DISASTER/ EMERGENCY PREPAREDNESS

Disaster/emergency preparedness
and response planning

L.LAZARUS
MAOCHEMAOCHE
Overview of terms and
concepts
Key terms in disaster
management
• Disaster
• Emergency
• Disaster/Emergency Management
• Hazard
• Mitigation
• Capacity
• Risk
Key terms
• Vulnerability
• Recovery
• Threshold quantity
• Major hazard installation
• Resilience
 Definition of terms
• Disaster
• A serious disruption of the functioning of
an organization, community or society,
causing widespread human, material,
economic or environmental losses which
exceed the ability of the affected
community/society to cope using its own
resources
Disaster criteria: what qualifies a disaster?
➢Deaths
➢Destruction of property
➢Severe economic damage
➢Community stress
 Cont…

• Emergency
• A situation that disrupts normal functioning of
an organization and requires immediate and
mostly short-term response to save lives or
reduce suffering or loss. Embryonic Disaster
 Cont….
• Capacity
• A combination of all the strengths and resources, available
within an organisation that can reduce the level of risk, or
the effects of a disaster.
• Risk
• The probability of harmful consequences, or expected loss (of
lives, people injured, property damage, livelihoods,
economic activity disruption or environmental damage)
R=Hx V/C.
• Vulnerability
• A set of conditions and processes resulting from physical,
social, economic and environmental factors which increase
 Cont….
• Recovery
• Decisions or actions taken after a disaster with a view
to restoring the living conditions of a stricken
community or organisation while encouraging and
facilitating necessary adjustments to reduce disaster
risk.
• Threshold Quantity
• For a given hazardous substance or category of
substances that quantify, prescribed in national laws
and regulations by reference to specific conditions,
which if exceeded identifies a major hazard installation
 Cont…

• Major Hazard Installation

• One which produces, processes, handles, uses,
disposes of or stores, either permanently or
temporarily, one or more hazardous substance
or categories of substances in quantities, which
exceed the threshold quantity.
➢Refineries, petrochemical plants, transport,
planes, public spaces, stadia, production
spaces, mines.
 Cont…
• Resilience
• The ability of individuals, communities, organisations
or countries exposed to disasters, crises and underlying
vulnerabilities to anticipate, reduce impact of, cope
with and recover the effects of adversity, without
compromising their long term prospects.
Four “R”s as fundamental properties of resilience
➢Robustness
➢Redundancy
➢Resourcefulness
➢ Repidity
 Hazard classification

• Technological Hazards
➢Accidental release of hazardous substances
➢Explosions
➢Warfare
➢Vehicular
➢Production
➢Aircraft and air traffic control
➢Nuclear
 Cont..,
• Hazards originating from technological or industrial
activities.
• Manufacturing, transport, hazardous substances such as
chemicals, explosives, nuclear and radioactive materials.
Cont..,

• Geological
• Natural earth processes or phenomenon
such as earthquakes, volcanic eruptions
etc.
 Cont..,
• Hydrometeorological
• Natural processes or phenomenon of the atmosphere
(floods, hailstorms, drought cyclones.)
• Biological
• Process of organic origin or conveyed by biological
organisms. (Outbreak of diseases e.g., cholera,
anthrax.)
• Environmental degradation
• Processes induced by human behaviour.
Brief history of Disasters in
Zimbabwean
 Disasters in Zimbabwe
• Cyclone Idai, 2019: +/- 500 deaths, Severe infrastructure
damage.
• Battle Fields, Kadoma, mine flooding 2019: 24 dead, 8
rescued.
• GMB Lions Den 4 dead, was caused by among others grain
dust explosion.
• Wankie Mine Disaster 1972 – 472 lives lost.
• How Mine Cyanide Contaminated Dump incident 1st
February 1998.
• CABS Millennium Tower Construction incident – 1999.
• Mhunga Bus Disaster: Masvingo 9 June 2002.
 Disasters in Zimbabwe
• Dete Train disaster: 1 February 2003.
• Shamva Palmgroove Lorry Disaster 22 January 2004
• Tsholotsho Ministry of Health UD Truck incident 4
December 2020.
• 21 Health Workers died while 48 got injured. The vehicle
failed to control a curve before landing on its roof
Examples from the rest of
the world
 World disasters
• COVID 19 is an infectious diseases caused by coronavirus.
• 932 746+ people have died world over as of 14 September
2020.
• The outbreak was first identified in Wuhan, China, in
December 2019.
• The World Health declared Organisation declared the
outbreak a Public Health Emergency on 30 January and a
pandemic on 11 March 2020
 World disasters
• LEBANON DISASTER 2020
• On 4 August 2020 a large amount of ammonium nitrate
stored at the port of the city of Beirut, the capital of
Lebanon exploded.
• 190 people died, 3 were reported missing 6500 were
injured and US $10-15 billion worth of property was
destroyed.
• About 300 000 people were left homeless
 World disasters
• The catastrophic gas leak at a pesticide plant in Bhopal,
India in 1984, +5000 immediate death, lingering effects of
the poison raised death toll to +/-15000, +500000 injured.
The city ran out of cremation ground.
• Ethiopian Boeing 737 airline crash, March 2019, all 157 on
board killed.
• Lion Air crash in Indonesia, 189 left dead.
• Egypt air 31 October 2018, killing 217 on Board.
 Potential sources of emergencies
Emergencies may be natural or manmade and include the
following:
• Mine collapse and other related underground emergencies
• Fires,
• Toxic gas releases,
• Chemical spills,
• Radiological accidents,
• Explosions,
• Civil disturbances,
• Workplace violence resulting in bodily harm and trauma.
• Floods,
• Electrocutions,
• Road Traffic Accidents,
 Potential sources of emergencies
• Heat
• Biological e.g. Cholera, Anthrax, Foot and Mouth
• Bomb Threats
• Utility Failures (Plumbing Failures, Ventilation Failures,
Elevator Failure)
• Suspicious Package or Objects
• Medical Emergencies
• Lightning
This list is not exhaustive.
DISASTER MANAGEMENT CYCLE
• Phases of Disaster Management/ Disaster Cycle
 Elements of Disaster
Management

• Disaster management is classified into six elements namely,

[Shaluf, 2007]
 Pre disaster phase activities
• Risk reduction activities to reduce impact of disaster
• Disaster Plans
• Disaster Committees/Emergency Coordinating teams with
Command and control
• Information systems i.e. early warning systems, alarms,
gongs,
• Emergency equipment such as first aid facilities with trained
first aiders
• Fire fighting equipment/sprinkler systems
• Training and education
• Scenario planning with staff
Pre disaster phase

• Public information
• Trauma/ Medical Centers
• Periodic reviews of plans.
• Simulation/Rehearsals and evacuation plans.
• Hospital major incident plan.
Disaster response
• Implement response plans identified in
preparedness.
• Shut down procedure
• Communications.
• Activate public warning.
• Declare emergency/evacuate.
• Coordinate actors.
Disaster response
• Needs assessments.
• Maintain public order.
• Return to work procedure.
• Determine level of outside assistance.
After the disaster
• Lesson learning to enhance preparedness in the
future.
• Rehabilitation and Reconstruction
• Analysis of measures to be included in recovery
plans.
• Recovery programmes
• Damage insurance
• Coordination