Sociology Project On Disaster Management
Sociology Project On Disaster Management
Sociology Project On Disaster Management
Damodaram
National Law
Sanjivayya
University
Sociology Project
On
Disaster Management
Mugdha Tomar
Sec B
201263
IInd Semester
2 | Page
Acknowledgement
I would like to thank our Sociology teacher Dr. A Laxmipati Raju for
giving me such a wonderful opportunity of making a project on
Disaster Management.The task of project making helped me in
enhancing my knowledge on the topic.
Thank You
3 | Page
Contents
What is a Disaster ?....................................................................
Types of Disasters..
45
6 -7
8 - 11
14 - 16
16 - 19
19
20
Conclusion.
20
Bibliography......
4 | Page
What is a disaster ?
A disaster is a natural or man-made (or technological) hazard resulting in an event of
substantial extent causing significant physical damage or destruction, loss of life, or drastic
change to the environment. A disaster can be ostensively defined as any tragic event
stemming
from
events
such
as earthquakes, floods,
or explosions. It is a phenomenon that can cause damage to life and property and destroy the
economic, social and cultural life of people.
Developing countries suffer the greatest costs when a disaster hits more than 95 percent of
all deaths caused by disasters occur in developing countries, and losses due to natural
disasters are 20 times greater (as a percentage of GDP) in developing countries than in
industrialized countries.1
Types of Disasters
Natural disasters
A natural disaster is a consequence when a natural hazard affects humans and/or the built
environment. Human vulnerability, and lack of appropriate emergency management, leads to
financial, environmental, or human impact. The resulting loss depends on the capacity of the
1 www.wikipedia.com
5 | Page
6 | Page
persons to avoid or recover from the impact of the disaster. Disaster management deals with
situations that occur prior to, during, and after the disaster.3
3 Aim and Scope of Disaster Management - Study Guide and Course Text Disaster Management Center,
University of Wisconsin and Madison,Page - 25
4 Aim and Scope of Disaster Management - Study Guide and Course Text Disaster Management Center,
University of Wisconsin and Madison,Page - 25
7 | Page
6 Aim and Scope of Disaster Management - Study Guide and Course Text Disaster Management Center,
University of Wisconsin and Madison,Page - 28
8 | Page
The primary role of a disaster manager involves the planning, coordination, and orchestration
of actions in each time phase. In order to be successful, a disaster manager must have abroad
base of knowledge in many different subjects and the ability to blend this knowledge into
workable coordinated programs to meet the needs of those affected by disaster.7
Risk Management
Risk management consists of identifying threats(hazards likely to occur),determining their
probability of occurrence, estimating what the impact of the threat might be to the
communities at risk,determining measures that can reduce the risk,and taking action to reduce
the threat.
Risk management is accomplished by lessening the effects of the natural hazard or by taking
actions in normal development projects that will reduce the risks to an acceptable level. For
example, if flooding is determined to be a major risk, the risk can be reduced by physical
measures such as dams, flood control embankments, or channeling of the streams. Risk can
also be reduced by moving threatened communities from flood plains and/or restricting
economic activities in the flood zone to those that could absorb flood losses (such as forestry
or agriculture).
7 Aim and Scope of Disaster Management - Study Guide and Course Text Disaster Management Center,
University of Wisconsin and Madison,Page - 29
9 | Page
Loss Management
Losses in a disaster include human, structural, and economic losses.
Loss management addresses each of these through both pre- and post-disaster actions
designed to keep losses to a minimum. The most effective loss management activities occur
prior to the disaster and are focused on reducing the society's vulnerability to the
disaster.Actions include
-
improving the resistance of buildings and physical structures in the event of disaster
providing improved safety for the occupants of buildings or settlements situated in
hazardous areas
increasing and/or diversifying the network of social support (or coping) mechanisms
available to victims and communities in threatened
Control of Events
The critical element of disaster management is the control of events during
and after the emergency. It is important that disaster managers control a situation rather than
respond to it. Control is maintained through the following measures
Anticipation of a disaster and the cause-and-effect relationships generated by each type of
event
Mitigation, or reduction, of the scope of a disaster. Mitigation is the most important
function in bringing disasters under control. The more that can be done to reduce the effects
of disaster, the fewer problems a disaster manager will face in the aftermath.
10 | P a g e
11 | P a g e
Equity of Assistance
All disaster assistance should be provided in an equitable and fair
manner. Assuring that all disaster victims are treated fairly and equally is an important
element of disaster management. This is especially important at the national level when a
variety of different relief agencies, each with different constituencies and demands by their
management and donors, are trying to provide assistance. Doctrines of fairness must underlie
uniform relief and reconstruction policies in order to insure that disaster victims receive fair
treatment and obtain adequate access to the resources available.
Resource Management
Few disaster managers have adequate resources to meet all the competing needs and demands
of a post-disaster environment. Thus, resource management becomes a critical element of
disaster response. The disaster manager must be familiar with the resources available. He or
she must know how to form them into a balanced package of assistance and how to maximize
their use to the greatest advantage. For example, in the aftermath of a flood a relief agency
may receive seeds that will enable 1,000 farmers to replant the crops that were destroyed by
the flood. Yet disaster assessment surveys indicate that 2,000 farmers need replacement seeds.
The manager who decides to give away all the seeds and reinvest the proceeds from the crop
sales to purchase additional seeds can expand the number of persons serviced and thus
maximize the contribution.
Impact Reduction
Disasters can have an impact far beyond the immediate human, physical,
or economic losses. In a very real sense, disasters represent a loss of opportunity, not only to
individuals, but also to entire societies. They can also be a serious setback to the country's
entire development program. The impact of the disaster on individuals and their society
should be reduced to a minimum. For a nation struck by a disaster, this means managing the
12 | P a g e
disaster in such a way that recovery is accomplished quickly and that the recovery efforts
contribute to the overall development needs of the country and all its citizens.8
13 | P a g e
Preparedness
Personal preparedness focuses on preparing equipment and procedures for use when a
disaster occurs, i.e., planning. Preparedness measures can take many forms including the
construction of shelters, implementation of an emergency communication system, installation
of warning devices, creation of back-up life-line services (e.g., power, water, sewage), and
rehearsing evacuation plans.Two simple measures can help prepare the individual for sitting
out the event or evacuating, as necessary. For evacuation, a disaster supplies kit may be
prepared and for sheltering purposes a stockpile of supplies may be created. The preparation
of a survival kit such as a "72-hour kit", is often advocated by authorities. These kits may
include food, medicine, flashlights, candles and money. Also, putting valuable items in safe
area is also recommended.
Response
The response phase of an emergency may commence with search and rescue but in all cases
the focus will quickly turn to fulfilling the basic humanitarian needs of the affected
population. This assistance may be provided by national or international agencies and
organisations. Effective coordination of disaster assistance is often crucial, particularly when
many organizations respond and local emergency management agency (LEMA) capacity has
been exceeded by the demand or diminished by the disaster itself.
On a personal level the response can take the shape either of a shelter in place or
an evacuation. In a shelter-in-place scenario, a family would be prepared to fend for
themselves in their home for many days without any form of outside support. In
an evacuation, a family leaves the area by automobile or other mode of transportation, taking
with them the maximum amount of supplies they can carry, possibly including a tent for
shelter. If mechanical transportation is not available, evacuation on foot would ideally include
carrying at least three days of supplies and rain-tight bedding, a tarpaulin and a bedroll of
blankets being the minimum.
14 | P a g e
Recovery
The recovery phase starts after the immediate threat to human life has subsided. During
reconstruction it is recommended to consider the location or construction material of the
property.
The most extreme home confinement scenarios include war, famine and severe epidemics and
may last a year or more. Then recovery will take place inside the home. Planners for these
events usually buy bulk foods and appropriate storage and preparation equipment, and eat the
food
as
part
of
normal
life.
A simple
balanced
diet
can
be
constructed
from vitamin pills, whole-meal wheat, beans, dried milk, corn, and cooking oil. One should
add vegetables, fruits, spices and meats, both prepared and fresh-gardened, when possible.9
communications,
information
management,
logistics
and
computer
Mapping
Disaster management relies heavily on the use of maps and mapping techniques for control of
disasters and for managing response. At a minimum, disaster managers must be familiar with
a variety of different types of maps including topographic maps, land-use maps, hazard
maps,geologic maps, vegetation maps, population distribution maps, seismic maps, and
hurricane tracking maps. Disaster managers must know how to read maps. They must also
know how to plot information accurately on the maps and how to interpret trends through
map reading.
9 www.wikipedia.com
15 | P a g e
Aerial Photography
Aerial photography used wisely is a valuable tool for disaster managers. It can be an
expensive tool if misused. Disaster managers must know how to interpret aerial photography
and how to apply it to both pre-disaster planning and post-disaster response activities.
Possible uses of aerial photography include hazard analysis and mapping, vulnerability
analysis and mapping, disaster assessment, reconstruction planning and management.
Remote Sensing
Remote sensing is the acquisition of information about a subject that is at a distance from the
information-gathering device. Weather radar, weather satellite, seismographs, sonobuoys, and
videotape are examples of remote sensing systems. Aerial photography is a form of remote
sensing, but in disaster management the term generally refers to the use of satellites with
imaging systems that produce a computer-generated image resembling a photograph and with
other electronic monitoring devices. For example, meteorological satellites track hurricanes
by remote sensing. The "picture" of the hurricane is a computer- generated image made by
the satellite's sensors.
The use of remote sensing in disaster management is increasing. Pre-disaster uses include risk
analysis and mapping; disaster warning, especially cyclone tracking, drought monitoring etc.
Communications
Electronic communications are an important technology of disaster management. Electronic
communications are used for coordination and control, assessment, reporting, monitoring and
16 | P a g e
scheduling logistics, and reunification and tracing separated families. A disaster manager
must be familiar with communications equipment and their limitations. He or she must
understand the effective use of communications networks both prior to and in the aftermath
of a disaster.
Logistics
Every disaster manager eventually becomes involved in logistics. Therefore, he or she must
be familiar with basic logistics planning, inventory management, warehousing and stock
control procedures, materials distribution methods, and accounting procedures. Logistics
planning can include, for example, evaluating the capability and capacity to move supplies
through the relief system identifying bottlenecks and developing alternate solutions. Logistics
planning in a country struck by a disaster might include the estimation of the capacity to
receive supplies at air and sea ports and to unload the supplies and reload into trucks. It might
include determining the sufficiency of trucks of the right size and type, and the availability of
parts and fuel for the trucks. Other considerations might be adequate roads to the site of
relief, adequate warehouses at collection points, and a distribution system with the
administrative capability and the methods to deliver the goods to the final point of utilization.
Epidemiology
Epidemiology is the branch of medicine that investigates the causes and control of
epidemics.In relation to disasters epidemiology has come to mean the evaluation of all the
causes of the occurrence or nonoccurrence of a disease (and more broadly of the death and
injuries) resulting from a disaster. Epidemiologic surveillance after disasters and refugee
crises includes identification of diseases to include in the surveillance; the collection,
interpretation and utilization of data; laboratory diagnosis of samples; development of
policies and plans for a public health program; and establishment of a program for the control
17 | P a g e
of communicable disease.The last two points coincide with programs in environmental health
management and preventive medicine.10
18 | P a g e
likely to strike a certain community, or information that large numbers of refugees might
soon seek asylum in another country). Forward planning usually involves the pre-positioning
of emergency supplies and the preparation of emergency response services and resources
for action.
Standard Operating Procedures (SOPS). SOPs are developed within an organization to
provide standard responses to anticipated situations. The objective of a standard procedure
is to help make the response routine and to eliminate the need for a lengthy decisionmaking
process. If certain criteria are met, the response is triggered automatically.
SOPs for specific disaster types in certain regions can often be compiled and presented in
an emergency action manual. These manuals establish the tasks that must be carried out
during each phase of an emergency and describe the procedure for accomplishing each in
the proper sequence. They also structure the response so that everyone in the organization
knows what is expected and at what point each event should happen. They also structure
the response so that each succeeding activity builds upon previous actions.
Policies
In providing assistance to disaster victims, organizations often propose many differing
approaches and programs. Different approaches often result in unequitable or unequal
provision of materials and services. This can cause problems for the host government and for
organizations with long-term commitments to the disaster-affected area.
Uniform disaster policies are one way to avoid these problems. Such policies provide a
mechanism for shaping disaster mitigation and vulnerability reduction efforts as well as
emergency response and reconstruction. They also provide a basis upon which programs can
be coordinated, and in some cases, integrated.Relief and reconstruction policies should
ideally be set as part of the disaster preparedness process. However, if they do not exist at the
time of a disaster, they should be established during the initial stages of emergency response.
19 | P a g e
control reconstruction activities in certain sectors. In the housing sector, building codes or
performance standards are used to set the minimum acceptable safety levels for houses and
buildings. Specific codes and performance standards are also developed for hospitals,
lifelines (water, sanitation, electrical and transportation systems), and critical facilities
(government installations, communications installations, etc.)
Programs
Programs are the principal tool of relief and reconstruction. In disaster management the term
"program" describes a set of activities carried out by an organization within a specified time,
to accomplish predetermined objectives. A program may be made up of two or more subunits of activities generally called projects. In a pre-disaster environment programs are
usually longterm and have a small, full-time, professional staff. In a post-disaster
environment, programs are usually short-term, with limited budgets and a large temporary
staff formed around a small core of professionals. Some common examples of programs are
housing reconstruction programs, food aid programs, preventive health programs, and foodfor-work programs.
Public Awareness
Post-disaster programs can have an enormous impact on a community. It is essential that they
are planned to be effective and appropriate for the community, that they meet only the needs
the community cannot meet for itself, and that the program contribute to the development of
the community. This frequently means that a program's objectives should include the
participation of the victims in the program planning and design. The program should have an
educational component that will upgrade the level of knowledge in the community, to prevent
20 | P a g e
or reduce a future disaster. The program should also be tied to a long-range integrated
development scheme.11
12 www.wikipedia.com
21 | P a g e
has build up a volunteer base, that assists the Government authorities during the disaster
relief and rehabilitation work.
Conclusion
Disaster management is an ever evolving area in which technologies have to invented and
new ways and practices have to be found in order to cope up with the various kinds of
disasters which mankind may face in future and the effect on humans could thus be very
disastrous.So we need to prepare ourselves in the best possible manner so as to cope up with
any such disaster before it takes place and after it has occurred.13
Bibliography
1. Aim and Scope of Disaster Management - Study Guide and Course Text
Disaster Management Center, University of Wisconsin and Madison
2. Together Towards a Safer India A Textbook on Disaster Management
for Class VIII
3. Together Towards a Safer India A Textbook on Disaster Management
for Class X
4. www.wikipedia.com
13 www.wikipedia.com
22 | P a g e
23 | P a g e