comprehensively write essay on phases in disaster management cycle

• Mitigation - Minimizing the effects of disaster. Examples: building codes and zoning; vulnerability analyses; public education.
• Preparedness - Planning how to respond. Examples: preparedness plans; emergency exercises/training; warning systems.
• Response - Efforts to minimize the hazards created by a disaster. Examples: search and rescue; emergency relief .
• Recovery - Returning the community to normal. Examples: temporary housing; grants; medical care.

Essay on Disaster Management

Students are often asked to write an essay on Disaster Management in their schools and colleges. And if you’re also looking for the same, we have created 100-word, 250-word, and 500-word essays on the topic.

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100 Words Essay on Disaster Management

Understanding disaster management.

Disaster management is the process of preparing for, responding to, and recovering from disasters. It’s like a game plan to handle emergencies.

The Importance of Disaster Management

Disaster management is important because it helps to reduce the impact of disasters. It saves lives and protects property.

Steps in Disaster Management

There are four steps: mitigation, preparedness, response, and recovery. Mitigation and preparedness happen before a disaster, while response and recovery happen after.

Role of Everyone

Everyone has a role in disaster management. We should all be prepared and know what to do in case of a disaster.

250 Words Essay on Disaster Management

Introduction.

Disaster management refers to the organization and management of resources for dealing with all aspects of emergencies, particularly when they have catastrophic consequences. Its primary aim is to minimize the harmful effects of disasters on humanity and the environment.

The Cycle of Disaster Management

Disaster management operates in a cycle, encompassing four phases: mitigation, preparedness, response, and recovery. Mitigation attempts to prevent hazards from developing into disasters or reduce the effects of disasters. Preparedness involves developing plans and systems to respond effectively when disasters occur. Response is the immediate reaction to a disaster, while recovery aims to restore the affected area to its previous state.

Importance of Disaster Management

Disaster management is crucial in ensuring a systematic response to natural or man-made disasters. It helps in saving lives, reducing economic losses, and maintaining societal functions. Furthermore, it aids in building resilient communities that can withstand and recover from disasters.

Challenges in Disaster Management

Despite its importance, disaster management faces several challenges, such as inadequate funding, lack of public awareness, and coordination issues among different agencies. Achieving effective disaster management requires overcoming these obstacles through increased funding, public education, and improved inter-agency coordination.

In a world where disasters are becoming increasingly frequent and severe due to climate change and other factors, effective disaster management is more important than ever. By understanding and addressing the challenges in this field, we can build a safer, more resilient world for future generations.

500 Words Essay on Disaster Management

Introduction to disaster management.

Disasters, whether natural or man-made, have the potential to alter the course of life, causing extensive damage to life, property, and the environment. Effective disaster management strategies can significantly reduce the negative impacts of such events. For instance, they can minimize loss of life, ensure faster recovery, and safeguard the socio-economic fabric of the community.

Phases of Disaster Management

Disaster management can be divided into four critical phases: mitigation, preparedness, response, and recovery.

Preparedness

This phase involves the provision of emergency services and public assistance during or immediately following a disaster. The main aim is to reduce the impact of the disaster and facilitate recovery operations.

Role of Technology in Disaster Management

Effective disaster management is a collective and coordinated effort that involves various stakeholders, including government agencies, non-governmental organizations, communities, and individuals. It requires a proactive approach that focuses not only on responding to disasters but also on preventing and mitigating their effects. By incorporating advanced technologies and fostering community participation, we can improve our resilience to disasters and ensure a safer and more secure future.

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32.4 The Disaster Management Cycle

Learning outcomes.

By the end of this section, you should be able to:

• 32.4.1 Describe the disaster management cycle.
• 32.4.2 Explain the nurse’s role in the disaster management cycle.
• 32.4.3 Discuss how community partners work together to prevent, prepare for, respond to, and recover from disasters.

A planned, systematic approach to disaster management allows community members, health care providers, emergency response agencies, and community organizations to respond to disasters and mass causalities effectively and efficiently. Community assessment identifies potential disasters, enabling planning to prevent, prepare, and respond to reduce their impact. Nurses play an integral role in all phases of the disaster management cycle. Multisector, interprofessional collaboration enhances disaster prevention, preparation, and response.

Phases of the Disaster Management Cycle

To establish a plan for disasters, the nurse must understand the phases of the disaster management cycle ( Figure 32.6 ). The public health/community health nurse has an important role in each phase to promote optimal health outcomes for the people involved.

Mitigation , an action to prevent or reduce the cause, impact, or consequences of a disaster, is the first phase of the disaster management cycle. A community assessment identifies community risk factors . This includes determining what natural disasters the community is likely to face. For example, communities geographically situated in coastal regions are at risk for hurricanes or tsunamis. This also includes identification of potential targets of terrorist attacks and potential human-made disasters, such as the release of dangerous chemicals from a factory following an explosion. Community programs focused on preventing the occurrence and mitigating the impact of disasters are developed and implemented (Homeland Security, 2015). For disasters that cannot be prevented, such as earthquakes, hurricanes, and tornadoes, efforts may focus on mitigating the effects of the event on the community. Examples of mitigation include placing sandbags along a river to decrease the amount of floodwater, constructing levees or barriers to prevent or control flooding, boarding windows before a hurricane makes landfall, and improving building infrastructure to reduce the risk of damage during an earthquake.

Preparedness is the second phase of the disaster management cycle. It includes planning, training, and educational activities to address the consequences of disasters that cannot be mitigated. Preparedness is a continuous state of planning for rapid response when a disaster occurs. Task forces made up of community representatives from the local government, health care providers, social services providers, police and fire departments, major industries, local media, schools, and citizens’ groups form to ensure that each area of the community knows its role and has a plan in place for when a disaster occurs. In the preparedness phase, responding personnel from each agency are trained. This training includes drills or simulations of mock disasters. Public education is key in providing community members with information on how they can best prepare their families and whom to contact if they are directly impacted by a disaster (FEMA, 2021). The disaster preparedness plan includes what to do in case of disaster, where to go, who to call for help, identifying home vulnerabilities, and accumulating disaster supplies/equipment.

Emergency Preparedness Home Tour

Personal and family preparedness is a professional nurse disaster competency. In this video, a city councilor from Gresham, Oregon, describes how families can prepare their homes in case of an emergency or disaster.

Watch the video, and then respond to the following questions.

• How does the family plan for disaster within their home?
• How does your personal preparedness home plan compare to the video?

For more information on developing a personal preparedness plan, visit the American Red Cross Disaster Preparedness Plan or Minnesota Department of Public Safety website on Personal and Family Preparedness .

Disaster response is the third phase of the disaster management cycle. Disaster response is the execution of the disaster plan when a disaster event occurs. Disaster response management is a local community responsibility that begins before the announcement of an official disaster declaration (Klein & Irizarry, 2022) and continues for the first 72 hours (deAnda et al., 2022). If local resources are depleted after 72 hours and cannot be managed, the Stafford Disaster Relief and Emergency Assistance Act allows the state governor to request a disaster declaration from the president of the United States. This declaration mobilizes federal resources to assist local agencies in the aftermath of a disaster (deAnda et al., 2022).

Disaster recovery , the fourth phase of the disaster management cycle, begins during the response phase once the threat to human life and infrastructure has passed. Recovery efforts aim to return a community to some degree of normal predisaster functioning (Klein & Irizarry, 2022). The simultaneous work of rebuilding and resuming regular operations and activities may require a prolonged period. Disaster recovery includes rescue work to provide relief, primarily immediate medical care, food and water, clothing, and shelter (Polcarová & Pupíková, 2020). Once people’s immediate needs are met, restoring public services such as communication and transportation begins the process of returning to normalcy. Rebuilding community infrastructure may be a long-term course but may also present improvement opportunities (Polcarová & Pupíková, 2020).

Healthy People 2030

Emergency preparedness.

These Healthy People 2030 objectives aim to improve emergency preparedness and response by building community resilience. The following general emergency preparedness objectives are in the developmental stage:

• Increase the proportion of parents and guardians who know the emergency or evaluation plan for their children’s school — PREP-DO1
• Increase the proportion of adults who prepare for a disease outbreak after getting preparedness information — PREP-DO2
• Increase the proportion of adults who know how to evacuate in case of a hurricane, flood, or wildfire — PREP-DO3
• Increase the proportion of adults who have an emergency plan for disasters — PREP-DO4

The Nurse’s Role in the Disaster Management Cycle

The ANA (2016) considers disaster preparedness and response a basic competency of nursing practice. While most nurses may not have extensive experience in disaster response, they are expected to have minimum knowledge about disaster management. They participate in preparedness planning and training drills, and they have skills and abilities to provide client care and community support during a disaster. Community health nurses collaborate with health care professionals and partner with health system leaders, individuals, and families to improve population health outcomes and promote community resiliency when disasters occur (Chegini et al., 2021).

Nurses are an important part of all phases in the disaster management cycle. Understanding the inherent risks a community faces for different types of disasters is critical in the mitigation phase. If a community is at a higher risk of a particular type of disaster, then more time and resources can be focused on activities that will prevent losses. For example, community health nurses who work in areas at risk for tropical weather may need to spend more time mitigating the effects of hurricanes than the risk of forest fires. Public safety education helps people in the community understand the potential hazards and effects of the disasters for which their community is at greatest risk. Community education on strategies to mitigate hazards and how to respond in case of a disaster raises individuals’ awareness and increases the likelihood that they will develop a disaster plan. Families should know what to do, who to call, and where to go in emergencies. When individual community members are generally disaster-aware, they can immediately implement the personal disaster response plan as needed. The nurse plays a key role in educating community members on disaster preparedness.

Client Teaching Guidelines

Disaster preparedness.

Community education for disaster preparedness includes:

• Create a family preparedness plan that includes an evacuation plan . Review the plan annually.
• Determine a family communication plan that includes an emergency meeting place. How will you communicate if phone lines and towers are not working?
• Assemble a disaster kit . Inventory the kit at least annually, replacing expired items.
• Assemble an emergency kit for your vehicle.
• Store important documents in a waterproof, portable container.
• Make a plan for your pets and animals .
• Secure property prior to a disaster.

(See U.S. Department of Homeland Security, 2023.)

The nurse must be involved in preparedness activities and participate in disaster management education and training from the beginning of nursing education programs (ANA, 2016). Many organizations provide practicing nurses opportunities for further education to build the skills to prepare for and respond to emergencies. The FEMA Emergency Management Institute has a curriculum of disaster preparedness and response online courses available to the public free of charge at this link .

Collaboration with federal, state, and local relief agencies and organizations is critical in preparedness activities. Organizations like FEMA, the American Red Cross, state officials, and local emergency medical services come together to practice disaster response. Mock drills are simulation exercises that are regularly conducted to ensure community members and responders have practiced how to respond appropriately in disasters. Nurses should help plan and participate in these mock drills that simulate the type of disaster the community is most likely to have. Tabletop exercises are also useful for frequently reviewing disaster policies and procedures.

Hurricane Tabletop Exercise

Tabletop exercises are discussion sessions where community members discuss their roles and responses during a specific emergency or disaster. This video discusses the benefits of conducting tabletop exercises.

• Why does this community complete hurricane tabletop exercises annually?
• What are the benefits of testing the emergency plan using a tabletop exercise?

As care providers, nurses are often among the first to respond to health care needs in disaster situations. Lifesaving actions, injury treatment, and minimizing the effects of the disaster are the priority. Immediate needs such as medical treatment, shelter, food, water, and psychological support for survivors are the primary focus. The COVID-19 pandemic brought nursing disaster response to the forefront. Nurses worked tirelessly in their community hospitals, providing client care at the bedside, and the need for nurses to provide client care on the front lines was greater than the number of nurses available in many areas. In January 2020, the CDC activated the Incident Management System in response to the COVID-19 crisis. The CDC and Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry Nurses’ Work Group (CNWG) helped to distribute and meet requests for nurse deployments to support the COVID-19 response (Zauche, 2022). The group used an Emergency Operations Management System application to track the work hours of those who contributed to the response. Among 190 CNWG members, 146 (76.8 percent) were deployed to work between January 21, 2020, and September 18, 2021. Combined, they recorded more than 24,600 days and nearly 198,000 hours on the response. Nurses worked in local facilities and with state public health agencies and departments throughout the pandemic as policy experts, contact tracers , researchers, epidemiologists , nurse consultants, and client advocates (Zauche, 2022).

Nurses also have a role in helping the community return to normalcy in the recovery period. They work collaboratively across disciplines to restore health care to optimal operations along the recovery continuum, adjusting according to the community’s needs. Nursing assessment and intervention during the recovery stage include monitoring and screening for communicable and infectious diseases, educating on water and food safety, educating on cleanup and disposal of debris and deceased livestock/animals, eliminating safety risks, and screening and treatment for mental health issues. Nurses have been essential in the post-pandemic phase of the COVID-19 pandemic. Nurses led the way in vaccine education, distribution, and coordination of administration in vaccine clinics. These efforts were essential to reestablishing health care to its modified baseline, and they have been active participants in creating new policies and practices to help prevent a resurgence.

Unfolding Case Study

Part a: disaster management.

Read the scenario, and then answer the questions that follow.

Juanita, a public health nurse on the Florida Coast, is a member of the disaster management team. In anticipation of the approaching hurricane season, Juanita reviews disaster prevention and mitigation plans for the community. She assesses the community for the most vulnerable individuals (those with physical and mental disabilities) and maps their locations. She also plans nursing interventions to mitigate the effects of the hurricane.

Juanita meets with the multiagency, interprofessional team during a tabletop exercise on hurricane disasters. She shares the location of the most vulnerable individuals in the community because they may require well-being checks or evaluation during power and phone outages. She provides input from a nursing perspective on potential sheltering locations, shelter resource needs, and the triage and transport process. Juanita suggests including surrounding communities in the hurricane disaster plan to prepare for increased population and health needs in their communities due population displacement before and following hurricane landfall.

• Older adults
• Single parents
• Persons with substance-use disorder
• Young adults
• Conduct a simulation to practice triage in mass casualty situations.
• Teach classes on family safety planning prior to hurricane season.
• Draw a shelter blueprint to prepare for mass food, water, and health needs.
• Lead a tabletop exercise on hurricanes with health department staff.

Community Collaboration and Disasters

With the rising incidence of disasters, it is essential that public health professionals engage internal and external partners to promote community resilience and return to normalcy. Disasters present complex challenges for which no single discipline, agency, organization, or jurisdiction can or should bear sole responsibility (Association of Public Health Nurses [APHN], 2014). Community resilience after disasters is dependent on coordinated care and resource distribution. To gain the respect and confidence of the public, local agencies and leaders must manage disaster response and collaborate effectively to achieve optimal outcomes for the community (Charney et al., 2018).

Multisector, interdisciplinary collaboration is necessary at the community level during each stage of the disaster management cycle. Most often, the public health agency leads prevention and preparedness efforts within a community. Community partners who respond to and are affected by disasters are invited to participate in disaster management activities. This includes emergency response coordinators; emergency department managers; epidemiologists; nurses; emergency medical services; law enforcement; fire services; academic institutions; Medical Reserve Corps; private businesses; faith-based organizations; humanitarian organizations; nonprofit organizations; medical, health, and behavioral providers; and other community-based organizations (RHIhub, 2023). The disaster management team collaborates to assess the community for risk factors, plans efforts to mitigate disaster effects, and prepares for potential disaster through tabletop exercises and disaster simulations. Prevention and preparedness activities identify areas of strength, accessible resources, and areas for improvement.

The disaster management team utilizes the NIMS framework and ICS during disaster response and recovery to establish leadership, organize resources, and communicate effectively. When local resources are depleted, state partners, such as the National Guard, state emergency management agency, state health department, and governor’s office, and federal partners, such as FEMA, National Disaster Medical System, Environment Protection Agency, and U.S. Department of Health and Human Services Incident Response Coordination Team, may join disaster response efforts. Table 32.10 describes the role of various disaster response organizations and partners.

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• Publication date: May 15, 2024
• Location: Houston, Texas
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Essay on Disaster Management

Essay generator.

In the contemporary world, disasters have become a frequent, albeit unwelcome, part of human life. From natural calamities like earthquakes, floods, and hurricanes to man-made crises such as industrial accidents and terrorist attacks, the spectrum of disasters is vast and varied. The omnipresent threat posed by these disasters necessitates an effective and efficient disaster management strategy. This essay delves into the essence of disaster management, its phases, the challenges involved, and the role of technology and community participation in enhancing disaster resilience.

Disaster Management

Disaster management refers to the systematic process of creating strategies aimed at limiting the adverse impacts of disasters. It encompasses a broad range of activities, including preparedness, response, recovery, and mitigation efforts, to safeguard lives, property, and the environment. Effective disaster management is imperative not only for saving lives but also for maintaining economic stability and ensuring sustainable development.

The Phases of Disaster Management

Disaster management can be delineated into four critical phases, each of which plays a pivotal role in managing disasters.

1. Mitigation

Mitigation involves efforts to reduce the risk of disaster occurrences or diminish their effects. These measures include constructing buildings that can withstand earthquakes, improving drainage systems to prevent flooding, and implementing strict zoning and land-use practices. Mitigation strategies aim at preventing disasters from occurring and, failing that, reducing the impact of disasters when they occur.

2. Preparedness

Preparedness focuses on planning how to respond when a disaster strikes. This phase includes training emergency responders, establishing warning systems, conducting disaster drills, and developing evacuation plans. Preparedness efforts ensure that when a disaster occurs, the response is swift, coordinated, and effective, thereby minimizing loss of life and damage to property.

3. Response

The response phase is activated once a disaster occurs. It involves the mobilization of emergency services, volunteers, and other resources to save lives, provide shelter, and meet the basic needs of those affected. The effectiveness of the response phase heavily relies on the preparedness measures that have been put in place.

4. Recovery

Recovery is the process of restoring the affected community to its pre-disaster state. It includes rebuilding infrastructure, restoring public services, and providing support to the impacted individuals and businesses. Recovery can be a long-term process, focusing on not only the restoration of the physical aspects but also the emotional, economic, and social recovery of the community.

Challenges in Disaster Management

Despite the best efforts, disaster management faces numerous challenges. These include:

• Lack of Resources: Many regions, especially in developing countries, lack the necessary resources, including finances, equipment, and trained personnel, to effectively manage disasters.
• Communication Breakdown: Effective communication is crucial during disasters. However, disasters often disrupt communication infrastructure, making it challenging to coordinate response efforts and disseminate information to the public.
• Coordination Among Agencies: Multiple agencies are involved in disaster management, including local, state, and federal governments, NGOs, and international bodies. Ensuring seamless coordination among these entities is often a daunting task.
• Climate Change: The increasing impact of climate change is exacerbating the frequency and intensity of natural disasters, posing new challenges to disaster management strategies.

The Role of Technology in Disaster Management

Technology plays a crucial role in enhancing the effectiveness of disaster management. Innovations such as satellite imagery, GIS (Geographic Information Systems), and drones provide critical information for disaster preparedness and response. Social media and mobile technology have revolutionized the way information is disseminated and have improved communication between disaster management agencies and the public. Additionally, early warning systems powered by advanced forecasting technologies can save countless lives by providing timely alerts about impending disasters.

Community Participation in Disaster Management

Community participation is fundamental to the success of disaster management efforts. Local communities are the first to respond to disasters and thus, empowering them through education and training is vital. Community-based disaster management programs encourage local involvement in disaster preparedness activities, such as evacuation drills and first aid training, ensuring that communities are better equipped to cope with disasters. Engaging communities also fosters a sense of ownership and responsibility towards local disaster management initiatives.

In conclusion, Disaster management is a complex and multifaceted field that requires the concerted efforts of governments, organizations, communities, and individuals. By understanding the phases of disaster management and addressing the associated challenges, we can enhance our resilience to disasters. The integration of technology and the active participation of communities further strengthen disaster management frameworks, making our societies more robust and better prepared to face the inevitable challenges posed by disasters. As we move forward, it is imperative that disaster management strategies evolve in tandem with the changing dynamics of disasters, ensuring a safer and more resilient world for future generations.

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How the Disaster Management Cycle and The Civic Circle ® Can Drive Response and Recovery

This is the second in a blog series about National Preparedness Month. Read the last post to learn the four most important things you can do to support your community in a disaster.

Building resilience in communities worldwide is essential to responding to natural and human-made disasters. But what does that mean? Resilience in communities looks like the ability to resist, absorb, accommodate to and recover from the effects of disaster. Non-governmental Organizations (NGOs) around the world understand how to support communities and build their resilience. Today, more than ever, that role is essential.

“Disasters are becoming more frequent, they’re stronger and they’re more expensive,“ said Meghan Foley, a disaster preparedness and response expert with more than a decade of hands-on experience. “The government alone can’t handle the capacity of what’s needed. The nonprofit and NGO community are the trusted community members on the ground, and they know their people and they know their needs.”

Agnieszka Lissowska-Lewkowicz, president of Points of Light Global Network affiliate and Polish NGO Centrum Wolontariatu , agrees. When the Ukraine war began, the organization had a steep learning curve. Faced with the influx of what would ultimately become 1.5 million refugees crossing the border to safety, Agnieszka and her small staff began to learn the ins and outs of disaster response in real time.

“We never worked before on a disaster response. It was very difficult for us,” said Agnieszka. “The first period was very intense, making our everyday work almost impossible, but we quickly understood that long-term help is needed and the systematic approach.”

Nonprofits and NGOs are increasingly taking on the disaster management cycle as events increase in frequency and intensity. Because their life force stems from the volunteers who power their work and the communities they serve, facing disaster can become more manageable when community members think and act with intent.

Learning the Terms

What is the disaster management cycle.

The Disaster Management Cycle is a framework that defines the stages of a disaster. It comprises four phases: resiliency, preparedness, response and recovery. Every community is in one of these four phases right now. The first and second, the “blue sky” phases, are critical planning opportunities. Actions taken during these times reduce the severity of impacts on a community and its people. The third and fourth phases, known as the “gray sky”, occur after a disaster. Depending on the extent of a disaster, a community can remain in recovery for a long time.

What is the Points of Light Civic Circle?

The Civic Circle helps people connect to opportunities and understand that doing good comes in many forms. It represents the power to lead, lend support and take action for causes you care about so that you can drive real and sustained change. Overlay the Civic Circle onto the Disaster Management Cycle, and it becomes clear when and how to take actions that support communities.

How Do The Disaster management cycle and the civic circle Work Together?

When you parse out the nine elements of the Civic Circle, you can start to see how they align with the four phases of the Disaster Management Cycle, no matter which phase of the cycle your community is in.

New Disaster Planning Guide from Points of Light and The Allstate Foundation

Prepare now: download the disaster planning guide.

Building Sustainable Communities: A Guide to Disaster and the Civic Circle , is a resource that offers insights and strategies to empower you to take action via the Civic Circle. Download the guide today made possible in partnership with The Allstate Foundation, and created by Points of Light.

Resiliency, one of the “blue sky” phases, is an excellent time to focus on using your voice to advocate for policies, resources, and infrastructure in your community. Advocate for those assets that help keep your community safe, such as a warning siren or restoration of the environment.

During preparedness, another one of the “blue sky” phases, consider volunteering with an organization that’s doing work that resonates with you, or serve your elderly neighbors by checking in with them and discuss their plans in the event of an emergency.

Once a disaster has happened and the community is in response mode, you might donate to a local organization doing response and recovery work in your community. Donating money is often the most useful resource for nonprofits and NGOs, and choosing a local outlet is the best way for your dollars to have the biggest impact. If you are thinking of donating items, like clothing or toiletries, it’s essential to do so at the right time and place. Otherwise, your act of goodwill may do unintentional harm. Follow the guidance of responders on the ground.

Volunteering may not be as straightforward as you imagine. The first rule of thumb is to never self-deploy. Although your intentions may be good, when you skip the step of working through a trusted organization, you may end up causing harm. Organizations responding to disaster are dealing with vulnerable people who are undergoing trauma, which is why volunteers working with these populations often must undergo background checks and complete specialized training. To be best positioned to serve when disaster comes, sign up with a trusted organization now.

Finally, the “gray sky” time of recovery can go on for a long time, so this is the phase where sustained efforts carry the most value. Support a social entrepreneur, or a person who has identified a need that has not been met by traditional institutions, structures and systems. These innovators often lead creative solutions that can support disaster response and recovery. Take Daily Point of Light Honoree 14-year-old William Cabaniss , who sold more than $45,000 in vanilla extract, donating the proceeds to Second Harvest Food Bank of East Tennessee.

As always, volunteering is the backbone of how nonprofits and NGOs deliver their missions to serve their communities. There is always a volunteer gap once media attention wanes, so consider how you can continue to support an 18 to 24-month-longprocess of rebuilding and recovery. Long-term recovery groups need help rebuilding homes, offering translation services, and providing pro bono legal and financial advice. Choosing an organization now that does work that resonates with you is a good way to ensure you’re trained and ready to help when disaster comes.

“We knew that for those Ukrainians who stayed we have to offer some long-term help,” said Agnieszka. “And that this help has to be wise, focused not on the basics needs but on social adaptation, work, education, psychological help. So, we needed specialists, cooperation between different organizations regarding their experience and funds.”

Centrum Wolontariatu shifted its focus to long-term recovery and assimilation, helping displaced Ukrainians to learn Polish, find jobs, get support in building new lives in Warsaw.

The organization’s learnings reflect what disaster preparedness experts know all too well. Responding to disaster requires a multi-pronged approach, both from the organizations responding and community members themselves. Disasters can often feel chaotic, but by understanding the cycle, you can feel empowered to take hold of each phase by taking action that builds resilience in your own community.

Our next post in this four-part series gives a behind-the-scenes look at disaster response and recovery . Plus, don’t miss our last post in this series to learn the four most important things you can do to support your community in a disaster.

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Disaster Management Essay

Essay on Disaster Management

Disaster Management is the arrangement and management of the resources following a disaster, be it natural or man-made. There are so many organizations who are dealing with various types of disastrous situations from the humanitarian aspect. Some disasters are just the consequences of human hazards and some are caused by natural calamity. However, we can prevent them by taking the necessary emergency measures to save and preserve lives. As natural disasters cannot be predicted, they can take place anywhere at any time. 

Vedantu has provided an essay on Disaster management on this page. Students who have received an assignment to write an essay on Disaster Management or preparing an essay for examination can refer to this page to understand the pattern. Any student or parent can directly visit Vedantu site or download the app on the phone to get access to the study materials.  

Disaster Management’ is the simple term of management which embraces loads of disaster-related activities. Disaster occurs frequently in some parts of the world. Japan is the best example of it. Japanese people are annoyed on Tsunamis and earthquakes. The local scene is not much different from the global one. No one could forget the cyclone in Orissa, Earthquake in Gujarat or even the Mumbai Terrorist Attack.

Natural and man-made are the two categories of the disaster. Natural disasters are those which occurred due to sudden changes in the environment or topography causing uncountable human as well as economic loss. Earthquakes, volcanic eruptions, floods and cloudbursts are few of the natural disasters. Manual intentional made disasters are man-made disasters. For example, Gas leakage, terrorist attacks, fire, oil spills. Man-made disasters are the result of human intentions or might be because of workmanship or technical errors. The count of man-made and natural disasters is rising rapidly.

Here are a few things which will help us to deal with earthquakes. The significant information about Natural calamities is predicted easier and is being shared within the public by the central bureau. Furthermore, earthquake-resistant structures are constructed considering, ‘Precaution is Better Than Cure’. Reflexes are made so strong that cover of solid platforms such as a table and chair should be taken as soon as the danger is sensible while the cover of trees, electric poles or buildings is avoided as far as possible. Keep in touch with local news during heavy rainy days. Any flood is preceded with significant time. Making proper use of divine buffer time for safety is advisable. Strategically planning of water reservoirs, land uses, tree plantation, rainwater harvesting techniques help us increase immunity power to fight against the drought. 

National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA), American Red Cross, Federal Emergency Management Agency, International Association of Emergency Managers etc. are the best disaster management authorities. NDMA is a core body which obeys the law of Disaster Management. The reputed disaster managers are stuck in finding plans for rescuing from the loss of disaster. Moreover, to counteract the effect of disaster Rajya Sabha passed the ‘Disaster Management Act’ on 23 December 2005 which includes 11 chapters and 79 sections in it. Honourable Prime Minister of India Mr Narendra Modi holds the position of chairman of it. 

Youngsters should motivate themselves to learn and practice plenty of disaster management techniques and arrange the camps regarding it. Today, everyone is fighting against one of the breathtaking disasters named COVID-19 which is as big as fighting in world war. Avoiding the crowd, wearing the mask are the basic precautions suggested by the World Health Organization (WHO) during this period of fighting. This disease spreads mostly amongst the people who come in close contact with the infected one. So, it's suggested to keep a safe distance of around 3 meters within the others. This is being termed as ‘Social Distancing’. Nature is not cruel nor is it human. Just small management skills help us withstand before, in and after disasters. Uncountable suggestions and instructions in disaster management but few which apply every time must be followed.

Stages of Disaster Management

With proper implementation and structured action, we can prevent or lessen the impact of natural or man-made disasters. There are certain stages involving the cycle for disaster management plan which incorporates policies and emergency responses required for a prospectively complete recovery. The stages are –

The most preferred way to deal with disasters is to be proactive in their prevention rather than rushing later for their cure. This implies recognition of potential hazards and working towards infrastructure to mitigate their impact. This stage in the management cycle involves setting up permanent measures to minimize disaster risk.

Setting up an evacuation plan in a school, training the teachers to lead the students towards safe structures in the event of earthquake, tornado or fire, planning a strong base for high raised sky-scrapers to prepare for earthquakes and designing a city in such a manner that reduces the risk of flooding are some examples of measures takes for disaster prevention.

Mitigation is the first and the foremost attempt to save human lives during the time of disaster or their recovery from the aftermath. The measures which are taken can be both structural and non-structural.

Structural mitigation measures could include transforming the physical characteristics of a building or the surroundings to curb the effect, for example, clearing out of the trees around your house, ensuring that storms don’t knock down the trees and send them crashing into the house. Non-structural measures could include amending the building or locality codes to enhance safety and prevent disasters.

Preparedness

Preparedness is a process that involves a social community where the trained, or the head of the community, businesses and institutions demonstrate the plan of action which is supposed to be executed during the event of a disaster. It is an ongoing continuous process with anticipation of a calamity, which involves training, evaluating and taking corrective action with the highest level of alertness. Some examples of such prevention measures are fire drills, shooter drills and evacuation rehearsals.

The response is the action taken after the disaster has occurred to retrieve some life from it. It includes short-term and long-term responses. In ideal situations, the disaster-management leader will coordinate the use of resources in the restoration process and minimize the risk of further property damage.

During this stage, the area of the calamity is cleared if it poses any further threat to human as well as environmental life. For example, evacuation of the city of Chernobyl, Ukraine, is a responsive action against a disaster.

The fifth and last stage in the process of the disaster management plan is the recovery stage. This can sometimes take years or decades to happen. The larger mass of a city is also sometimes part of the recovery from a disaster. The greatest and the most infamous example of this is the Hiroshima and Nagasaki nuclear attacks on Japan, it took the people of those cities years and decades to recover from that man-made calamity.

It took years of effort to stabilize the area and restore essential community or individual functions. The recovery stage prioritizes the basic essential needs of human survival like food, drinkable water, utilities, transportation and healthcare over less-essential services. Eventually, this stage is all about coordinating with individuals, communities and businesses to help each other to restore a normal or a new normal, as in the case of Covid-19.

How to Act as a Responsible Person During a Time of Disaster?

Some people have more experience than others with managing natural or man-made disasters and their prevention of them. Although this is that subject of life which should be studied and implemented by every business or community. As it is said rightly, “prevention is better than cure”, and any organization or an individual or a community can be hit by a disaster sooner or later, whether it's something as minor as a prolonged power cut or a life-threatening hurricane or an earthquake. Usually, the pandemics train us, as a social and political community, to deal with natural calamities and compel the organizations responsible for it, to build an infrastructure for its prevention.

To act responsibly and pro-actively during the event of a disaster, we have got to be prepared and equipped as a nation, individually and as a social community. To be well-educated and read with the aspects of disaster management is to be responsible for the handling of it.

FAQs on Disaster Management Essay

1. What is Disaster Management?

In simpler words, disaster management can be defined as the arrangement of resources and precautions to deal with all humanitarian aspects during an emergency. Disasters are the consequences of natural or human hazards. Earthquakes, floods, volcanic eruptions, hurricanes are some of the deadliest natural disasters to name a few. Examples of man-made disasters are bomb blast, radiations, transport accidents, terrorist attacks etc.

2. What is the Main Aim of Disaster Management?

The main aim of disaster management is prevention, rescue and recovery from the trauma, and development.

3. How to Write an Essay on Disaster Management?

Disaster management refers to the response to an emergency situation to make it as normal as possible. While writing an essay on Disaster Management, you can start with an introduction, then go on with the definition, the types of disaster management, a little in-depth explanation along with examples, and finish it off with a conclusion. 

4. Can I Get a Sample Essay on Disaster Management from Vedantu?

Yes, the essay mentioned on this page is about Disaster Management. This essay has been written by the experts of Vedantu keeping the understanding ability of the students of each class. 

5. What are the career opportunities in the field of Disaster management?

People looking for career opportunities in the field of disaster management have many pathways to approach it. Some examples of the jobs relating to this line of work are crisis-management leader, disaster-assistance specialist and emergency-planning coordinator. These are the roles which call for varying levels of responsibility in preparing a city or a company for catastrophic events. The job roles can be approached with earning a master’s degree in emergency and crisis management.

Disaster Prevention and Management: A Critical Review of The Literature

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Essay on Disaster Management

• Updated on  
• May 10, 2023

Disaster Management has been essentially included in the study curriculums of secondary education. Whether it is natural or man-made, disasters can wreak havoc on our surroundings and cost human lives as well. To familiarise students with efficiently preventing and ensuring the safety of living beings and our environment from unprecedented events, the study of Disaster Management has been included as an important part of the Geography class 10 syllabus. This blog aims to focus on imparting how you can draft a well-written essay on Disaster Management.

This Blog Includes:

What is disaster management, essay on disaster management: tips & tricks, sample format for essay on disaster management in 150 words, sample essay of disaster management (150 words), sample essay on disaster management (300 words) , sample essay on disaster management (500 words), essay on disaster management for class 9 onwards, essay on disaster management in india.

To begin with your essay on Disaster Management, the most important thing is to comprehend this concept as well as what it aims to facilitate. In simple terms, Disaster Management is termed as the management and utilisation of resources as well as responsibilities to tackle different emergencies, be it man-made disasters or natural ones. It concentrates on preparing human beings for a varied range of calamities and helping them respond in a better way as well as ensure recovery thus lessening their overall impact. 

Preparing for the Writing Section for Your English Exam? Then Check Out Message Writing and Letter Writing !

Before drafting your essay on Disaster Management, another thing you need to ensure is familiarising yourself with the structure of essay writing. To help you understand the do’s and don’ts, we have listed down some of the major things you need to keep in mind.

• Research thoroughly about your topic. For example, while writing an essay on Disaster Management, explore the recent happenings and mention them to provide the reader with a view into your understanding of this concept.
• Create important pointers while researching that you can further incorporate into your essay.
• Don’t mug up the definitions but comprehend them through examples.
• Use transitions between paragraphs to keep a coherent flow for the reader as a long paragraph might seem too lengthy and segregating your introduction and conclusion can provide a better structure.
• Quote important examples not only in your introduction but also in the following paragraphs where you detail the given topic.
• Revise and add finishing touches once you have completed the essay to locate any grammatical errors as well as other mistakes.

Now that you are aware of the key elements of writing an essay on Disaster Management, take a look at the format of essay writing first:

Introduction (30-40 words)

Begin with defining your topic explained in simple terms. For Disaster Management, You can make it more interesting by adding a question or a recent instance. The introduction should be understandable aiming to become more specific in the subsequent paragraphs.

Related Article: Geography for UPSC Preparation

Body of Content (80 words)

Also termed as the thesis statement , the content after the introduction should explain your given topic in detail. It should contain the maximum content out of the whole format because it needs to be detailed. For Disaster Management, you can delve deeper into its process, how it is carried out for different situations as well as prevention and protection.

Conclusion (30-40 words)

This section should mainly wrap up what you have described in the above paragraphs. For an essay on Disaster Management, you can focus on summing it up by writing its aim, types and purposes briefly.

Disaster can be simply termed as a sudden incident or happening which can be either natural or man-made and can potentially cause damage to the surroundings or loss of human life. To facilitate preparedness and better responsiveness to unforeseen events which can harm human beings and the environment, Disaster Management came into the picture.

Disaster Management aims to lessen the impact of natural and man-made calamities by designing and planning efficient ways to tackle them. It centrally comprises ensuring better control of the situation, its immediate evaluation, calling up required medical aids and transports, supplying drinking and food sources, among others and during this whole process, protecting the surroundings from more harm and keeping the lawfulness. The importance of Disaster Management has further increased in the contemporary scenario with the prevalent climate change and some of its latest examples include the unprecedented Australian wildfires.

Thus, the planet is getting bogged down by infinite technological devices, and their possible effects on the climate and the environment are inescapable. This has led to Disaster Management becoming the need of the hour as every country is aiming to become efficient and prepared to face both natural and man-made calamities.

Since the dawn of time, disasters, whether natural or man-made, have been a part of man’s evolution. Tsunamis, cyclones, earthquakes, floods, accidents, plane crashes, forest fires, chemical disasters, and other natural disasters frequently strike without notice, leading to massive loss of life and property. Disaster management refers to the strategies and actions put in place to lessen and prevent the effects of a disaster.

The word “disaster management” refers to all aspects of catastrophe mitigation, including preventive and protective measures, preparedness, and relief activities. The disaster management process can be separated into two phases: pre-disaster planning and post-disaster recovery. This encompasses measures such as prevention, mitigation, and preparedness aimed at minimising human and property losses as a result of a possible danger.

The second category is activity post-disaster recovery in which response, rehabilitation, and reconstruction are all included. Search and rescue evacuation, meeting the victims’ basic needs, and rapid medical support from regional, national, and international authorities were all part of the response phase. The immediate purpose of the recovery phase is to restore some degree of normalcy to the afflicted areas. In resource-scarce countries, ex-ante risk mitigation investment in development planning is critical for decreasing disaster damage. It would be prudent to go from a risk-blind to a risk-informed investment decision.

We cannot prevent disasters, but we can reduce their severity and arm ourselves with knowledge so that too many lives are spared.

Introduction: 

The globe is plagued with disasters, some of which are terrible and others that are controllable. Natural calamities, for example, are sudden occurrences that wreak significant devastation to lives and property. Disasters can occur either naturally or are man-made. To repair the damage caused by these disasters, emergency management is required. Through a disaster management procedure, the damage is contained and the hazards of the event are controlled. The procedure is aimed at averting disasters and reducing the effects of those that are unavoidable. Floods, droughts, landslides, and earthquakes are all threats to India. The Indian government’s disaster management measures have vastly improved over time.

The Process of Disaster Management: 

The disaster management process is split into four stages. The first phase is mitigation, which involves reducing the likelihood of a disaster or its negative consequences. Public education on the nature of the calamity and how people may prepare to protect themselves, as well as structural construction projects, are among the actions. These projects are intended at reducing the number of people killed and property destroyed in the event of a disaster.

Preparedness is the second phase of disaster management, and it aims to improve government-led preparedness to deal with emergencies. The majority of the preparations are aimed toward life-saving activities. Plan writing, communication system development, public education, and drills are all part of the preparation process. The disaster management team implements measures to keep people alive and limit the number of people affected in the third phase, reaction. Transport, shelter, and food are provided to the afflicted population as part of the response. Repairs are being made, and temporary solutions, such as temporary housing for the impacted population, are being sought.

Recovery is the ultimate stage of disaster management. This normally happens after the tragedy has subsided and the harm has been done. During the recovery process, the team works to restore people’s livelihoods and infrastructure. Short-term or long-term recovery is possible. The goal is to return the affected population to a normal or better way of life. During public education, the importance of health safety is highlighted. The recovery phase allows catastrophe management to move forward with long-term solutions.

Disaster Management Challenges:

The management of disasters is a difficult task, and there are certain flaws to be found. Since the individual dangers and disasters in some countries are not well understood, the government is unable to deploy disaster management in the event of an unforeseen disaster. There’s also the issue of a country’s technical and framework capabilities being insufficient. Government support is required for disaster management frameworks. Due to the generally large population, the disaster management approach includes public education, but there is no psychological counselling for individuals. People are more likely to develop post-traumatic stress disorder and psychiatric illnesses.

Conclusion:

Disaster management is a very important activity that countries should embrace to prevent disasters and lessen the negative consequences of disasters. However, disaster management has limitations that restrict the techniques’ ability to be implemented successfully.

Disasters can cause chaos, mass death of humans and animals, and a rise in crime rates. Disasters are unfavourable events that cause widespread anxiety and terror. They also make it difficult for society to respond to its causes.

Natural or man-made disasters can emerge. In both circumstances, they have the potential to cause significant loss of life and property. A combination of man-made and natural disasters can occur in severe circumstances. For example, violent conflicts and food scarcity. As a result, disaster management is required to limit or prevent massive loss and damage.

Disaster management includes disaster avoidance, disaster awareness, and disaster planning. These ideas will be discussed further down.

Prevention of Disaster: 

Countries all across the world have taken precautions to prevent diseases or viruses from spreading. These initiatives include the funding of research into natural disaster aversion. Other sources of revenue include food distribution, healthcare services, and so on. In Africa and the Middle East, the latter is commonly used in economically challenged areas.

Improved scientific research has also made it feasible to predict potential natural disasters. For example, equipment to detect earthquakes and tsunamis has been developed. As a result, more people are concerned about the environment. In this sense, consciousness translates to a reduction in all forms of pollution in the environment.

Disaster Awareness :

Another strategy to minimise the excesses of widespread epidemics is to raise disaster awareness. Members of the public must be made aware of the importance of maintaining peace, de-escalating dangerous circumstances, and prioritising safety in the face of any possible tragedy.

The goal of disaster management is to reduce human death and suffering. The impact of disasters can be reduced if all of these factors are successfully managed. As a result, the necessity of disaster management cannot be emphasised.

The National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA) is the main agency charged with establishing rules and guidelines for disaster management in order to ensure prompt and effective disaster response. There is also a separate fund for mitigation called the “national disaster management fund” (NDMF). Functions performed by this agency are:

• Administration
• Formation of policies for disaster management
• Approval of the strategies made up for disaster mitigation
• Formation of revenue or funds for disaster mitigation
• Managing multiple programmes and disseminating instructions.

The disaster has had both direct and indirect repercussions on human life, both of which have been deadly devastating and detrimental. There have been fatalities as well as stock losses. Natural disasters are unavoidable; even if we have mechanisms in place to predict or forecast them, we cannot prevent them from occurring. While preparing plans for our disaster management, the best that can be done is to prevent behaviours that are detrimental to the environment and lead to environmental deterioration. When a disaster strikes, it causes widespread devastation and loss of life. In the event of a disaster such as earthquakes, floods, or other natural disasters, a large number of people are displaced, and a large number of people die as a result of the disaster. This is when the true emergency begins by providing first aid to the injured, as well as rescue and relief efforts for the victims. To limit the risk of human life, everyone must participate actively in disaster management. When a crisis happens, the appropriate disaster management team can seize over as soon as possible.

Also Read: Career in Ecology and Environment

The 4 phases of disaster management are Mitigation, Preparedness, Response, and Recovery. 

The 3 types of disasters are natural, man-made, and hybrid disasters.

On 23 December 2005, the Government of India enacted the Disaster Management Act

Hence, we hope that this blog has helped you understand the key steps to writing a scoring essay on Disaster Management. If you are at the conclusion of the 10th grade and confused about which stream to take in the next standard, reach out to our Leverage Edu expert and we’ll guide you in choosing the right stream of study as well as gain clarity about your interests and aspirations so that you take an informed step towards a rewarding career.

Sonal is a creative, enthusiastic writer and editor who has worked extensively for the Study Abroad domain. She splits her time between shooting fun insta reels and learning new tools for content marketing. If she is missing from her desk, you can find her with a group of people cracking silly jokes or petting neighbourhood dogs.

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Ems disaster response.

Taylor A. Klein ; Lisandro Irizarry .

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Last Update: July 17, 2023 .

• Introduction

The disaster cycle involves four phases: preparation, response, recovery, and mitigation. [1]  The cycle illustrates the steps that emergency managers take when planning for and responding to a disaster. Preparation is the phase where response plans are constructed. The response is the phase where there is immediate action to limit the hazards created by the disaster. Recovery is the effort to return a community to pre-disaster levels of functioning. Mitigation is the phase where new measures are undertaken to prevent or minimize the effects of future disasters.  Some sources refer to the mitigation phase as “prevention.”

To meaningfully discuss disaster response, it is essential also to discuss disaster and disaster management. Though there exists no consensus definition of disaster, the various definitions published by organizations and agencies at the forefront of disaster management have overlapping concepts.

A disaster is a state in which the usual, normal day-to-day human activities within a determined geographic area cease indefinitely. It is defined by a severe disruption in the basic structure and function of a society. This abnormal state is triggered by some extraordinary circumstance, either occurring naturally or as the result of human activity.

A disaster is the consequence of a sudden event or series of events of grand magnitude, which results in injury, disease, illness, loss of life, destruction of property, and/or damage to critical infrastructure and essential services. [2]  The precipitating event may be natural, i.e., natural disasters (e.g., tornado, hurricane, drought, famine, earthquake, landslides, infectious disease outbreaks, etc.) or man-made. [3] [4]  Man-made events may be unintentional (fires, building collapses, nuclear reactor meltdowns) or intentional (terrorism, sabotage, cyber-attacks, conflict-based). In recent times, both man-made and natural disasters have occurred at an increasing frequency. [5]

Due to its scale and dimension, a disaster exceeds the emergency management capacity of local organizations and agencies, thus necessitating external assistance. That assistance may come from the state, national, and/or international levels. The rapid, immediate, and short-term actions circumjacent to a disaster are known as disaster response. [6]

Disaster response is one of the core activities of disaster management. It involves the execution of a disaster plan in the event of a disaster.

• Issues of Concern

A vital concept core within the field of disaster management is that all disasters are local. This concept refers to the idea that the response to a disaster nearly always begins before making an official disaster declaration. Whether the event is a major transportation accident such as the Hong Kong subway fire of 2017, a natural disaster such as Hurricane Katrina, or a planned attack like 9/11, the first to be notified and arrive on the scene are always local first responders. [7] [8] [9] [8] [7] Police, firefighters, and EMS personnel within the jurisdiction are called to the scene and begin their work, which could involve any number of rescues, life-saving interventions, hazard reduction, or evacuation efforts. [10]

Throughout the disaster response phase, the local incident management command structure is responsible for directing response efforts and effectively implementing the disaster plan. One of the most important qualities of an advantageous disaster plan is to minimize its complexity. [11]  The best plans effectively identify what resources are available to the incident management team and outline procedures to access those resources without applying extensive constraints to their utilization; this allows the plan to be adaptable to the specific needs of the situation. 

The primary objective of disaster response is to provide immediate short-term assistance to meet the myriad needs that arise when a disaster occurs. [12]

If the disaster reaches a significant enough magnitude and presents a drain to local resources, the governor of the affected state or tribal leader of the Native American reservation, makes a formal request for a major disaster declaration to the federal government. [13]  Once a disaster is recognized and declared, federal disaster responders and other response resources are activated and moved into position for deployment.

Those individuals and professions potentially involved at this stage are too numerous to name realistically. Local responders will still be involved.  This team of responders could include professional rescuers, police officers, firefighters, paramedics, cities and county emergency managers, public works and other utility workers, local healthcare workers, teams of engineers, members of the media, local volunteers, and many more.

In the United States, federal assets deployed in response to a major disaster declaration bring many more actors to the scene.  The Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) is responsible for coordinating the federal operational and logistical disaster response capability within the National Response Framework.  The available resources break down into bundles, referred to as “Emergency Support Functions (ESFs)  [14] [15] [16] :

• Assists with the management of transportation systems and infrastructure
• Assists in the coordination of stakeholders in response efforts and supports and restores existing communication infrastructure
• Assists with technical aspects of maintaining necessary public services and engineering expertise
• Assists with suppression of wildland, rural and urban fires
• Assists with the collection, analysis, processing, and dissemination of information
• Assists with providing secure access to finances and housing for those displaced by a disaster
• Assists with comprehensive planning of technical assistance, training, educational programs, exercises, and incident response
• Assists with public health initiatives, mental health, and medical care response
• Assists with life-saving intervention for those trapped by disasters
• Assists with a response to actual or potential hazmat disasters
• Assists by providing nutrition assistance, and threats to agricultural infrastructure and the supply chain
• Assists with technical expertise during threats to the energy sector and stabilizes/restores normal operations at energy facilities.
• Assists with local law enforcement, maintaining order, and protecting citizens.
• Assists with the stabilization of key supply chains in disaster areas
• Assists with the communication of accurate, timely and accessible information to affected audiences during a disaster

Which bundle of resources is deployed is dependent on the circumstances of the specific disaster situation and what resources are requested by the governor or tribal leader. Each package brings more actors and professions into the response united in the goal of providing immediate assistance to communities affected by disasters.

The escalation of a disaster situation often brings another player to the scene, the non-governmental organizations (NGOs).  Examples of NGOs include those widely known, such as the Red Cross and the Salvation Army, but also those not as well-known but local, regional, and even international. Though they are not government entities, they can play a crucial role in disaster response and provide relief and services to many victims. These organizations can help even absent a major disaster declaration. Each organization has a particular specific mission and funding sources. They can intervene in circumstances that fulfill their mission.  Some provide medical care. Some, like Team Rubicon, help with housing repairs and clearing debris. Some even are able to provide financial assistance to victims. [17]

In addition to those responders summoned to help with disasters, the recent increase in the occurrence of natural disasters has caused another phenomenon to develop, disaster tourism. This term refers to individuals, or groups of individuals, who “self-dispatch” themselves to a disaster. In some cases, these are people nobly motivated to help. In other cases, some of these people may want to bear first-hand witness to the situation.  Whatever their intentions, disaster responders, regardless of their origin, put stress on the local resources already struggling due to the disaster situation. When those responders are requested and providing necessary help to the community, the benefit outweighs the tax. But for those who are unplanned “responders,” their presence could cause more harm than good. The limited resources for these people could also pose a risk to their health and safety.  For those who respond to disasters, they must be attached to an official organization for both the best interests of the community affected by the disaster and the responders’ personal health and safety. [18]

Regardless of what organization originally dispatched each disaster responder, they are united in their common goal to provide immediate relief to those affected by disasters.

• Clinical Significance

Despite advancing preparedness and mitigation strategies, disaster is inevitable and invariably affects human populations. [19]  Though the scale of disasters varies, disaster management principles are widely applicable. Disaster management has a goal of reducing the impact of disasters. Disaster response is a crucial phase and involves the immediate actions taken in the aftermath of a disaster to protect against further loss of life and property. [20]

Responders are interdisciplinary and from a wide variety of backgrounds.  For each stakeholder to work together properly, disaster plans need to have minimal complexity and be widely applicable; the correct resources need to be activated; the incident command structure must be respected; and, responders need to be well trained. Once the immediate response phase has passed, efforts can shift towards recovery and return to the normal functioning of the affected community.

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The disaster cycle illustrates the steps that emergency managers take when planning for an responding to a disaster. Preparation is the phase where response plans are constructed. Response is the phase where immediate action is taken to limit the hazards (more...)

Disclosure: Taylor Klein declares no relevant financial relationships with ineligible companies.

Disclosure: Lisandro Irizarry declares no relevant financial relationships with ineligible companies.

This book is distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International (CC BY-NC-ND 4.0) ( http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/ ), which permits others to distribute the work, provided that the article is not altered or used commercially. You are not required to obtain permission to distribute this article, provided that you credit the author and journal.

• Cite this Page Klein TA, Irizarry L. EMS Disaster Response. [Updated 2023 Jul 17]. In: StatPearls [Internet]. Treasure Island (FL): StatPearls Publishing; 2024 Jan-.

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