Jurnal Managemen Bencana

7/26/2019 Jurnal Managemen Bencana

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DISASTER MANAGEMENT CYCLE – A THEORETICALAPPROACH

Professor PhD Himayatullah KHAN

Institute of Information Technology, Abbottabad, PakistanAssociate professor PhD Laura Giurca VASILESCU

University of Craiova, Romania Associate professor PhD Asmatullah KHAN

University of Science and Technology, Bannu, Pakistan

Abstract:The present study explains the various concepts used in disastermanagement. The concepts explained include: Disaster, Hazard,Vulnerability, Capacity, Risk and Disaster Management Cycle. In addition to

the terminologies, the study also seeks to explain various types of disasters.

Keywords: natural hazards, disaster management, risk management

IntroductionDisaster is a sudden adverse or

unfortunate extreme event whichcauses great damage to human beingsas well as plants and animals. Disastersoccur rapidly, instantaneously andindiscriminately. These extreme events

either natural or man-induced exceedthe tolerable magnitude within orbeyond certain time limits, makeadjustment difficult, result incatastrophic losses of property andincome and life is paralyzed. Theseevents which occur aggravate naturalenvironmental processes to causedisasters to human society such assudden tectonic movements leading toearthquake and volcanic eruptions,

continued dry conditions leading toprolonged droughts, floods, atmosphericdisturbances, collision of celestialbodies, etc. (Joshi, 2008).

Disasters have always co-existedwith civilizations. With technologicaladvancement, development initiativesresulted in the creation of a lot ofinfrastructure and permanent assets.Gradually material developmentdetached man from nature on one hand,

and increased vulnerability of thehuman population, on the other. Theprogressive increase in loss of life,

property and deleterious effect onenvironment due to disasters moved theinternational community to look atdisaster management in a newperspective, which transcendsinternational barriers, anticipatespossible threats and enables tackling of

disasters from the pre-stage. The lastdecade (990-1999) was observed bythe International Community as the“International Decade for naturaldisaster reduction“, a decade dedicatedto promoting solutions to reduce risksfrom natural hazards. The internationaldimension of disasters was realized anda protocol sought to be established sothat when it comes to suffering ofhumanity, help from the International

community flow in right earnest.Almost everyday, newspapers,

radio and television channels carryreports on disaster striking several partsof the world. But what is a disaster? Theterm disaster owes its origin to theFrench word “Desastre” which is acombination of two words ‘des’ meaningbad and ‘aster’ meaning star. Thus theterm refers to ‘Bad or Evil star’. TheUnited Nations defined Disasters as ‘A

serious disruption of the functioning of acommunity or a society causingwidespread human, material, economic



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and environmental losses which exceedthe ability of the affectedcommunity/society to cope using its ownresources’ (UNDP, nd).

A disaster is a result from thecombination of hazard, vulnerability and

insufficient capacity or measures to

reduce the potential chances of risk. Adisaster happens when a hazardimpacts on the vulnerable populationand causes damage, casualties anddisruption. Figure 1 gives a betterillustration of what a disaster is.

Figure 1. What is a disaster?

Any hazard – flood, earthquake or

cyclone which is a triggering eventalong with greater vulnerability(inadequate access to resources, sickand old people, lack of awareness etc)would lead to disaster causing greaterloss to life and property. For example;an earthquake in an uninhabited desertcannot be considered a disaster, nomatter how strong the intensitiesproduced. An earthquake is disastrousonly when it affects people, their

properties and activities. Thus, disaster

occurs only when hazards andvulnerability meet. But it is also to benoted that with greater capacity of theindividual/community and environmentto face these disasters, the impact of ahazard reduces. Therefore, we need tounderstand the three major componentsnamely hazard, vulnerability andcapacity with suitable examples to havea basic understanding of disastermanagement.

Vulnerability HazardDisaster

Underlying Dynamic Unsafe

Causes Pressure Conditions

Limited access Lack of: Dangerous

to resources Institutions location

Illness and Education Dangerous

Disabilities Training buildings

Age/Sex Skills Low Income level

Poverty Population

Others explosion

UrbanizationUncontrolled

development

Environmental

degradation

Trigger EventsEarthquake

Tsunamis

Floods

Cyclones

Volcanic

eruptions

Drought

Landslide

War

Technologicalaccident

Environmental

pollution



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Main components of disastermanagement

What is a Hazard?Hazard may be defined as “a

dangerous condition or event, thatthreat or have the potential for causinginjury to life or damage to property orthe environment.” Hazards can begrouped into two broad categoriesnamely natural and manmade.

Natural hazards are hazards whichare caused because of naturalphenomena (hazards with

meteorological, geological or evenbiological origin). Examples of naturalhazards are cyclones, tsunamis,earthquake and volcanic eruptions

which are exclusively of natural origin.Landslides, floods, drought, fires aresocio-natural hazards since their causesare both natural and man made. Forexample flooding may be causedbecause of heavy rains, landslide orblocking of drains with human waste.

Manmade hazards are hazardswhich are due to human negligence.Manmade hazards are associated withindustries or energy generation facilitiesand include explosions, leakage of toxicwaste, pollution, dam failure, wars orcivil strife, etc. The list of hazards isvery long. Many occur frequently whileothers take place occasionally.However, on the basis of their genesis,they can be categorized as follows:

Table 1Various Types of Hazards

Type Hazards

Geological Hazards1. Earthquake2. Tsunami3. Volcanic eruption

4. Landslide5. Dam burst6. Mine Fire

Water & ClimaticHazards

1. Tropical Cyclone

2. Tornado and Hurricane3. Floods4. Drought5. Hailstorm

6. Cloudburst

7. Landslide8. Heat & Cold wave9. Snow Avalanche10.Sea erosion

Environmental HazardsBiological

1. Environmental pollutions2. Deforestation1. Human / Animal Epidemics2. Pest attacks

3. Desertification4. Pest Infection3. Food poisoning4. Weapons of MassDestruction

Chemical, Industrialand Nuclear Accidents

1. Chemical disasters2. Industrial disasters

3. Oil spills/Fires4. Nuclear

Accident related

1. Boat / Road / Trainaccidents / air crash Rural /Urban fires Bomb /serialbomb disastersblasts2. Forest fires

3. Building collapse4. Electric Accidents5. Festival related6. Mine flooding

Source: CBSE (2006)

What is Vulnerability?Vulnerability may be defined as

“The extent to which a community,structure, services or geographic area islikely to be damaged or disrupted by theimpact of particular hazard, on account

of their nature, construction andproximity to hazardous terrains or adisaster prone area.”

Vulnerabilities can be categorizedinto physical and socio-economicvulnerability. Physical Vulnerability: It



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includes notions of whom and what maybe damaged or destroyed by naturalhazard such as earthquakes or floods. Itis based on the physical condition ofpeople and elements at risk, such asbuildings, infrastructure etc; and their

proximity, location and nature of thehazard. It also relates to the technicalcapability of building and structures toresist the forces acting upon themduring a hazard event.

Socio-economic VulnerabilityThe degree to which a population

is affected by a hazard will not merelylie in the physical components ofvulnerability but also on the

socioeconomic conditions. The socio-economic conditions of the people alsodetermine the intensity of the impact.For example, people who are poor andliving in the sea coast don’t have themoney to construct strong concretehouses. They are generally at risk andloose their shelters when ever there isstrong wind or cyclone. Because of theirpoverty they too are not able to rebuildtheir houses.

What is Capacity?Capacity can be defined as

“resources, means and strengths whichexist in households and communitiesand which enable them to cope with,withstand, prepare for, prevent, mitigateor quickly recover from a disaster”.People’s capacity can also be taken intoaccount. Capacities could be classified

into physical and socio-economiccapacities.Physical Capacity: People whose

houses have been destroyed by thecyclone or crops have been destroyedby the flood can salvage things fromtheir homes and from their farms. Somefamily members have skills, whichenable them to find employment if theymigrate, either temporarily orpermanently.

Socio-economic Capacity: In mostof the disasters, people suffer theirgreatest losses in the physical and

material realm. Rich people have thecapacity to recover soon because oftheir wealth. In fact, they are seldom hitby disasters because they live in safeareas and their houses are built withstronger materials. However, even

when everything is destroyed they havethe capacity to cope up with it.

Hazards are always prevalent, butthe hazard becomes a disaster onlywhen the frequency or likelihood of ahazard and the vulnerability of thecommunity increases the risk of beingseverely affected.

What is Risk?Risk is a “measure of the expected

losses due to a hazard event occurringin a given area over a specific timeperiod. Risk is a function of theprobability of particular hazardous eventand the losses it would cause.” Thelevel of risk depends upon:

• Nature of the hazard;• Vulnerability of the elements

which are affected;

• Economic value of those

elements.A community/locality is said to beat ‘risk’ when it is exposed to hazardsand is likely to be adversely affected byits impact. Whenever we discuss‘disaster management’ it is basically‘disaster risk management’. Disasterrisk management includes all measureswhich reduce disaster related losses oflife, property or assets by eitherreducing the hazard or vulnerability of

the elements at risk.

Disaster Management CycleDisaster Risk Management

includes sum total of all activities,programmes and measures which canbe taken up before, during and after adisaster with the purpose to avoid adisaster, reduce its impact or recoverfrom its losses. The three key stages ofactivities that are taken up within

disaster risk management are as follows(See Figure 2):



Figure 2. Disaster Management

1. Before a disaster (pre-disaster).Pre-disaster activities those which aretaken to reduce human and propertylosses caused by a potential hazard.For example, carrying out awareness

campaigns, strengthening the existingweak structures, preparation of thedisaster management plans athousehold and community level, etc.Such risk reduction measures takenunder this stage are termed asmitigation and preparedness activities.

2. During a disaster (disasteroccurrence). These include initiativestaken to ensure that the needs andprovisions of victims are met and

suffering is minimized. Activities takenunder this stage are called emergencyresponse activities.

3. After a disaster (post-disaster). There are initiatives taken in responseto a disaster with a purpose to achieveearly recovery and rehabilitation ofaffected communities, immediately after

a disaster strikes. These are called asresponse and recovery activities.The Disaster risk management

cycle diagram (DRMC) highlights therange of initiatives which normally occurduring both the Emergency responseand Recovery stages of a disaster.Some of these cut across both stages(such things as coordination and theprovision of ongoing assistance); whilstother activities are unique to each stage

(e.g. Early Warning and Evacuationduring Emergency Response; andReconstruction and Economic and



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Social Recovery as part of Recovery).The DRMC also highlights the role ofthe media, where there is a strongrelationship between this and fundingopportunities. This diagram works bestfor relatively sudden-onset disasters,

such as floods, earthquakes, bushfires,tsunamis, cyclones etc, but is lessreflective of slow-onset disasters, suchas drought, where there is no obviouslyrecognizable single event which triggersthe movement into the EmergencyResponse stage.

According to Warfield (2008)disaster management aims to reduce,or avoid the potential losses fromhazards, assure prompt and appropriate

assistance to victims of disaster, andachieve rapid and effective recovery.The disaster management cycleillustrates the ongoing process by whichgovernments, businesses, and civilsociety plan for and reduce the impactof disasters, react during andimmediately following a disaster, andtake steps to recover after a disasterhas occurred. Appropriate actions at allpoints in the cycle lead to greaterpreparedness, better warnings, reducedvulnerability or the prevention ofdisasters during the next iteration of thecycle. The complete disastermanagement cycle includes the shapingof public policies and plans that eithermodify the causes of disasters ormitigate their effects on people,property, and infrastructure.

The mitigation and preparedness

phases occur as disaster managementimprovements are made in anticipationof a disaster event. Developmentalconsiderations play a key role incontributing to the mitigation andpreparation of a community toeffectively confront a disaster. As adisaster occurs, disaster management

actors, in particular humanitarianorganizations become involved in theimmediate response and long-termrecovery phases. The four disastermanagement phases illustrated here donot always, or even generally, occur in

isolation or in this precise order. Oftenphases of the cycle overlap and thelength of each phase greatly dependson the severity of the disaster.• Mitigation - Minimizing the effects ofdisaster. Examples: building codes andzoning; vulnerability analyses; publiceducation.• Preparedness - Planning how torespond. Examples: preparednessplans; emergency exercises/training;warning systems.

• Response - Efforts to minimize thehazards created by a disaster.Examples: search and rescue;emergency relief.• Recovery - Returning thecommunity to normal. Examples:temporary housing; grants; medicalcare.

To analyze the scope of disaster

management in the revised context, itshould be studied the cycle of thephenomenon (Figure 3).

Disasters are as old as humanhistory but the dramatic increase andthe damage caused by them in therecent past have become a cause ofnational and international concern. Overthe past decade, the number of naturaland manmade disasters has climbedinexorably. From 1994 to 1998, reported

disasters average was 428 per year butfrom 1999 to 2003, this figure went upto an average of 707 disaster eventsper year. Figure 4 presents thedeadliest disasters of the decade (1992

– 2001).



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Figure 3. Disaster Management Cycle

.

Drought and famine have provedto be the deadliest disasters globally

(45%), followed by floods (16%),technological disaster (14%),earthquake (12%), windstorm (10%),

extreme temperature and others (3%).Global economic loss related to disaster

events average around US $880 billionper year (CBSE, 2006).

45%

16%

14%

12%

10% 3%

DroughtFamine Floods Technological Earthquake Windstorm Miscellaneous

R

I

S

K

M

A

N

A

G

E

M

E

N

T

Figure 4. Reported Deaths from all Disasters: World Scenario (1992-2001)



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ConclusionsThere has been a dramatic

increase in disasters and the damagescaused by them in the recent past. Overthe past decade, the number of naturaland manmade disasters has climbed

inexorably. Accordingly to the statistics,the number of disasters per yearincreased with 60% in the period 1999-2001 in comparison with the previousperiod, 1994 -1998. The highestincrease was in the countries of lowhuman development, which registeredan increase of 142%.

In these countries, the responsibleinstitutions should play an important rolebut, in general, the disastermanagement policy responses areinfluenced by methods and tools forcost-effective and sustainableinterventions.

There are no long-term, inclusiveand coherent institutional arrangementsto address disaster issues with a long-term vision. Disasters are viewed inisolation from the processes of

mainstream development and povertyalleviation planning. For example,disaster management, developmentplanning and environmentalmanagement institutions operate inisolation and integrated planning

between these sectors is almostlacking.

Absence of a central authority forintegrated disaster management andlack of coordination within and betweendisaster related organizations isresponsible for effective and efficientdisaster management. State-leveldisaster preparedness and mitigationmeasures are heavily tilted towardsstructural aspects and undermine non-

structural elements such as theknowledge and capacities of localpeople, and the related livelihoodprotection issues.

In conclusion, with a greatercapacity of the individual/communityand environment to face the disasters,the impact of a hazard would bereduced.

REFERENCES

[1] Central Board of Secondary Education (CBSE), Natural Hazards and DisasterManagement. Delhi: Preet Vihar, 2006.

[2] International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies, WorldDisasters Report, Geneva, 2003.

[3] Joshi, S.R. ,Natural Disasters in North-East Region and its Management: AnEssay, Centre for Science Education, North Eastern Hill University Bijni Complex,Laitumkhrah, Shillong – 793 003, Meghalaya, 2008.

[4] National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA), Draft National DisasterManagement Framework , pp 14-17, 2006.

[5] United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), Disaster Management-Preparedness Methodology In Assam. http://data.undp.org.in/dmweb/Article-DRM%20Assam.pdf (accessed on March 25, 2008), 2008.

[6] Warfield, C., The Disaster Management Cycle, 2008.

http://www.gdrc.org/uem/disasters/1-dm_cycle.html (accessed on March 25, 2008).

[7] WCDR, A Review of Disaster Management Policies and Systems in

Pakistan, Islamabad, January 2005.

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