Disaster Management and Recovery

Week 6: Disaster Management and Recovery

• This session aims to help students understand the recovery phase of disaster management, describe international and local organizations roles, and describe the relationship between development and disasters.

Disaster Management Continuum

• The disaster management continuum includes pre-incident, incident, and post-incident phases.
• Pre-incident involves prevention, mitigation, and preparedness.
• The incident phase is the immediate response to a disaster.
• Post-incident includes recovery, reconstruction, and rehabilitation.

Four Phases of PPRR in Disaster Management

• PPRR is a cyclical approach to disaster management including Prevention/Mitigation, Preparedness, Response, and Recovery, in relation to a disaster "Event".
• Prevention and mitigation focus on reducing the probability of a hazard.
• Preparedness involves equipping people to help those impacted and increasing their chance of survival.
• Response includes taking action to reduce the impact of disasters that have occurred/are currently occurring to prevent financial loss and/or suffering.
• Recovery aims to return victims' lives back to a 'normal' state.

Disaster Recovery

• Disaster recovery includes the restoration and improvement of facilities, livelihoods, and living conditions in disaster-affected communities while reducing disaster risk factors.
• The goals for recovery are individual, family recovery, and rebuild the impacted community.
• Rehabilitation is the restoration of basic services and facilities within a community, including replacing temporary arrangements set up during the emergency response.
• Reconstruction involves long-term rebuilding and sustainable restoration of critical infrastructures, beginning soon after the emergency phase ends.
• Heightened public awareness after a disaster provides an opportunity to develop and implement disaster risk reduction measures.
• The "build back better" principle uses recovery, rehabilitation, and reconstruction to increase the resilience of communities by integrating disaster risk reduction measures into the restoration of infrastructure and societal systems.

Disaster Recovery Considerations

• The affected population are able to restore their lives and infrastucture as the emergency is brought under control.
• There isn't a distinct point at which immediate relief changes into recovery and then into long-term sustainable development.
• The recovery period has opportunities to enhance prevention, increase preparedness, and reduce vulnerability.
• Recovery can be short or long-term.
• It occurs at individual, family, community/society, national, and international levels.
• Recovery considers health (physical, psychological), social, financial, and environmental aspects.

Disaster Recovery Effects

• In developed countries, the effects of a disaster may be repaired quickly: but psychological damage among survivors can persist.
• Acute Stress Disorder (ASD) can last from a minimum of 2 days to a maximum of 4 weeks, involving derealization/disorientation.
• Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder(PTSD): Stress response persists after 4 weeks
• In developing countries, reconstruction may take years due to factors such as:
  • Lack of consensus on reconstruction policy
  • Loss of property ownership records
  • Delayed official permission
  • Decisions by families to rebuild elsewhere

Recovery Activities

• Recovery activities continue until all systems surpass normal.
• Short and long-term including:
  • Returning vital life-support systems to minimum operating standards
  • Providing temporary housing
  • Sharing public information
  • Offering health and safety education
  • Counseling programs
  • Economic impact studies
• The need to provide food and shelter for those displaced may be necessary.
• Resources and services may include data collection related to rebuilding, and documentation of lessons learned.
• Short term recovery is immediate and overlaps with the response phase.
• Authorities will work to restore interrupted utilities, clear roads, and repair or demolish damaged buildings.
• Provide food and shelter for people displaced by the disaster.
• Some of these activities may last for weeks.
• Long-term recovery may involve the same activities but can continue for months or years, depending on the damage.
• The community strives to return to a state better than before the emergency.
• The implementation of new mitigation measures will aid the community to be better prepared to deal with future threats.
• Helping the community take new mitigation steps will improve recovery outcomes.

Recovery Activities

• Recovery activities include:
• Assessment of damages and needs
• Ongoing dialogue with the public
• Providing temporary, transitional, or permanent housing
• Demolition and removal of unsafe structures
• Inspection and repair of damaged structures
• Clearance, removal, and disposal of debris
• Rehabilitation of infrastructure
• New construction
• Cultural and psychosocial rehabilitation programs
• Expanding access to credit
• Creating employment opportunities and economic support
• Resumption of social services
• Rehabilitation of the injured
• Reassessment of hazard risk

Disaster Consequences

• Disasters disrupt communities and lower the quality of life by;
  • Reducing the ability to move or travel
  • Interrupting education
  • Causing loss of cultural heritage, religious facilities, and communal resources
  • Economic losses and communications difficulties
  • Causing homelessness, hunger, and starvation
  • Causing unemployment
  • Loss of community tax base
  • Loss , damage, and pollution of the environment

Recovery Plan

• The recovery process requires a general plan appended to emergency operation plans.
• The plan should detail the steps for managing successful recovery.
• For many disasters, help can be provided locally.
• Major disasters may require assistance from the government and outside aid from other sources.

Disasters as Opportunities for Development

• Disasters serve as a vehicle for major development programs.
• The political impact of damage and disruption can be a catalyst for change.
• Disasters highlight areas of vulnerability and can influence development initiatives.
• For instance, they can show where serious loss of life occurred or economic damage surpasses the initial impact of the event, which usually highlights the level of underdevelopment.
• The political environment may favor economic and social change, in areas such as land reform, new job training, housing improvements, and economic base restructuring.
• Longer-term benefits includes the restructuring of the economy; island communities may expand their economic base beyond a single crop with aid.
• The investment policy given to emergency loans typically dictates the nature of opportunities that will follow disaster.

Disaster Management: Addressing Gaps

• An identified concern notes a problem or area of potential risk needing resolution during a specific situation or event.
• A "lesson learned" is the knowledge from an experience that can be applied to future situations.
• Analyzing past disasters identifies what went wrong and right, in order to learn to improve future responses.
• This involves identifying areas for improvement, developing strategies to address them, and preparing for future disasters.

Specific Gaps and Challenges Identified

• Specific gaps and challenges include:
  • Governance(organizational, legal, and policy framework)
  • Risk identification, assessment, monitoring, and early warning
  • Knowledge management and education
  • Reducing underlying risk factors
  • Preparedness in relation to effective response and recovery

Governance

• Disaster Risk Reduction (DRR) requires the prioritization of both national and local institutional levels.
• Needed are national institutional and legislative frameworks, and other resources.
• Community participation is vital.

Risk Identification, Assessment, Monitoring, and Early Warning

• National and local risk assessments should maintain systems and records.
• Early warning systems should also include systems with demographic reviews.
• Consider capacity(sustainability of infrastructure, technological, and data exchange).
• Consider regional and emerging risks that may be regional and cross-boundary hazards.

Knowledge Management and Education

• Knowledge management and education includes:
  • Information management and exchange
  • Education and training
  • Research
  • Public awareness

Reducing Underlying Risk Factors

• Reduce underlying risk factors via:
  • Environmental and natural resource management
  • Social and economic development practices
  • Land-use planning and other technical measures

Preparedness for Effective Response and Recovery

• To better prepare in relation to effective response and recovery:
  • Policy
  • Promote and support exchange of Information
  • Upgrade operation mechanisms, plans and communication systems
  • Prepare or review and periodically update disaster preparedness and contingency plans
  • Establishment of emergency funds
  • Engage active participation and ownership of relevant stakeholders

HKSAR Emergency Response System: Recovery Phase

• To return the community to a condition considered acceptable by that community and to satisfy the physical, psychological, and social needs of the community.
• Includes Accommodation, food, clothing and relief funds - Inquiries from the public and registration and information services for disaster victims.

Disaster Recovery (Examples)

• Involves different levels - individual, family, community/society, national, international, etc.
• Different perspectives - health (physical, psychological), social, financial, environmental, etc.
• Can also occur for different durations of time - short or long-term

International & Local Organizations in Assisting Disaster Management (Examples)

• WHO (World Health Organization)
• United Nations
• IFRC (The International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies)
• Hong Kong Red Cross
• World Vision

IFRC: Disaster Recovery

• Disaster Recovery refers to programs going beyond immediate relief.
• These programs assist those who have suffered the full impact of a disaster.
• They help rebuild homes, lives, and services while strengthening capacity to cope with future disasters.
• Aid agencies need to help communities and survivors grow and strengthen their resilience to future hazards.
• Development programs need to consider existing risks, susceptibility to hazards and incorporate elements in order to reduce them.

Hong Kong Red Cross: Local Disaster Relief and Preparedness

• The Hong Kong Red Cross' Disaster Relief Service was established in 1951.
• The organisation helps locals who are affected by natural disasters/other emergency incidents by:
  • Giving clothing and daily necessities to meet individual emergency needs.
  • Providing relief materials for people in need via by government departments/social service organizations.
• Prepositioned stocks of new clothing, blankets, and daily necessities support immediate mobilization including;
  • Relief materials delivered by staff and volunteers.
  • Psychological support service will be offered to assist people in need.
• Reconstructs homes, health facilities, and water supply facilities, and restore livelihoods in order to assist with returning them to normal living.
• Long lasting effects are diversified.

World Vision

• World Vision's Immediate Response includes:
  • Offering emergency supplies
  • Providing psychosocial support for survivors
• Long-term plans to carry out projects to restore livelihoods and prepare future disaster response measures.
• Mechanism, and help the community learn about Disaster Risk Reduction.
• A comprehensive plan is needed for disaster and development.
• Disaster risk reduction reinforces the idea that vulnerability can be reduced.

Disaster and Development

• Relationship between Development includes:
  • Disasters as an ongoing development challenge
  • Development efforts are frequently disrupted .
  • There is always a need for comprehensive plan for disaster and development
  • Disaster risk reduction reinforces the idea that vulnerability can be reduced.

Relationship between Development and Disaster

• Development can increase/decrease vulnerability.
• Disaster can set back development or create new development opportunities.

Why Disaster Risk Reduction is Important for Sustainable Development

• 85% of people exposed to earthquakes, cyclones, floods, and droughts live in developing countries.
• Disasters threaten the food security of the poorest people worldwide.
• DRR ensures basic human rights and freedom from hunger. Disaster Risk Reduction protects development investments and helps societies to accumulate wealth in spite of hazards.

Disaster Risk Reduction Framework

• Features the conceptual framework of elements considered within the possibilities to minimize vulnerabilities and disaster risks to avoid (prevention) or to minimise the impact of hazards.
• The Hyogo Framework for Action (HFA) covers 2005-2015, with the goal to build the Resilience of Nations and Communities to Disasters.
• The Senda Framework for Disaster Risk Reduction (SFDRR) covers 2015-2030.