Introduction
Identification of risks is a fundamental starting point for disaster management. Upon recognition of any potential risk, strategies can be developed to curb or prevent them from occurring. This paper discusses disaster management by focusing on four fundamental theoretical concepts, namely preparedness, recuperation, reprieve, and prevention of natural disasters as developed by Coppola in his text ‘Introduction to International Disaster Management’.
Disasters and Emergencies throughout History
Since time immemorial, the world has always experienced disasters. Bumgarner defines four types of historical disasters, namely natural disasters, environmental catastrophes, pandemic emergencies, and complex adversities (25). Examples of natural disasters include volcano eruptions, floods, hurricanes, and earthquakes among others. Several disasters shape the Canadian historical experience. They include Halifax explosion (1917), Hurricane Hazel (1954), Hope Slide (1965), Great Ice Storm (1998), SARS (2003), BC Forest Fires (2003), and H1N1 (2009) among others.
The above disastrous tragedies gave rise to challenges that are formidable to the Canadian government emergency and tragedy management apparatus. In their nature, disasters offset the ability of nations through their governments to respond within their jurisdictions (McEntire 74)
Therefore, the affected governments have to source aid from other nations. In the absence of a misfortune, a government cannot place diplomatic call for help if an emergency occurs in the future (McEntire 107). This claim implies that the internal emergency and disaster management apparatus only has resources that are adequate for the development of emergency and disaster preparedness strategies, but not for relief, rescue, and recovery.
The History of Disasters and Emergency Management
Studying the history of disaster is important in helping develop effective strategies for disaster mitigation. Amid learning from the exposure to disasters, uncertainty and unexpectedness make disaster management techniques an incredibly difficult subject because such adversities strike mostly when they are least expected (Coppola 7).
Canada has leant to develop disaster risk mitigation strategies depending on the nature and type of the anticipated risk. In this extent, the history of disasters and emergency management provides Canada with ways of preparing for tomorrow. Such history is not only drawn from Canadian disastrous experiences, but also from historical disasters in the global context.
From the historical context, nations have experienced different types of risks that lead to different disasters such as environmental catastrophes. Environmental disasters encompass industrial and technological accidents, which are usually experienced due to hazardous materials that are used in the production process (Bumgarner 62). Such disasters take place where the hazardous materials are used and/or transported.
Forest infernos are also included in this class of disasters. Pandemic emergencies entail sudden eruption of contagious diseases such as H1N1, which have devastating impacts on human health. Generally, disasters have historically had the aftermath of disruption of businesses and public products and service delivery mechanisms. Such emergencies translate into social and economic costs (Coppola 76). Complex emergencies include authority breakdowns, attacks of certain national strategic installations, and looting. These happenings lead to war and/or the surfacing of conflicts (Bumgarner 64).
Disasters whose emergency management efforts focus on have been changing as the history of experienced adversity changes. In this line of argument, McEntire (2003) posit, “practitioners and academicians initially gave priority to the civil hazard of a nuclear exchange between the United States and the USSR during the Cold War” (39). Therefore, all apparatus of emergency disaster management paid much of their attention to emergency and disastrous conditions that arose from nuclear missile exchanges.
When these challenges ceased to ail different nations on successful resolution of conflicts, new forms of disasters came up. Hence, the focus of emergency and disaster management also changed to focus on technological hazards. This progress arose from the experience of Chernobyl, three miles island, and Bhopal disasters among others.
Following some historical experiences with natural disasters such as Loma Prieta earthquakes, Northridge earthquake, Hurricane Andrew, and Midwest flooding, the emergency and disaster management apparatus in different nations was reoriented to ensure that any repercussion on human life would be mitigated in case of occurrence of such disasters. A significant threat that may lead to catastrophes in the modern times is terrorism.
Modern Disaster Management
Historical experience with disasters created awareness of their danger. This situation called for effective strategies of managing them. Unfortunately, much of the ancient literature in the field of emergency and disaster management focused more on disaster prediction and their consequences. It did not dwell on emergencies.
This gap may be attributed to the idea that focusing scholarly work more on emergency management may create a notion that people have the ability to deal proactively with all adverse and unprecedented occurrences. For this reason, the study on emergency risk management in the earlier days appeared to be both an oxymoron and misnomer (McEntire 19).
In the modern approaches to disaster management, a scholarly difficulty is evident while describing succinctly the complex social and physical aspects that may lead to disasters. Therefore, efforts of designing a modern disaster risk preparedness apparatus to mitigate the risk become problematic (Coppola 209).
However, despite the existence of gaps with respect to harmonious definition of disasters, many scholars in the field of adversity management concur that irrespective of the scale or the nature of risks that lead to calamities, such tragedies possess the capacity to deter the social and economic welfare of citizens (Bumgarner 45).
Modern emergency management has three main crucial pillars. The first pillar encompasses developing knowledge of the history of emergencies. The second pillar calls for an understanding of the characteristics of people as expressed in social sciences. The last pillar rests on specialization in technical knowhow to enhance quick and ardent response to disasters and emergencies.
Disaster Management Cycle
Disaster management efforts can be conceptualized in form of disaster management cycles. Coppola prescribes four important approaches to modern disaster management to be incorporated in the aforementioned three pillars, namely disaster preparedness, disaster recovery, disaster relief, and disaster prevention (175).
These aspects comprise the disaster management cycle elements. Disaster preparedness entails all activities designed to minimize damages and loss of life when a disaster strikes (Bumgarner 105). Through the deployment of disaster preparedness and mitigation strategies, Canada curtails the effects of disasters.
Some of the relief activities conducted in the event of a disaster include repairing the vital utility lines that are destroyed by a disaster, food provision to the affected, and relocation of people in the effort to escape the ramifications of disasters (Bumgarner 117).
Emergency needs arise upon the occurrence of a catastrophe. Hence, disaster recovery becomes necessary (Coppola 299). Although the initial crisis comes to a halt at this stage, communities that are affected by a disaster are normally prone and vulnerable to its implications.
Disaster recovery efforts encompass activities such as rehabilitation and reconstruction of the destroyed infrastructure (Coppola 307). These efforts need to involve the “development activities such as building human resources for health and developing policies and practices to avoid similar situations in the future” (Smith 12).
The best approach to management of disaster involves disaster prevention. However, not all disasters are preventable from occurring in the future as it is in the case of hurricanes. However, reduction of life and loss of property can be enhanced through effective evacuation plans, proper design, and environmental planning (Smith 13).
Response and Recovery-based Efforts
Response and recovery efforts on occurrence of disaster are best discussed using a case example such as Hurricane Katrina. When Hurricane Katrina occurred, not all people who were working for NOFD (New Orleans Fire Department) were evacuated from the Gulf coast. The aim was to ensure their engagement in rescue missions after the hurricane struck. This case was a major risk to their lives. Using personal boats, the personnel were able to rescue more than 17,000 people when hurricane finally struck.
In its strategic plan to deal with Hurricane Katrina in Orleans, NOFD identified practical intentions of the organization during and after the occurrence of the hurricane. Plan implementation outcomes set out NOFD goals. Before the occurrence of the hurricane in 2005, the goal of NOFD was to ensure evacuation of people from disastrous areas. Arguably, therefore, NOFD had already established risk preparedness strategies before the occurrence of Hurricane Katrina.
When the hurricane occurred, the goal was to rescue the affected people and/or putting off fire in buildings to protect property and lives. The organization sought to achieve these goals through its human resource and interventions of various response equipments (Orleans Fire Department 15). The evacuation was successful since its implementation took place before the hurricane struck.
However, when the hurricane occurred, it affected enormously the recovery and rescue plans. Indeed, it destroyed NOFD facilities and equipment. This outcome hindered the realization of the goal of rapid response. Consequently, loss of life was witnessed. For instance, the department of health in Louisiana reported 1,464 deaths (Orleans Fire Department 36).
One of the imperative ways of determining the effectiveness any response to natural disasters is the evaluation of rescue, relief, and recovery strategies that are adopted by a nation or an organization following the occurrence of a catastrophe. This plan suggests that attempting to measure the effectiveness of responding to any adversity in the pre-disaster period is problematic (McEntire 83).
As evidenced by the case of NOFD experiences in Hurricane Katrina, equipments and other facilities may be lost to a natural catastrophe. However, disaster risk management can be enhanced through appropriate and precision in forecasting the occurrence of the risks as one of preparedness strategies. In the case of NOFD, it was well aware that Orleans would experience a hurricane. However, it never knew the extent of the anticipated damage, notwithstanding the destruction of its response equipments.
Disasters, Poverty, and Development
Disasters have a connection with poverty levels within a nation. Smith asserts that they influence the economic systems within nations negatively through destruction of crucial infrastructures that support people’s economic activities (16). In this extent, frequent occurrence of national catastrophes hinders economic development and prosperity.
Strobl informs that within the US coastal regions such as the Caribbean region and Central America, hurricane lowered county development by about 0.8% and 0.2 % before and after recovery respectively (12). Consistent with this assertion, Hurricane Katrina rendered Gulf coast roads impassable whilst destroying communication networks.
The New Orleans Fire Department informs that Orleans was exposed to the risk of contamination with hazardous material and/or increased risks of fire (6). Incidents of overturned tank cars were also evident. The entire city of Orleans also went without power supply in addition to various episodes of gas leakage in areas where gas supply lines had not drained.
This situation caused several rages of fire across the city of Orleans, thus prompting the need for fire management and response services of NOFD to come for the safety of the city. The aftermaths of Hurricane Katrina implied that no economic activity was possible.
Thus, the productivity of Orleans was negatively affected, especially upon noting that people lost their tools of production to the hurricane. NOFD lost vital equipments such as fire stations, communication equipments, and vehicles among other facilities that are required for ardent response. This evidences that disasters may erode the economic ability of nations.
Disaster Trends
Disasters are significant contributors of national expenditure. For example, Canada experiences rising costs that are associated with natural catastrophes. Public Canada released a sustainability report for 2013-2014 claiming that the government has challenges in responding to large-scale disasters due to insufficient infrastructure (Stone par. 3).
The report also identified crucial sources of natural risks. The leading risk in the 21st century is the natural disaster based on its related costs. For instance, Alberta floods evidenced that the natural disaster relief and response mechanism can cost as high as $5billion (Stone par.6). With this trend of increase in the cost of managing natural disasters in Canada, probabilities exist that such debacles will increase federal liabilities.
However, amid this rising costs, Canada now registers fewer deaths compared to the period 1950-1980. The impact of these disasters differs in developing and developed countries. For developing countries, the menace is a big blow because such countries do not have up-to-date disaster mitigation strategies.
Hence, the wound takes a significant duration before it is sealed as opposed to developed countries, which have heightened intelligence to track any jeopardy before it strikes. These countries are well prepared to handle any calamity. This observation suggests advancement in the prevention of death-associated natural disasters thanks to enhanced disaster preparedness and responsive mechanisms.
Conclusion
Natural Disasters such as hurricanes destroy power lines, gas supply systems, buildings, and other infrastructural developments. Such destruction creates economic losses, which in turn create both social and economic problems.
Some nations even suffer from the capacity to respond to natural disasters since they may destroy even the installed response facilities such as the case of NOFD following occurrence of Hurricane Katrina. Thus, preparation for response, recovery, and relief as fundamental concepts of natural adversity management calls for a collaborative effort between various stakeholders within and outside a given state or nation.
Definitions
- Risk Management: Is a process that is aimed at identifying and conducting assessment together with prioritizing potential harmful conditions.
- Disaster: Refers to spontaneous or human-caused occurrences whose effects include tragic loss of lives and dismantled infrastructure. Its overall outcome is a dwindled economic development (Bumgarner 728).
- Disaster Relief: This refers to the multi-agency responses that are coordinated to enhance the mitigation of the effects of disasters and their results in the long-term basis.
- Vulnerability: Refers to the extent of exposure of any country, region, or an organization to calamities.
- Risk: refers to any threat that may impair the normal functioning or status of a country, region, or a business.
Works Cited
Bumgarner, James. Emergency Management: a Reference Handbook. Santa Barbra, CA: ABC-CLIO, Inc., 2008. Print.
Coppola, Damon. Introduction to International Disaster Management. New York, NY: Elsevier, 2007. Print.
McEntire, Donahue. Epistemological Problems in Emergency Management: Theoretical Dilemmas and Implications Epistemological Problems in Emergency Management: Theoretical Dilemmas and Implications. Denton, Texas: University of North Texas, 2003. Print.
New Orleans Fire Department. Recovery Reconstruction Planning Process after Hurricane Katrina. Orleans: New Orleans Fire Department, 2006. Print.
Smith, Franklin. “Budgeting for disasters—part I. Overview of the problem.” The Public Manager 35.1(2006): 11-19. Print.
Stone, Laura. Natural Disaster’s Rising Costs are Canada’s Biggest Public Safety Risks, 2014. Web.
Strobl, Erastus. The economic growth impact of hurricanes: Evidence from the US Coastal regions: IZA Discussion Paper 3619. Bonn: IZA, 2008. Print.