Safe Shelter Research Articles

Potential health impacts to residents from smoke exposure during bushfires

Bushfire is an inevitable part of living at the rural/urban interface. The response to bushfire advocated by Australian Fire Authorities is to either prepare, stay and defend your property, or leave well in advance of the fire, coined the 'stay and defend or leave early' policy. This paper compares the potential health impacts as a consequence of exposure to smoke, to residents who stay and defend against those who leave early. Consequences on people and property protection: All Australian state and territory fire agencies have endorsed 'prepare, stay and defend or leave early' in the Position paper on Community Safety and Evacuation during bushfires (AFAC, 2005). The paper suggests that a house well prepared can act as a safe shelter for people during the passage of a fire front and able residents should be able to suppress small ignition in the house or around the house before these ignitions became uncontrollable. The presence of occupants or brigade members has a significant influence on house loss (Ramsey, Mac Arthur,1986). Health impacts: In order to determine the impact on community health, it is critical to evaluate the extent of the hazard posed by bushfire smoke and the vulnerability of the community. This impact will depend on what hazardous pollutants the communities are exposed to, the levels of exposures to these pollutants, and whether adverse health effects are likely to occur for the populations exposed. The risk that people incur while in a bushfire will vary E for various population groups, the susceptible ones (asthmatics, children, elderly, people with pre-existing respiratory or cardiac illnesses) being at higher risk E for the different ways in which people will react to bushfires, low exposures for those who leave early to high exposure risks for those that stay and defend. While staying will increase the chance of saving your house, it presents health and safety issues for the occupant. Exposure to air toxics in bushfire smoke can be reduced by wearing a respirator or staying indoors and using an air cleaner. On the other hand leaving your property will increase the risk of house loss, but decrease your exposure to bushfire smoke.

The Next 100 Years of Earthquake Science, Engineering, and Emergency Management--It's Time to Unite

This year's 100th anniversary of the 1906 San Francisco earthquake is giving us the opportunity to reflect on what we have accomplished over the past century, showcase our passion for seismic safety, and talk fervently about what needs to be done. The highly visual, three-dimensional ground motion simulations produced by the seismological community clearly illustrate the advancements in understanding that 100 years of seismological research has produced. The national consensus that has produced the first national seismic design codes for structures clearly points to the achievements of the engineering professions. One hundred and fifty years of observations and collaboration has produced clear instructions about how to design earthquake-ready structures. Emergency response plans that focus on safe evacuation, shelter and interim housing, vulnerable populations, long-term recovery, and exercises at the federal, state and local level give emergency planners reason to be cautiously optimistic that they are ready to handle the next “big one.” Good job all! Conservatism is usually a safe place to be, but excessive conservatism can yield a sense of hopelessness that leads to inaction. The 100th Anniversary Earthquake Conference commemorating the 1906 earthquake, held in San Francisco 18–21 April 2006, was a capstone event for earthquake professionals worldwide. For the first time, earth scientists, earthquake engineers, and emergency managers from California, the nation, and around the world came together to explore recent advances in their respective fields, share best practices, teach fundamentals, and advance an expert opinion on the changes that are needed in public policies related to earthquakes and their effects on communities. Since all the sessions were open to the 4,000+ participants, the meeting involved a considerable amount of interdisciplinary participation and generated a better understanding of the issues that each discipline faces. The meeting also clearly demonstrated the value of bringing all the earthquake disciplines …

Population assessment and habitat use by marine otter Lontra felina in southern Chile

The marine otter Lontra felina lives along the Pacific coast of South America from 6°S to 56°S. A method for estimating marine otter abundance is described and a comparison of the characteristics of the terrestrial habitat of this species in southern Chile is made. From June 1999 to June 2000, we conducted eight hours of observations on one day each month at four study sites. An average of 3.8 observable otters/km were recorded, with significant differences between sites but no systematic trends with regard to season. Observable pups were recorded year-round. Otters spent 80% of their time out of view, engaged in behaviours other than feeding; observable otters were mostly seen feeding. The methodology described is effective for indexing abundances at small geographic scales. The marine otter needs both an aquatic habitat for foraging and a terrestrial habitat with an abundance of safe shelters, which, in turn, could limit the distribution of the species when human settlers and domestic dogs utilise the terrestrial habitats.

Transitioning Our Shelters: Making Homeless Shelters Safe for Transgender People

ABSTRACT Most homeless shelters in the United States are segregated by sex, with placement based on assumptions about a person's gender. As a result, transgender youth and adults, who identify as or express a gender different from their birth sex, can experience extreme difficulties in obtaining adequate and safe shelter. Many shelters are physically unsafe for transgender people, fail to provide adequate protections for their privacy, or do not respect their autonomy to define their own gender identity. This article provides information about transgender people, their experiences with poverty and homelessness, and how shelters can be made safe and welcoming for them.

Gregarious behaviour in a salamander: attraction to conspecific chemical cues in burrow choice

Gregarious behaviour (i.e. living in groups in contrast to a solitary life) is commonly observed in mammals, but rarely documented in amphibians. Environmental features and/or animal mutual attractions can promote the formation of aggregations that may both reduce the risks of dehydration and predation and increase mate access and fitness. Luschan’s salamander (Mertensiella luschani) lives in permanently arid Mediterranean environments; individuals shelter in cracks and crevices and leave only during favourable periods. In this study we examined the role of chemical tracks, in self and conspecific recognition (i.e. gregarious/solitary behaviour), on the social structure of this species. Our results show that juveniles and adults of both sexes use chemical scents deposited on substrate to relocate their shelter. In contrast to numerous other salamander species, Luschan’s salamanders also use social information, conveyed by conspecific scents, to identify a safe shelter. Furthermore, this scent marking does not play a role in sexual attraction but allows sex discrimination. This species exhibits gregarious behaviour (i.e. conspecific attraction) as a possible adaptation to dry environments. We discuss both ultimate and proximate factors in the evolution from a solitary to a gregarious life.

Heuristic Priority Ranking of Emergency Evacuation Staging to Reduce Clearance Time

Hazardous events, both natural and human-made, present tremendous risks to communities throughout the world. These events typically necessitate the evacuation of local or regional populations to safe destinations or shelters and have warning times ranging from minutes to hours or even days. The size and scope of these events present a challenge to the emergency management or agency personnel who must see to the health and safety of those living or working in their jurisdiction. This study evaluated various heuristic strategies to improve evacuation of an at-risk region by using a representative traffic roadway network. Finding evacuation strategies that reduce clearance time would lead to saving lives, time, and money. For the given test network, population density, or total number of trips, has an effect on overall clearance times; as densities (trips) increase, a greater potential for improved clearance time is indicated. Six different shift strategies were evaluated, each strategy based on origin-to-destination distances. For departure volumes greater than five vehicles per acre (approximately 12 vehicles per hectare), clearance times showed statistically significant improvements when departure times were shifted for groups within the network. In addition, the amount of the departure shift has an effect on clearance time.

Heuristic Priority Ranking of Emergency Evacuation Staging to Reduce Clearance Time

Hazardous events, both natural and human-made, present tremendous risks to communities throughout the world. These events typically necessitate the evacuation of local or regional populations to safe destinations or shelters and have warning times ranging from minutes to hours or even days. The size and scope of these events present a challenge to the emergency management or agency personnel who must see to the health and safety of those living or working in their jurisdiction. This study evaluated various heuristic strategies to improve evacuation of an at-risk region by using a representative traffic roadway network. Finding evacuation strategies that reduce clearance time would lead to saving lives, time, and money. For the given test network, population density, or total number of trips, has an effect on overall clearance times; as densities (trips) increase, a greater potential for improved clearance time is indicated. Six different shift strategies were evaluated, each strategy based on origin-to-de...

Pathogenesis ofYersinia pestisInfection in BALB/c Mice: Effects on Host Macrophages and Neutrophils

The pathogenesis of infection with Yersinia pestis, the causative agent of plague, was examined following subcutaneous infection of BALB/c mice with a fully virulent strain expressing green fluorescent protein. Plate culturing, flow cytometry, and laser confocal microscopy of spleen homogenates throughout infection revealed three discernible stages of infection. The early phase was characterized by the presence of a small number of intracellular bacteria mostly within CD11b+ macrophages and Ly-6G+ neutrophils. These bacteria were not viable, as determined by plate culturing of spleen homogenates, until day 2 postinfection. Between days 2 and 4 postinfection, a plateau phase was observed, with bacterial burdens of 10(3) to 10(4) CFU per spleen. Flow cytometric analysis revealed that there was even distribution of Y. pestis within both CD11b+ macrophage and Ly-6G+ neutrophil populations on day 2 postinfection. However, from day 3 postinfection onward, intracellular bacteria were observed exclusively within splenic CD11b+ macrophages. The late phase of infection, between days 4 and 5 postinfection, was characterized by a rapid increase in bacterial numbers, as well as escape of bacteria into the extracellular compartment. Annexin V staining of spleens indicated that a large proportion of splenic neutrophils underwent rapid apoptosis on days 1 and 2 postinfection. Fewer macrophages underwent apoptosis during the same period. Our data suggest that during the early stages of Y. pestis infection, splenic neutrophils are responsible for limiting the growth of Y. pestis and that splenic macrophages provide safe intracellular shelters within which Y. pestis is able to grow and escape during the later stages of infection. This macrophage compliance can be overcome in vitro by stimulation with a combination of gamma interferon and tumor necrosis factor alpha.

ROOST CAVITY SELECTION BY NYCTALUS NOCTULA AND N. LEISLERI (VESPERTILIONIDAE, CHIROPTERA) IN BIAŁOWIEŻA PRIMEVAL FOREST, EASTERN POLAND

za Primeval Forest in eastern Poland from May to August in 1998–2002. Because N. noctula is one of the most common forest-dwelling bats in Europe, whereas the smaller N. leisleri is relatively rare across its range (except in Ireland) and more limited to ancient forests, we hypothesized that these 2 taxa may differ significantly in their tree-cavity selection. Twenty-five N. noctula and 26 N. leisleri were radiotracked to 52 and 50 roost trees, respectively. For each accessible cavity roost occupied by N. noctula (n ¼ 28) and N. leisleri (n ¼ 39), 16 features were measured and compared with potentially available cavities (n ¼ 72). Both species were selective in roost choice, and preferred cavities located higher (averaging 19 m above the ground), in more open surroundings, with smaller entrances, and with greater safety distance (from martens) than available cavities. Nearly all roosts occupied by bats were dry inside. Both species slightly more frequently settled in cavities with entrances facing NE and SW, but the differences were not statistically significant. Compared to the pool of available cavities, N. noctula was statistically more frequently found in cavities with wider inside cross section and with 1 entrance, unlike N. leisleri, which often used cavities with more than 1 entrance (range 1–6 entrances). One of the most noticeable differences between the 2 species was roost origin. N. leisleri used natural cavities (90%) more often than woodpecker cavities (10%), whereas N. noctula showed the opposite tendency (woodpecker-made cavities accounted for just over half of roosts chosen by this species). The safety distance also was significantly larger in N. leisleri than in N. noctula. A logistic regression model for N. noctula incorporating 4 cavity variables (safety distance from martens, height above ground, cavity origin, and mean distance to nearest vegetation) classified roost and available cavities correctly 85% and 94% of the time, respectively. For N. leisleri, the use of 2 variables only (i.e., height above ground and marten distance) resulted in correct assignment of 85% of roosts and 88% of available cavities. These differences suggest that the 2 species use different antipredator strategies that may have important consequences for their different survival rates in younger forests. In general, roosts in Bia1owie_ za Primeval Forest are selected under pressures of predation and climate, and there bats tend to use safe and warm shelters.

Evaluation of a women's safe shelter experience to teach internal medicine residents about intimate partner violence. A randomized controlled trial.

Although intimate partner violence (IPV) remains a major public health problem, physicians often fail to screen female patients. Reported IPV training approaches suffer from weak study designs and limited outcome assessments. We hypothesized that an educational experience for residents at a women's safe shelter would have significantly greater impact on IPV competencies, screening, and care for victims than a workshop seminar alone. In a pre-post randomized controlled trial, we compared residents exposed to the workshop seminar alone (controls) to residents exposed to these methods plus an experience at a women's safe shelter (cases). Competencies were assessed by written questionnaire and included knowledge, skills, attitudes, resource awareness, and screening behaviors. Of the 36 residents in the trial, 22 (61%) completed both pre- and postquestionnaires. Compared to controls, cases showed significantly greater pre-post improvement in the knowledge composite subscale. There were no significant differences between cases and controls in the subscales of skills, attitudes, or resource awareness. Cases increased their self-reported screening frequency but this did not differ significantly from the controls. Enhancing traditional IPV curriculum with a women's safe shelter educational experience may result in small improvements in residents' knowledge about IPV.

La photocopie et le droit d'auteur au Canada

This paper analyses the legal implications of photocopying with regard to the Copyright Act of Canada. Under the law, photocopying is normally illegal, unless it amounts to « fair dealing ». However, this latter exception, at best ambiguous, does not provide a safe shelter under which some of the most common practices could be condoned. In fact, what falls in the scope of the « fair dealing » provision remains a most debatable matter. From these considerations stems the urgency of a change in the law. Parliament should insert a provision delineating in a practical way the sphere of lawful photocopying. On the other hand, copyright owners should be compensated for the use made of their works and collective mechanisms should be created for the recovery of such compensation.

Participatory child poverty assessment in rural Vietnam

There are increasing calls for more child specific measures of poverty in developing countries and the need for such measures to be multi-dimensional (that is not just based on income) has been recognised. Participatory Poverty Assessments (PPAs) are now common in international development research. Most PPAs have been undertaken with adults and there are still relatively few PPAs with children. The objective of the current study was to understand adults' and children's perceptions of the causes and consequences of child poverty in rural Vietnam using a variety of participatory methods. Poor children are perceived by poor children as those who lack basic needs such as food, clothes, and safe shelter. Poor children feel they do not receive enough attention from their parents, have to work and have no safe place to play.

On Corporate Risk Management and Insurance

Insurance contracts provide the corporation with an instrument to manage risk and create value. Insurance is designed to manage pure risk; a pure risk only yields a loss unlike speculative risks that may yield a gain or loss. Received theory does not provide the necessary distinction between pure and speculative risks that would allow the role of insurance to be investigated. Pure and speculative risks are modeled here as independent random variables. The role that insurance plays in determining an optimal capital structure and otherwise managing risk is investigated. This analysis is a generalization of a classic financial market model and it shows that earlier results such as the use of insurance to control the risk-shifting problem continue to hold. This role, however, can be duplicated by a variety of other instruments including convertible bonds and futures. In an attempt to provide a distinction the analysis is extended. It provides a tax result in which the corporation creates value by substituting a safe tax shelter for a risky tax shelter; this is accomplished by issuing debt to purchase insurance so that the random deduction due to the pure loss is replaced by a known deduction due to the debt. Hence, the analysis reveals a role that insurance can play in developing an optimal capital structure. The analysis also provides the basis for comparing the use of financial futures with that of insurance in managing risk. The analysis shows the conditions under which the corporation may create value for its shareholders by using both insurance and futures contracts to hedge the pure and speculative risks.

High‐sodium diets in Japanese evacuation centers increase blood pressures of evacuees

Aims: High blood pressure after a natural disaster is tentatively considered to be due to elevation of sympathetic nerve activity. A volcano in Japan erupted on March 31, 2000, and people living in the vicinity of the volcano were evacuated to safe shelters. We found that many evacuees developed high blood pressure while staying at evacuation centers. The aim of this study was to investigate why their blood pressures stayed elevated. Methods and Subjects: Sixty‐five evacuees, who were staying evacuation centers for 4 months, were examined for blood pressure, urinary sodium excretion, urinary potassium excretion, and plasma and urinary catecholamines. Results: Associations were found between systolic blood pressure and sodium excretion (r = 0.311, p < 0.05) and between systolic blood pressure and the ratio of urinary sodium to urinary potassium (r = 0.320, p < 0.05). However, no association was found between blood pressure and plasma and urinary catecholamines (NE, DHPG and MHPG). Conclusion: High sodium consumption was thought to be an important factor in the elevation of blood pressure of the evacuees after acute phase reactions.

After the Storm: Building a Safe Shelter for the School Children of Mulhall, Oklahoma

Abstract When the elementary school in Mulhall, Oklahoma, was destroyed during the tornado outbreak of 3 May 1999, a great loss of young life was prevented by chance alone. The tornado hit after school was out of session. The weather scientists and researchers who read this journal attempt to save lives by improving forecasting and public warning systems. The author has attempted to save lives for more than two decades by designing storm shelters to serve students who do not have the option of fleeing an approaching storm. The reasons why so few of Oklahoma's schools provide storm protection are defined as a lack of adequate construction and maintenance funding and a widespread low-risk perception. The estimated cost to provide all Oklahoma school children with protection from a direct hit by an F5 tornado is about $1.3 billion. A plain-language discussion of the aboveground shelter that was designed for the rebuilt school includes site planning principles, structural design options, the importance of inc...

Community resilience and volcano hazard: the eruption of Tungurahua and evacuation of the faldas in Ecuador.

Official response to explosive volcano hazards usually involves evacuation of local inhabitants to safe shelters. Enforcement is often difficult and problems can be exacerbated when major eruptions do not ensue. Families are deprived of livelihoods and pressure to return to hazardous areas builds. Concomitantly, prevailing socio-economic and political conditions limit activities and can influence vulnerability. This paper addresses these issues, examining an ongoing volcano hazard (Tungurahua) in Ecuador where contextual realities significantly constrain responses. Fieldwork involved interviewing government officials, selecting focus groups and conducting surveys of evacuees in four locations: a temporary shelter, a permanent resettlement, with returnees and with a control group. Differences in perceptions of risk and health conditions, and in the potential for economic recovery were found among groups with different evacuation experiences. The long-term goal is to develop a model of community resilience in long-term stress environments.

Experience of Women Living with Lymphedema

Results. 5 themes were identified; ‘overwhelming and despair over the ailment condition’, ‘distrust and abandonment of conventional medicine’ ‘shaming of losing maternity and femineity’, ‘returning to the permanent safe shelter’, and ‘struggling for reconstruction of one’s self’. The ‘chaotic’ state of knowledge and health care system for lymphedmea patient affected the experiences of informants. Conclusions. This result will be a basic understanding of psychosocial impact of lymphedema for the women and

Establishing a Nursing Presence within a Community-Based Domestic Violence Program

Community-based domestic violence centers provide an array of services, tailored to meet the multiple needs of victims and their families: counseling, safe shelter, legal aid, and social services. One community-based center observed another unmet need among its clients: the essential need for a client and his or her family to achieve and maintain optimal levels of health and well-being. Collaborating with other community providers, a committee was created and charged with developing a health program that would address the need for case management, health education, and advocacy. This article chronicles the work of this organization in developing provider partnerships and support for integration of a nursing presence in this nontraditional practice setting. A case scenario is provided to demonstrate the complexity of a domestic violence victim’s needs and to illustrate how an advance practice registered nurse or extensively experienced and skilled baccalaureate-prepared registered nurse is well suited for this role.

Searching for help and information: Abused women speak out

One hundred and five women who were abused by their intimate partners described their experiences in searching for help and the outcome of their interactions with different services that comprise the formal help network in a city with an international reputation for its coordinated response to woman abuse. In the aftermath of violent incidents, the women most frequently sought protection, safe shelter, removal of their abusive partners, advice about managing their situations, a criminal charge against their partners, and medical treatment for their injuries. The women tended to use help-seeking pathways that led them first to the police or a hospital emergency department. In turn, these services often directed them toward community agencies with a specific mandate to assist abused women. The abuse-specific agencies then referred the women to a wide range of services in the community. Regardless of the type of assistance they were seeking, the women repeatedly mentioned the importance of the personal demeanor of service providers when they assessed the outcomes of their encounters with the formal help system. The findings are discussed with respect to designing community coordination mechanisms that overcome common barriers to seeking help and information.

Lightning injuries in sports: situations to avoid.

There is no absolute protection against lightning because of its random and capricious nature. However, the risk of being struck by lightning can be substantially reduced. There are general safety rules that apply to all athletic and recreational events. The athlete should have a proactive plan that can be instituted when storms approach. He/she should go to a safe shelter before the storm arrives and stay there until the danger is gone. Because the location, climate, terrain and playing site vary with different sporting activities, safety plans may have distinct elements for different recreational activities. Mountain climbers should know the weather patterns of their locale. The highest frequency of lightning strikes in the Rocky Mountains occurs between 11 am and 9 pm during the months of April to September. There is less chance of a hiker encountering lightning during the early morning hours. Many tourists are unaware of this pattern, which may possibly explain the finding that most lightning victims are visitors from other states. The bicyclist is as vulnerable as anyone in the open. In the event of lightning he/she should seek safe shelter and get off the bike. Rubber tires do not provide protection from lightning. Golfers continue to make the same mistakes year after year. Golfers should know to seek safe shelter (clubhouse or closed metal vehicle) before the storm arrives and not return prematurely to the golf course. They should avoid isolated trees, open fields, unsafe sheds and metal poles. They should separate from each other rather than gather together. Swimmers should get out of the pool and find a safe shelter. Safe areas do not include poolsides, under awnings or under trees. A nearby closed automobile may be the safest place until the danger is gone. Applying precautions when engaging in these sporting or recreational activities will help to minimise the risk of casualties or fatalities caused by lightning.