Understanding the 4 Principals of Emergency Management

[MadMaddie]

Last quarter I studied "Emergency Management". I am currently studying "Protection of Critical Infrastructure" as one of my classes for a Masters Certificate.

Haiti is suffering from the destruction of an already poor critical infrastructure: water, telecommunications, electrical. Now on top of that put a crushing 80% of the population living below the poverty level. Many of the Haitians were malnutrition and in poor health and now add being trapped, dehydrated and starvation into the mix. You now have what we are seeing daily a catastrophic event.

I am by no means an expert "YET"!

I have seen many here at DU post their frustration at how the response is being managed. I wanted to share with you some of the information from my studies.

1. Mitigation
2. Response
3. Recovery
4. Preparedness

In this case Haiti is too poor to spend resources on planning for the mitigation of a disaster.

So now because of the crisis the rescuers have jumped into the "Response" phase. Creating a fluid and coordinated effort with all of the responding countries and resources is going to be difficult.

Many and close to all of the hospitals were destroyed
Water supply destroyed
Electrical supply destroyed
Telecommunications destroyed

Rescue is still going on
Supplies are not getting out due to logistics and coordination
U.S. Helicopters are en-route and may just be arriving
Heavy equipment is en-route
Huge need for security
82nd airborne is en-route

My thoughts go to the safety of all of the rescuers and responders. I hope they can find many survivors and tend to all of the injured.

I would suggest that everyone go to your cities or towns home page and see if you can find out how your town plans to deal with a natural or man made disaster. Each of you should be aware of those plans.

Wikipedia has a nice summation of Emergency Management
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Emergency_management

MadMaddie

[galileoreloaded]

1. Another DU survivalist..... great......

:sarcasm:

[hedgehog]

11. I think it's a good reminder. After our experience with an ice storm,

we knew exactly what was needed when an ice storm hit our folks 200 miles away. We bought a generator and the switches to install it and hauled it down with us because they'd all been sold out locally. It's also a reminder to develop some skills ahead of time. The day after an ice storm is not the day you learn to run a chain saw.

An ice storm is about the worst that could happen around here, although I do have a weather radio to warn of severe weather.

[Hekate]

21. This doesn't sound like "survivalism" to me, but info for well prepared citizens...

After Hurricane Katrina and the drowning of NOLA, I made a point of attending a couple of community forums to find out what our local disaster plan was. I didn't learn as much as I wanted to at the time, but it gave me a basis of knowledge to pick up more as I go along.

For instance, I just found out yesterday that Direct Relief International has a refrigerator at their warehouse that holds my county's entire H1N1 flu vaccine supply, and that they and the County have developed a list of doctors to whom they will distribute backpacks full of first aid supplies in time of need -- I guess like the old-fashioned black leather bag doctors used to take on old-fashioned house calls. It's only 2 miles from my home so Mr. H and I went by there to drop off a check for their Haiti mission, and got a tour of the warehouse.

We live on top of the San Andreas fault here, and when we have our own Big One, the survivors are going to be cut off by land because along the coast all we have going in and out is one freeway and two parallel roads. Hundreds of other streets, too, but they don't exit the city. It's nice to know we have a major partner like DRI (who just sent a 20' container and a 40' container of medical supplies to Haiti via FedEx, which donates their shipping expertise).

It's also nice to pick up more info at DU from informed members who have personal knowledge of how a disaster relief operation is supposed to unfold. I hope to be calm enough to remember all that If I have to dig my freeze-dried food packets out of the rubble of my house.

Hekate

[niyad]

2. k and r for the information. my city may have emergency plans, but, given the idots who run the

government here, I doubt they could actually bring it off, were anything to happen.

[fishnfla]

3. I would move communications to the top

this is one thing that struck me about Katrina, when the levees went it was not known soon enough and the information was not spread far enough due to a lack of communications

same thing with the recovery, lack of communications leads to a lack of coordinated effort

In this day and age there has to be a better way, actually an old fashioned way--citizen's ban radios or hamm radios are superior to any modern communications, it seems

[hedgehog]

12. I would expect phone systems to be overloaded in the immediate aftermath-

How sturdy is the cell phone system? Would it stay intact after an earthquake or flood?

[Hekate]

22. During the Gap Fire above our neighborhood last year, the cell phone towers went up in flames...

... but my hubby's old rotary phone had a dial tone as soon as he dusted it off and plugged it in.

Note: This may NOT work if your house has cable for everything including your phone service. We tried loaning that old phone to our daughter because she's still using her cell for everything and it doesn't get any reception at her house, which actually has a phone line. Turns out it's for cable, so our old phone doesn't work there. Also, Verizon is making it plain to us it doesn't plan on maintaining old telephone lines into our home forever. The concept of telephone access as a public utility has been rendered quaint, apparently.

Hekate

[nadinbrzezinski]

25. Why I have not gotten rid of my phone line

:-)

And fires here in SoCal have gotten worst it seems.

[Hekate]

27. Fires absolutely have gotten worse here. We had 4 major ones in the region within a year.

That level of dryness is rare -- or used to be.

Hekate

[The Straight Story]

4. A link for you (and a kick):

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=389x7466992

Posted the above earlier today - may be of some help to you.

[Hekate]

24. Good resource! I've bookmarked it.

[laughingliberal]

5. I think 125 of the 82nd airborne have arrived. Believe 3400 of them are going

This is a massive effort. Everyone involved is chomping at the bit to get in and help but it's daunting. I'm signed up with RNRN who is trying to get RN's in as fast as possible. There are 4500 who have signed up through the website to volunteer. 3000 of them signed on since this morning. They did say, several times, on their conference call this morning that they have to make the security of those going the first priority as they know nurses just want to jump in and go but it is not acceptable for us to go down and have to try to work and be our own bodyguards. Hopefully, we can get some in there quickly.

[likesmountains 52]

8. I was unable to participate in the conference call..can you share some highlights with me?

[laughingliberal]

9. Sure

Mostly talked about the efforts to get nurses going and what we'll need. Need to get passport in order. They are working with drug companies to get vaccines and malaria prophylaxis donated so there won't be a charge to the volunteers. The big push right now is to have enough security. Said they don't want nurses in a position to have to be their own bodyguards but they are feeling, as they know we all are, the urgency of getting RN's there quickly as they are able to rapidly change the face of disasters with their ability to assess not only patients but overall situations and environments. They are working on getting donations (money and private planes) for various ways to get transportation for all who will be going. There was a congressman from NY (didn't catch his name) who is looking into getting some RN's on the military ships heading down there. They are also contacting sporting goods stores for donations of sleeping bags, camping gear as most will be sleeping under those conditions. French speaking nurses are highly desirable. Also a need for as many as possible who have any experience with emotional support of children. They noted infusion experience will be very helpful as dehydration and electrolyte imbalances will be rampant. They were asked about what types of personal items we would need and they said they will post a basic list on the website. They cautioned it is not a situation they would advise anyone to strike out and go into on their own. I imagine a lot of the arrangements for security will involve sending groups in together. Some obvious things like those who are working should notify their employers they are interested in going in order to try and get leave. Some employers, of course, will be more cooperative than others. Nurses who are unable to go can assist by supporting efforts to assist other nurses in getting there.

Not sure if you've signed up but here's the link to their site if you need to and they will post information on there like basic personal items to bring with.

http://www.nationalnursesunited.org/

[hedgehog]

10. Part of the problem in a situation like this is for the host country

to be able to know the credentials of the people coming in. That's where an established agency has a leg up.

[laughingliberal]

13. True. So RNRN is good with getting that done for nursing personnel

They said they were getting nurses into New Orleans after Katrina for about 4 months. A few more issues with this but they did say the licensing requirements for nurses in Haiti were not stringent and so our state licenses here would suffice. Their brochure says they are the first direct care national disaster network.

[hedgehog]

14. I'd heard this problem mentioned before for international aid,

it didn't occur to me that people would run afoul of state licensing procedures. I know my doctor has licenses to pratice in a couple of neighboring states where he vacations often.

[laughingliberal]

20. It's probably easier to get us into Haiti than most anywhere

Other countries might be daunting. Of course, with Katrina, they had to get the out of state nurses licensed in New Orleans but this group seems to have all that under control. The process is a little more streamlined than it once. Most states can issue a temporary license, with verification of our license in our current state of practice, within a few days. The length of time it is good for varies. Nevada was once four months but it was taking so long to get fingerprints processed (which they require) that they now issue a temporary for 6 months, I think. At any rate, they did not indicate problems with this for Haiti.

[timeforpeace]

6. Pretty obvious stuff, huh?

[blondeatlast]

7. Proud to get this to the Greatest (as promised). Everyone

who is commenting on operations in Haiti should read this.

[nadinbrzezinski]

15. Getting flashbacks to the training classes

decades ago...

Let me add one of the major things people are critical off and why they are mostly avoided.

Air drops.

There are several problems with air drops, which are not obvious to people who have never had to deal with them. We did, as training.

Gear tends not to survive the landing, some delicate gear, see not bandages and gauze medical equipment, and even bottles, water bottles... oh IV bags burst nicely.

You need a clear area without people, or the risk of injury to those on the ground is great. This city is more than just a little crowded so finding a relatively flat, and chiefly "safe" LZ... good luck, and you still need people on the ground.

Oh so they could use Emergency Rations.

EMRATS are all but familiar with your target population (and taste like crap, and have a ... different look to them). Also, while they can be dropped on yellow pouches on a small parachute, if the chute fails they will reach terminal velocity and could break a bone or kill. That is why they are mostly used in very isolated areas (like Afghanistan), or as a very last resort. If they cannot get the situation stabilized enough where they can start doing ground distribution they just might, but we are not there yet.

Why does this thing about taste, and look matter? I mean you will eat if hungry enough right? WRONG. And you'd be amazed to know that Logistics also has to consider this little factoid in the food distributed to locals.

Thanks... I promise you will get to this subject soon...

[galileoreloaded]

17. +1 on the humrats. Is it possible to like MRE's???? n/t

[nadinbrzezinski]

19. Don't know the last time I did distro

and it's been a LONG TIME... I took the bag that was fully unmarked, as in the surprise MRE... I just remember the peanut butter... and walking on it for hours to get it to mix.

Main dish was mac and beef in tomato sauce... what a disgusting little thing.

[XemaSab]

23. If it's literal mud cakes

versus MRE's... I know which one I would go for.

[IRemember]

16. Rule #5: Learning the difference between principals and principles.

I kid, I kid. ..Thanks!

[Hekate]

18. Very informative, MadMaddie. KnRnTY.

[MadMaddie]

26. Thanks everyone!

I am enjoying my studies and I love to share what I am learning!

Good Night!:hi:

[blondeatlast]

28. AM kick for some very good, concise info. nt