasters. A decision-making framework in the community-level needs to puzzle out large-scale stochastic scheduling problems. These types of problems are difficult stochastic control problems with large combinatorial decision spaces.This study introduces the use of approximate dynamic programming along with heuristics for the determination of optimal recovery actions. The proposed approach prevails the curse of dimensionality and manages multi-state, large-scale infrastructure systems. Further, the proposed approach is able to consider the current recovery policies of responsible companies and improves them along with limited resources.A testbed community coarsely modeled after Gilroy, California, is presented as an illustrative example to show how the proposed approach can be implemented efficiently and accurately to find the optimal decisions. The applied approach provides optimal policies for Electrical Power Network (EPN) and Water Network (WN) of Gilroy in the aftermath of a simulated severe earthquake. The methodology is well suited for any existing infrastructure system with potential extensions to any hazard.

Census-Block-Level Property Risk Estimation Due to Extreme Cold Temperature, Hail, Lightning, and Tornadoes in Louisiana, United States

Rising property losses from natural hazards are typically the result of increased vulnerability, reduced resilience, low hazard mitigation effectiveness, or increased hazard intensities. Such property losses are frequently projected through population and asset growth, without considering changes in hazard frequency or intensity. This research describes a method of estimating risk, defined as projected property loss, anticipated to result from extreme cold temperature, hail, lightning, and tornado hazards through 2050 in the State of Louisiana, U.S.A. Our approach improves previous hazard risk assessments by 1) weighting risk by 2010 and 2050-projected population; 2) adjusting future hazard intensity based on recent climate model projections; and 3) producing results at the “microscale” census block, rather than previous county-wide or larger assessments. On a statewide basis, extreme cold temperature and tornado hazards incur by far the most risk of the four hazards. Extreme cold temperature and hail risk are projected to decrease as temperatures warm, especially in the New Orleans area. The lightning risk, while small, is projected to increase, both on an absolute and per capita basis. The proposed method and Louisiana results are appropriate to assist environmental, community, and emergency management planners in protecting life and property.

Emergency Management Planning in COVID-19 Pandemic Period

Emergency Management Planning in COVID-19 Pandemic Period

Proactive Actions Based on a Resilient Approach to Urban Seismic Risk Mitigation

Background: Seismic risk mitigation is an important issue in earthquake-prone countries, and needs to be solved in those complex communities governed by complex processes, where urban planning, socioeconomic dynamics, and, often, the need to preserve cultural assets are present simultaneously. In recent years, due to limited financial resources, mitigation activities have often been limited to post-earthquake events, and only a few in periods of inactivity, particularly in urban planning. At this point, a significant change in point of view is necessary. Methods: The seismic risk mitigation (and more generally, natural risk mitigation) must be considered as the main topic in urban planning and in the governance of communities. In fact, in several recent earthquakes, significant socioeconomic losses have been caused by the low or lack of resilience of the communities. This is mainly due to the high vulnerability of private buildings, in particular, housing units. Results: Therefore, in recent years, several studies have been conducted on the seismic resilience of communities. However, significant improvements are still needed for the resilience assessment of the housing stock, both qualitatively and quantitatively. In this study, which is applied to the housing system, a proposal regarding a change in urban planning and emergency management tools based on the concept of resilience is reported. As a first application, a case study in Italy is considered. Conclusion: The proposal is focused on defining and quantifying the improvement of the resilience of the communities and this must be obtained by modifying the current Civil Protection plan. New tools are based on a new resilience community plan by encompassing urban planning tools, resilient mitigation strategies, and consequently, emergency management planning.

COVID-19: The Nursing Administration Response.

The COVID-19 pandemic presented an unprecedented opportunity to test the emergency management plan of one large urban teaching hospital. In this article, a detailed description of the hospital's surge planning process with lessons learned has been provided.

“We only have the one”: Mapping the prevalence of people with high body mass to aid regional emergency management planning in Aotearoa New Zealand

IntroductionPeople have been left behind in disasters directly associated with their size, shape, and weight and are disproportionately impacted in pandemics. Despite alignment with known vulnerabilities such as poverty, age, and disability, the literature is inaudible on body mass. Emergency managers report little or no information on body mass prevalence. This exploratory study aimed to illustrate population prevalence of high body mass for emergency planning. MethodsCross-sectional data from the New Zealand Health Survey were pooled for the years 2013/14–2017/18 (n = 68 053 adults aged ≥15 years). Height and weight were measured and used to calculate body mass index. The prevalence of high body mass were mapped to emergency management boundary shapefiles. The resulting maps were piloted with emergency managers. ResultsMaps highlight the population prevalence of high body mass across emergency management regions, providing a visual tool. A pilot with 14 emergency managers assessed the utility of such mapping. On the basis of the visual information, the tool prompted 12 emergency managers to consider such groups in regional planning and to discuss needs. ConclusionsVisual mapping is a useful tool to highlight population prevalence of groups likely to be at higher risk in disasters. This is believed to be the first study to map high body mass for the purposes of emergency planning. Future research is required to identify prevalence at a finer geographical scale. More features in the local context such as physical location features, risk and vulnerability features could also be included in future research.

Diagnosis and management of anaphylaxis.

Anaphylaxis is a serious allergic reaction that is rapid in onset and may be life threatening. An informal review of the literature was performed in a nonsystematic way for this article. Key published work was identified and included. The incidence and prevalence of anaphylaxis have increased over time. Anaphylaxis is unpredictable and can be the result of various allergic triggers, including food, insect venom, and medication. In children, the most frequent trigger is food. The diagnosis is based on clinical criteria. After confirmation of the relevant allergen trigger, prevention occurs through strict avoidance of the allergen and optimal management of existing comorbidities. Patients with anaphylaxis require immediate assessment and treatment. The management of a patient with anaphylaxis should start with the removal of exposure to the known or suspected trigger, followed by the assessment of the patient's circulation, airway patency, breathing, and mental status. The administration of epinephrine at a dose of 0.01 mg/kg (1:1000) intramuscularly is the first-line treatment for anaphylaxis, and there are no absolute contraindications to this treatment. The maximum single dose of epinephrine is 0.5 mg and may be repeated after 5-10 minutes if needed. After administration of epinephrine, patients with anaphylaxis should be placed supine with their lower limbs elevated. They should not be placed in the upright position. Studies of fatal and near-fatal allergic reactions identified potential risk factors for fatalities such as asthma, peanuts and/or tree nuts, and delayed epinephrine use, and provided important information that may help minimize the future risk. Patients and their families need to be well educated on how to manage potential anaphylactic reactions with training in the use of epinephrine autoinjectors and personalized emergency management plans. Health care professionals must be familiar with this clinical emergency and able to respond to anaphylaxis in a timely and appropriate manner.

The recurrence interval of post-fire debris-flow generating rainfall in the southwestern United States

In the southwestern United States, post-fire debris flows commonly initiate during short bursts of intense rainfall. To date, the frequency of the rainfall rates has not been quantified. Here, we combine an existing database of debris-flow occurrences and corresponding peak storm intensities with a geospatial library of rainfall recurrence interval (RI) information and climate type to determine the distribution of the estimated frequencies of the rainfall associated with 316 observed post-fire debris flows in the southwestern United States. Our results indicate that a majority (77%) of the observed debris flows were triggered by rainfall intensities with RI less than 2 years. Climatic and geographic differences in RI were evident in our analysis. Debris flows in most of the analyzed climates within California, Colorado, and New Mexico were primarily associated with 1-year or less RI intensities, whereas debris flows in arid portions of Arizona, Colorado, and Utah tended to be generated during storms greater than 2-year RI. Event consequence, as defined by the impact on downstream communities and infrastructure, was not directly related to RI, as very destructive debris flows were initiated at a wide range of RI intensities. Our results highlight that post-fire debris-flow initiation can be expected during common rainstorms in the southwestern United States, therefore emergency management plans and risk mitigation efforts must focus on both extreme and frequent rainstorms.

Inclusion of Veterinary Services in national emergency management plans.

With human population growth, rapid urbanisation, increasing globalisation, and climate change, the interdependency of human health and animal health is mounting. Therefore, the importance of national emergency management plans (NEMPs) for the mitigation of, and preparedness for, all hazards, including disease epidemics, both zoonotic and zootic, is ever increasing. The authors decided to take a One Health approach by assessing the inclusion of Veterinary Services and animal health in NEMPs, based on geographical region, the date of the NEMP, national income status, and the proportion of the agricultural sector in national gross domestic product (GDP). To carry out the assessment, the authors analysed the publicly available NEMPs of 86 Members of the World Organisation for Animal Health. Of the 86 NEMPs reviewed, only a third expressly mentioned Veterinary Services, almost 60% mentioned zoonotic and/or zootic diseases, and about two-thirds mentioned animals to some extent. The highest correlating factor to the inclusion of animal health in NEMPs was the level of the agricultural sector's contributions to the national GDP. Fisheries and aquaculture were not a major consideration in any of the reviewed NEMPs, especially not in relation to diseases. Based on region, Latin America and the Caribbean exhibited the lowest inclusion rate of animal health in NEMPs. The results demonstrate that the omission of animal health is still a problem. A multi-disciplinary approach that includes veterinary medicine as well as human medicine is vital in the construction and/or revision of NEMPs. Future studies should consider whether or not there is a connection between countries' veterinary capacities and the inclusion of Veterinary Services in their NEMPs and whether or not they have the infrastructure and human resources to put into operation the roles of Veterinary Services as identified in their NEMPs.

Fierce Advocates for Building All-Hazards Resurgence and Resilience: NYC Health + Hospitals' COVID-19 Experiences Applied.

Fierce Advocates for Building All-Hazards Resurgence and Resilience: NYC Health + Hospitals' COVID-19 Experiences Applied.

Heat, cold, and floods: exploring farmers’ motivations to adapt to extreme weather events in the Terai region of Nepal

Smallholder farmers in Nepal are vulnerable to climate change-related extreme weather events. Adaptation in the agriculture sector is needed to mitigate social, economic, and ecological impacts from increasing levels of hazard activity. To examine this issue, a household survey of 350 farmers in the Terai region of Nepal was carried out to assess farmers’ risk perceptions towards three common extreme weather events (floods, cold spells, and heat waves) and to explore their intended responses to cope with future impacts. The intended common adaptation strategies include changes in farm management, seeking off-farm employment, emergency management planning, purchasing crop insurance, and the raising of awareness. Threat appraisal is the strongest predictor of the number of intended adaptation strategies adopted in response to slow-onset hazards (heat waves and cold spells), while coping appraisal is the major predictor of the number of intended adaptation strategies adopted to mitigate flood risk, a rapid onset hazard. Crop insurance and off-farm employment are farmers’ most preferred flood adaptation strategies, while crop insurance is the most preferred adaptation strategy for heat waves and cold spells. Other variables such as the number of past implemented strategies, experience with extreme events, community organisation membership, and access to credit and extension services were also significantly associated with farmers’ choices for adaptation strategies in response to the three extreme events. This information can be used to tailor community-centred communication about potential threats from different extreme weather events and government technical and financial support, which will be crucial for farmers to adapt effectively to climate change-related weather extremes.

Strategic Planning in Emergency Management: Evaluating the Impacts on Local Program Quality

Abstract This study examined the strategic planning practices of county-level emergency management agencies (EMAs), with a specific focus on strategic planning adoption and its relationship to local program quality. The study utilized a descriptive, cross-sectional survey design to collect planning- and program-related data from more than 300 county-level EMAs across the United States. The study findings revealed that most of the county EMAs included in the final sample had previously engaged in strategic planning activities, with nearly all of them continuing to use strategic planning as part of their general management practice. The study findings further revealed that strategic planning had a direct and significant impact on the overall quality of local emergency management programs, and that the strategic planning EMAs had significantly higher mean quality scores across all program dimensions when compared to the non-strategic planning EMAs.

The 2017 Hurricane Public Health Responses: Case Studies Illustrating the Role of Centers for Disease Control and Prevention's Public Health Emergency Preparedness Program - Erratum.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), Division of State and Local Readiness (DSLR), Public Health Emergency Preparedness(PHEP) program funds 62 recipients to strengthen capability standards to prepare for and respond to public health emergencies. Recipients use these PHEP resources in addition to CDC's administrative and scientific guidance to support preparedness and response program planning and requirements. It is expected that public health agencies develop and maintain comprehensive emergency preparedness and response plans in preparation for disasters such as hurricanes. The 2017 historic hurricane season highlighted how emergency planning and collaborative operational execution is important for public health agencies to effectively prepare for and respond to both the immediate and long-term population health consequences of these disasters. In 2017, the southeastern United States (US) and US Caribbean territories experienced 3 Category 4 or higher Atlantic hurricanes (Harvey, Irma, and Maria) within a 5-week period. This paper highlights selected case studies that illustrate the contributions and impact of jurisdictional emergency management planning and operational capacity supported by capability standards during the 2017 hurricane season. Although the magnitude of the 2017 hurricanes required public health officials to seek additional assistance, the following case studies describe the use of public health preparedness systems and recovery resources supported by the PHEP program.

Preparations and Activities Necessary for Aerial Mosquito Control After Hurricanes.

Vector Disease Control International (VDCI) has a long history of aiding mosquito control efforts necessary for recovery after natural disasters like hurricanes and major floods. As waters associated with these events begin to recede, both nuisance and vector mosquito species surge in abundance and consequently play an increased role in public health. When these situations arise, state and county agencies implement emergency response plans and many rely on Federal Emergency Management Agency or private contractors for assistance in reducing mosquito populations that can alter arbovirus transmission cycles, cause intolerable stress, hamper reconstruction efforts, and disrupt normal community functions. Vector Disease Control International owns the largest fleet of fixed-wing aircraft dedicated specifically to mosquito control and has worked every major storm event since Hurricane Bonnie in 1998. This article describes the logistics and operations required for implementing VDCI's emergency management plan, including the relocation of equipment, adult mosquito surveillance, delivery of pesticides, assessment of efficacy, and filing of low-level waivers and congested-area plans with the Federal Aviation Administration.