Disaster preparedness and prevention mgt

Dppm

1. DISASTER IMPACTS UNIT-III

2. Disaster Impacts/Impact of Disasters: These are the physical and social disturbances that a hazard agent inflicts when it strikes a community. Physical impacts comprise casualties (deaths, injuries, and illnesses) and damage to agriculture, structures, infrastructure, and the natural environment. Social impacts comprise psychological impacts, demographic impacts, economic impacts, and political impacts.

3. Environmental impacts: Water. Land/Soil. Land-use. Landscape. Crops. Lake/Rivers/Estuaries. Aquaculture. Forests. Animal/Livestock. Wildlife. Atmosphere. Energy.

4. 2 . Physical impacts: Injuries. Death. Physical disability. Burns. Epidemic. Weakness/uneasiness Physical illness. Sanitation. Miscarriage. Reproductive health. Fatigue. Loss of Sleep. Loss of Appetite.

5. 3 . Social impacts: Change in individual’s role. Disruption of social fabric. Isolation. Change in marital status. Sexual abuse & domestic violence. Orphans. Single parent children. Family & social disorganization. Migration. Life style changes. Breakdown of traditional Social Status.

6. 4 . Economic impacts: Loss of life. Unemployment. iii. Loss of Livelihood. iv. Loss of property/land. v. Loss of household articles. vi. Loss of crops. vii. Loss of public infrastructure.

7. 5. Political impacts: Victims usually attempt to recreate preimpact housing patterns, which can thwart government attempts at relocation to less hazardous areas. Such attempts also can be problematic for their neighbors if victims attempt to site temporary housing, such as mobile homes, on their own lots while awaiting the reconstruction of permanent housing. Conflicts arise when such housing is considered to be a blight on the neighborhood and neighbors are afraid the “temporary” housing will become permanent. Neighbors also are pitted against each other when developers attempt to buy damaged or destroyed properties and build multifamily units on lots previously zoned for single family dwellings. Such rezoning attempts are a major threat to the market value of owner-occupied homes but tend to have less impact on renters because they have less incentive to remain in the neighborhood. There are exceptions to this generalization because some ethnic groups have very close ties to their neighborhoods, even if they rent rather than own.

8. Health: An epidemic is an outbreak of a contractible disease that spreads through a human population. A pandemic is an epidemic whose spread is global. There have been many epidemics throughout history, such as the Black Death. In the last hundred years, significant pandemics include: The 1918 Spanish flu pandemic, killing an estimated 50 million people worldwide. The 1957–58 Asian flu pandemic, which killed an estimated 1 million people. The 1968–69 Hong Kong water flu pandemic. The 2002-3 SARS pandemic. The AIDS pandemic, beginning in 1959 The H1N1 Influenza (Swine Flu) Pandemic 2009–2010. COVID

9. Impact events: One of the largest impact events in modern times was the Tunguska event in June 1908. 2. Solar flare: A solar flare is a phenomenon where the sun suddenly releases a great amount of solar radiation, much more than normal. Some known solar flares include: An X20 event on August 16, 1989. A similar flare on April 2, 2001. The most powerful flare ever recorded, on November 4, 2003, estimated at between X40 and X45 NASA found a solar flare on May 5 th 2024

10. Psycho-Social Issues : Various psychosocial consequences were observed. They are: Post‐traumatic symptoms. Depression. Anxiety. Dissociation. Suicidality. Dissocial behavior. Substance abuse were common. A number of victims continued to have psychiatric symptoms with considerable intensity, clarity and multiplicity, which suggested probable syndromes. Religious observations and self‐help groups were the usual coping methods of the community. Psychosocial manifestations could be conceptualized in five phases depending upon the period around the disaster and the availability of outside help.

11. Demographic Aspects: Age: 1. Impaired balance (balance disorder). 2. Decreased strength. 3. Poor exercise tolerance. 4. Deterioration of sight, hearing, smell, taste, and touch. 5. Unable to hear danger signals, alarms, etc. 6. Difficulty in evacuation. 7. Difficulty in protection. 8. Difficulty in getting access to relief and compensation money. 9. Difficulty in locating avenues of escape. 10.Have to face the shock of losing all that they had attained in life i . Home. ii. Family. iii. Security

12. Hazard/Hazardous Locations: Hazardous Locations consist of areas where there is the potential for a fire or explosion due to electrical equipment that is in operation in this area with a reaction to flammable or ignitable gases, liquids, vapor's, combustible dusts, fibers or flying's. The need for Explosion-Proof equipment then arises due to this potential for fire or explosion. The National Electrical Code (NEC) along with the National Fire Protection Association (NFPA) and Underwriters Laboratories (UL) have published a guide along with codes that classify hazardous areas into classes, divisions and zones. CLASS I: Class I locations consist of areas where gases, vapors or liquids may exist that have the potential to become flammable or ignitable . There are two different divisions that exist in Class I, Division 1 and Division 2, along with three Zones; Zone 0, 1 & 2. Locations that would be considered to be Class I include Petroleum Refineries, Gasoline Storage Areas, Dry Cleaning Plants, Spray Finishing Areas, Fuel Servicing Areas, etc.

13. Division 1 is a subset of Class I and is classified as an area where the explosive or flammable gases, vapors or liquids mentioned above can exist under normal, everyday operating conditions. Division 2 is also a subset of Class I and is classified as an area where the explosive or flammable gases, vapors or liquids mentioned above are not likely to exist during regular operation. Zone 0 is described as the presence of explosive or flammable gases, vapors or liquids for long periods of time during operating conditions or during a large portion of the operating conditions. Zone 1 is described as the presence of explosive or flammable gases, vapors or liquids for some of the time during normal operating conditions. Zone 2 is described as there not being a likelihood of explosive or flammable gases, vapors or liquids present during normal operating conditions. CLASS II: Class II locations consist of locations where combustible dusts may exist that have the potential to become flammable or ignitable . Locations that would be considered to be Class II include Grain elevators, Flour and feed mills, Metal powder manufacturers, and Coal plants, etc Division 1 is a subset of Class II and is classified as an area where the explosive or flammable combustible dusts mentioned above can exist under normal, everyday operating conditions. Division 2 is also a subset of Class II and is classified as an area where the explosive or flammable combustible dusts mentioned above are not likely to exist during regular operation

14. CLASS III : Class III locations consist of locations where fibers and flying's may exist that have the potential to become flammable or ignitable . Locations that would be considered to be Class III include Cotton Gins, Cotton Seed Mills, Sawdust or flying's plants, or Textile mills. Division 1 is a subset of Class III and is classified as an area where ignitable fibers or flying's may be manufactured, stored or handled. Division 2 is also a subset of Class III and is classified as an area where ignitable fibers or flying's may be stored or handled.

15. Hazardous Location Equipment: Sources of Ignition: There are three of them: Arcs and sparks produced by the normal operation of equipment, like motor starters, contractors, and switches, can ignite a hazardous location atmosphere. The high temperature s of some heat producing equipment, such as lamps and lighting fixtures, can ignite flammable atmospheres if they exceed the ignition temperature of the hazardous material. The National Electric Code requires special marking of heat producing equipment with temperatures above 100 C (212Pa). Electrical equipment failure is another way an explosion could be set off. A burn out of a lamp socket or shorting of a terminal could spark a real disaster in a hazardous location

16. Global & National Disaster Trends: Development and relief agencies have long recognized the important role played by data and information in mitigating the impacts of disasters on vulnerable populations. Systematic collection and analysis of these data provides invaluable information to governments and agencies in charge of relief and recovery activities. It also aids the integration of health components in development and poverty alleviation programs. CRED has a long history of standardized data compilation, validation and analysis. It provides free and open access to its data through its website. One of CRED’s core data products is the EM-DAT the International Disaster Database. EM-DAT provides an objective basis for vulnerability assessment and rational decision-making in disaster situations. EM-DAT provides disaster-related economic damage estimates and disaster specific international aid contributions.

17. Climate Change: It is the change in the climate of a country, region, or the world over, and is believed to be caused either directly or indirectly by the activity of the human race. The type of climate we experience now might be prevailing over the last 10,000 years with minor and occasionally wide fluctuations. The planet earth has witnessed many variations in climate since the beginning. Geological records show alteration of glacial and inter‐glacial periods. The geomorphological features, especially in high altitudes and high latitudes, exhibit traces of advances and retreats of glaciers. The sediment deposits in glacial lakes also reveal the occurrence of warm and cold periods. The rings in the trees provide clues about wet and dry periods. Historical records describe the vagaries in climate. All these evidences indicate that change in climate is a natural and continuous process.

18. Causes of Climate Change: Climate refers to the long‐term average of the aggregation of all components of weather: precipitation, temperature and cloudiness, for example. The climate system includes processes involving ocean, land and sea ice in addition to the atmosphere. The causes for climate change are many. They can be grouped into: 1. Astronomical causes. 2. Terrestrial causes. Astronomical causes: The astronomical causes are the changes in solar output associated with sunspot activities. Sunspots are dark and cooler patches on the sun which increase and decrease in a cyclical manner. According to some meteorologists , when the number of sunspots increase, cooler and wetter weather and greater storminess occur. A decrease in sunspot numbers is associated with warm and drier conditions. Yet, these findings are not statistically significant.

19. Climate Change – Inter relationships with earth subsystems: Geosphere: It indicates the presence of rocks, minerals and landforms of the surface and interiors. Hydrosphere: The total amount of water on the planet. Biosphere : The most important anthropogenic effect on the climate is the increasing trend in the concentration of greenhouse gases in the atmosphere which is likely to cause global warming.

20. Urban Disasters: Disasters are the result of the interaction of hazards and vulnerable conditions and as such the product of the social, political, and economic environments. When disasters affect cities or urban areas (nonrural contexts) they are referred to as urban disasters. There is general agreement that urban disasters & risk are linked to broader development processes, & disaster risk reduction should be mainstreamed into the general development process. Risk is becoming highly urbanized, with increasing populations & assets exposed to hazards, combined with difficulties in addressing vulnerability and risk drivers, especially in low & middle income countries. The quality and capacity of city governments is highly relevant to the distribution of local risk levels, those associated with everyday life as well as less frequent, more extreme events. Tackling urban disasters and creating more resilient cities capable of managing disaster risk and climate change requires good governance.