DRRR Unit Lesson 1 Module Kit PDF

Concept Notes Hazard is a dangerous phenomenon, substance, human activity, or condition that may cause loss of life, injury or other health impacts, property damage, loss of livelihood and services, social and economic disruption, or environmental dam...

Concept Notes Hazard is a dangerous phenomenon, substance, human activity, or condition that may cause loss of life, injury or other health impacts, property damage, loss of livelihood and services, social and economic disruption, or environmental damage. Hazards can be categorized into different types: 1. Natural hazards - arise from natural processes in the environment. e.g. earthquakes, tsunamis, landslides, volcanic eruptions, and floods 2. Man-made (or technological) hazards - These occur directly due to human activities. e.g. accidental spill of chemicals, transportation accidents, pollution, fires, and terrorism. Natural Hazard A. Biological Hazard 1. Pathogens - an organism causes disease to its host, with the severity of the disease symptoms referred to as virulence which may transmit from organism to organism. (e.g. virus and bacteria) 2. Fungi (molds) - mold is a type of fungi and some types of mold produce toxic substances known as mycotoxins, which can cause health problems when they are inhaled, absorbed through the skin, or ingested. 3. Locusts - swarms of locusts devastate crops and cause major agricultural damage, which can lead to famine and starvation. B. Geological Hazard. 1. Earthquake - a sudden movement of the Earth’s crust which can result in ground shaking and rupture, soil liquefaction, landslides, avalanches, fires, and tsunamis 2. Volcanic Eruption - an expulsion of gases, ash, rock fragments, and/or molten lava from within the Earth through a vent onto the Earth's surface or into the atmosphere. A large amount of dust and ash can affect people and lava can travel very far and burn, bury, or damage anything in its path, including people, houses, and trees. C. Hydrometeorological Hazard 1. Tropical Cyclones - also known as “typhoons” which often include multiple hazards, such as extreme winds, heavy rainfall, storm surge and flooding, lightning and tornadoes. When these hazards interact, they can significantly increase the danger and threat that a tropical cyclone can pose. 2. Flooding - an overflowing of the normal confines of a stream or bodies of water, or when water gathers over areas that are typically dry. Floods can cause injuries and deaths, floods can disrupt water purification and sewage disposal systems and cause toxic water waste to overflow. 3. Drought - prolonged dry period in the natural climate cycle. This slow-onset disaster is characterized by a lack of precipitation, resulting in water shortage which may affect health, agriculture, economies, energy, and the environment. Man-Made (Technological Hazard) 1. Transportation Accident - involves injuries occurring during the operation of personal and commercial motor vehicles, bicycles, trams, and motorbikes. They can affect drivers, pedestrians, bystanders, and emergency responders. 2. War/Terrorism - the unlawful use of violence creates fear among a population, especially against civilians to achieve a specific political objective. 4. Human Error/Negligence - the improper disposal, leak, spillage, or discharge of hazardous materials or substances (such as explosives, toxic chemicals, and radioactive materials) poses a significant threat to human health and safety, property, and the surrounding environment. Exposure It is the presence of elements at risk or chance of being harmed from a natural or man- made hazard event. This includes the location, attributes, and value of assets that are important to communities (people, buildings, factories, farmland, etc.) and that could be affected by a hazard. Elements – refers to people, animals, property, systems, and other elements present in hazard zones that are thereby subject to potential loss. This includes: buildings, facilities, population, livestock, economic activities, public services, environment. Figure 1.1 Three Essential Component of Exposure Definition  Classification of Elements at Risk Buildings: Urban land use, construction types, building height, building age, total floor space, replacement costs. Monuments and cultural heritage Physical Elements Essential Facilities Emergency shelters, Schools, Hospitals, Fire Brigades, Police, Transportation Roads, railway, metro, public transportation systems, harbor facilities, airport Facilities facilities. Life lines Water supply, electricity supply, gas supply, telecommunications, mobile telephone network, sewage system. Population Density of population, distribution in space, distribution in time, age distribution, gender distribution, handicapped, income distribution Socioeconomic Organization of population, governance, community organization, Aspects government support, socio-economic levels. Cultural heritage and traditions Economic Spatial distribution of economic activities, input-output table, dependency, Activities redundancy, unemployment, economic production in various sectors. Environmental Ecosystems, protected areas, natural parks, environmentally sensitive areas, Elements forests, wetlands, aquifers, flora, fauna, biodiversity. Vulnerability Is the characteristics/status of a community, system, or asset/property that make it susceptible to the damaging effects of a hazard. Vulnerability may arise from various physical, social, economic, and environmental factors such as poor design and construction of buildings, inadequate protection of assets, lack of public information and awareness, lack of resources, low economic status, and poor land management. Vulnerability is present in the community or society even before a disaster happens.  Figure 1.2 Types of Vulnerability Vulnerability is situation and hazard-specific. If earthquakes are frequent in a particular region, it does not mean that all the provinces in that region are vulnerable. And if a community is vulnerable to earthquakes does not necessarily mean that it is also vulnerable to typhoons or other types of hazards. Another example, the buildings and structures in Japan are exposed to earthquakes, but they are not vulnerable since their architectural and engineering designs are earthquake-proof or resistant. Concept of Disaster The Philippines DRR Law in 2010 adopted the definition of UNISDR (2009), disaster is a serious disruption of the functioning of a community or a society involving widespread human, material, economic, or environmental losses and impacts that exceed the ability of the affected community or society to cope using its resources. There are many hazards frequently damaging the country, causing damage to lives and property. However, not all hazard incidents necessarily result in disasters. Hazards only become disasters when they affect people who cannot cope with the impact.  Figure 1.3 A Simple Picture of Disaster Risk Therefore, if a phenomena such as meteorite strike in an unpopulated, remote island in the Philippines that is a hazard but is not a disaster since no person is affected. This is in contrast to a nearby rock falling off a populated area, which is certainly a disaster. The affected community must be unable to cope with the hazard for it to be a disaster. Disaster Risk Disaster risk is the expected number of lives lost, persons injured, property damage, and disruption of economic activity due to natural phenomena, and consequently the product of specific risks and elements at risk. Disaster risk is widely recognized as the consequence of the interaction between a hazard and the characteristics that make people and places vulnerable and exposed. = X X  Figure 1.4 Disaster Risk Formula Therefore, Disaster Risk is considered as the combination of the severity and frequency of a hazard, the number of people and assets exposed to the hazard, and their vulnerability to damage (UNISDR, 2015). However, capacity reduces the severity of the human and material damage caused by the disaster. It consists of efforts directed toward preventing hazardous conditions from becoming disasters or minimizing their effects in the event of a disaster. Figure 1.5 Components of Community Disaster Resilience Capacity Is the combination of all strengths and resources available within a community, society, or organization that can reduce the level of risk, or effects of a disaster. Capacity may include infrastructure and physical means, institutions, societal coping abilities, as well as human knowledge, skills, and collective attributes such as social relationships, leadership, and management. Capacity may also be described as capability. The greater the capacity of a community, the lesser the effects of the disaster. Republic Act No. 10121 Philippine Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Act of 2010 Section 14. Integration of Disaster Risk Reduction Education into the School Curricula and Sangguniang Kabataan (SK) Program and Mandatory Training for the Public Sector Employees. The DepEd and other relevant agencies shall integrate disaster risk reduction and management education in the school curricula of secondary and tertiary level education. Teaching DRRR subject at school is an example of capacity building; equipping students with the knowledge of understanding, mitigating, preparing, responding and recovering from a disaster. Other examples such as the annual fire and earthquake drill, disaster awareness, hazard mapping and etc. falls under the concept of capacity. National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Plan or NDRRMP – the document to be formulated and implemented by the Office of Civil Defense (OCD) that sets out goals and specific objectives for reducing disaster risks together with related actions to accomplish these objectives. Figure 1.6 National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Framework (NDRRMF) Four Priority Areas of NDRRMP Following the NDRRMF, through the NDRRMP, the country will have “Safer, adaptive and disaster resilient Filipino communities towards sustainable development.” 1. Disaster Prevention and Mitigation – prevent hazards and mitigate their potential impacts by reducing vulnerabilities, and exposure and enhancing capacities of communities (e.g. hazard mapping and risk assessment, laws and policies, DRRM planning, establishing safety standards, and engineering interventions) Prevention -measures seek to eliminate the impact of hazards and/or reduce susceptibility to them. Mitigation - accept that the event will occur and seek to reduce the inevitable impact. 2. Disaster Preparedness – establish and strengthen the capacities of communities to anticipate, cope, and recover from the negative impacts of emergency occurrences and disasters. (e.g. public awareness, contingency planning, research, teaching DRRM in schools, establishing early warning systems, evacuation plan, and disaster communication) 3. Disaster Response – The provision of emergency services and public assistance during or immediately after a disaster to save lives, reduce health impacts, ensure public safety, and meet the basic subsistence needs of the people affected. (e.g. evacuation, Relief aid, and financial assistance, search and rescue, retrieval operations, and medical services, disaster response operations, and rapid damage assessment) 4. Disaster Rehabilitation and Recovery - The restoration, and improvement where appropriate, of facilities, livelihoods, and living conditions of disaster-affected communities, including efforts to reduce disaster risk factors, following the principle of “build back better”. Assisting physical and psychological rehabilitation of persons who suffered from the effects of disaster Post-disaster recovery such as reconstruction and improvement of houses, buildings, and other facilities  Disaster Risk Factors Disaster risk is influenced by different factors which may affect the impact of a disaster. These factors are: Figure 1.7 The Different Disaster Risk Factors Perspectives on Disaster 1. Biological Perspective - This perspective examines how disasters impact living organisms, including humans, animals, and plants, in terms of their natural habitats and potential risk from infectious diseases 2. Physical Perspective - From this view, disaster is defined as the phenomenon that causes damage to physical elements such as building, infrastructure, people, and their properties. 3. Psychological Perspective - This view refers to people's emotional, cognitive, and interpersonal responses to disasters, which may include trauma, shock, fear, anxiety, nightmares, social withdrawal, or depression among victims. 4. Economic Perspective - This looks into the effects of disasters on economic activities in communities such as the flow of goods, products and services, and the cost of damage of disaster. 5. Sociocultural Perspective - This refers to the characteristics of people such as their religion, beliefs, values, customs, and attitudes which can influence how they prepare, respond and recover from disasters.