Puerto Ricans are not prepared Disasters and incidents that have already happened recently have demonstrated that Puerto Ricans are not well prepared or educated to face these kind of unexpected events. Incidents like 2008’s tropical storm Kyle, 2010’s 5.8-magnitude earthquake and this year’s police chase in Plaza las Americas have demonstrated this. When in 2008, the tropical storm Kyle passed through Puerto Rico it caused severe damages due to floods produced by its rainfalls. The mudflows caused schools and roads to be closed and killed one person. The damages of the floods were so severe that President George W. Bush had to declare the island a disaster area. In 2010, when the 5.8 magnitude earthquake struck Puerto Rico, many Puerto Ricans …show more content…
In order to be able to recover from the damages with ease, the responses to disasters have to be very sudden too. The only way to respond to disasters quickly is to have an effective emergency preparedness plan. Emergency preparedness is an important strategy needed to reduce the damages and injuries that could be caused by disasters. Having an emergency plan helps determining the steps that should be taken to protect homes and people. When preparing an emergency plan, unrecognized dangerous conditions that would aggravate an incident can be discovered and can be worked on to be eliminated. Making an emergency plan exposes deficiencies such as lack of resources, equipment and supplies. The stress of an emergency situation can lead people to take the least appropriated decisions, resulting in severe consequences. Having a plan provides them guidance during an emergency. Knowing what procedures to follow during an emergency can save lives and reduce the risks of injuries. Many Puerto Ricans have an attitude of “it won’t happen here” towards catastrophic disasters and may not take the effort to examine the possibilities. Nevertheless, emergency planning is crucial to ensure survival during
Puerto Rico at the expense of native people (6). After the Cape San Vicente disaster,
The National response plan outlines four key actions the disaster coordinator should take. They are gaining and maintaining situational awareness, activate and deploy key resources and capabilities, coordinating response actions and demobilizing. Throughout the response it is essential that responders have access to critical information. During the initial response effort the situation is will change rapidly. Situational awareness starts at the incident site. For this reason it is essential that decision makers have access to the right information at the right time. By establishing an Emergency Operations Center (EOC) all key responders are brought ...
It was striking in New Orleans in July 2004. Unfortunately, this exercise was not successful because of three reasons: the funding was cut off for the follow-up to the exercise, while planning it became evident that multiple workshops would be required, and the issue for medication for hurricane Katrina victims was not finalized. A scenario-based planning exercise process was quite effective. As Katrina approached, state officials knew they were not prepared enough, and it had not been completed. However, after the exercise, the government and local originations have learned how to prepare and practice in emergency
The Haitian government’s lack of preparedness for earthquakes despite the fact that earthquakes are common to the region is indicative of the governments inability and lack of resources to properly plan and protect it’s population against natural disasters. This lack of preparedness is not an isolated incident. Prior to the disaster, the World Bank and others were working with the Haitian government to incorporate disaster risk management into Haiti’s development strategy and to develop its capacity for disaster response. This capacity building was in its early stages of development when the earthquake hit, on January 12, 2010, and was mainly focused on hurricanes, which are the most common cause of natural disaster on the island (Margesson, 2010, p. 4).
Both man-made and natural disasters are often devastating, resource draining and disruptive. Having a basic plan ready for these types of disaster events is key to the success of executing and implementing, as well as assessing the aftermath. There are many different ways to create an emergency operations plan (EOP) to encompass a natural and/or man-made disaster, including following the six stage planning process, collection of information, and identification of threats and hazards. The most important aspect of the US emergency management system in preparing for, mitigating, and responding to man-made and natural disasters is the creation, implementation and assessment of a community’s EOP.
. Describe your culture. Include things like place of birth, where you were raised, family structure, educational experiences, and career history. What else needs to be included?
An earthquake of magnitude 7.0 hit the island of Haiti on January 12, 2010, killing anywhere from 100,000 to 300,000 people, injuring another 300,000 others, and leaving over 1.5 million without homes (Fleddermann, 2012, p.116). The majority of the destruction and human toll occurred in Port au Prince, the capital city of Haiti, although the effects of the earthquake were spread throughout the island. Aside from the many people who died, were injured, or left homeless, those involved in this disaster are the Haitian government, the United Nations, civil engineers, the press, relief organizations, and the United States. Although initially perceived as simply a natural disaster, it becomes apparent through further research that the degree of loss experienced might have been lessened if certain procedures and codes were in place and followed to increase the safety and integrity of the buildings in Haiti.
Hurricane Maria was destructive and caused a large amount of damage to the entire island of Puerto Rico. Maria hit on September 20 and was a category four hurricane, nearly a category five. Hurricane Maria has had a tremendous impact on the lives of Puerto Ricans and even the world.
And was in the south pacific ocean. Alto there was no tsunami or large fire there was still a lot of damage don from the landslide and everything else that happened. So many people lost their homes and food that they had to transport 12,000 tonnes of food for all the people.all the people that are their are very lucky that a tsunami did not happen if one did then it could of devastated not only puerto rico but chile and new zealand. Not only that but all of their electricity went out as well so 1 they had no running water 2 the toilets could not work and 3 all of their sinks and showers didn't work as
Prior to the earthquake, Haiti was known to be vulnerable to natural hazards. During hurricane season in 2008, Haiti had been affected by Tropical Storm Fay, and Hurricanes Gustav, Hanna, and Ike within a month; and it is estimated that 2-3 million Haitians were already food-insecure,
Finally, safety is the number one priority in order to survive and recover from any major catastrophic event. Education is the key to prevention. Know your local area and common disasters that occurs in that particular area. Knowing what they are and how to protect yourself will in terms help the recovery and healing process faster and easier for you and your family.
Education of all personnel is key. Simulations like the Franklin County are great sources. Schools, hospitals, public and private companies to consider preforming drills or simulations in preparation for disasters such as. Many counties have such drills which sometime involve local hospitals, emergency personnel, and local high school students acting like victims with certain issues like head injury, burns, and other injuries which can occur. The television and radios do emergency testing which reminds watchers monthly the sound and the protocol that occurs in an emergency.
Understanding the types of disasters for which the community is susceptible is essential for emergency preparedness (Nies & McEwen, 2011). All communities are susceptible to man-made disasters; terrorism, fires, and mass transit accidents; and emergency preparedness is essential. The Pennsylvania Emergency Management Agency (PEMA) is responsible for disaster planning. Assessment, Predictability and Prevention For the purpose of this paper, the surrounding communities of Central Pennsylvania will be assessed.... ...
Emergency management is often described in terms of “phases,” using terms such as mitigate, prepare, respond and recover. The main purpose of this assignment is to examine the origins, underlying concepts, variations, limitations, and implications of the “phases of emergency management.” In this paper we will look at definitions and descriptions of each phase or component of emergency management, the importance of understanding interrelationships and responsibilities for each phase, some newer language and associated concepts (e.g., disaster resistance, sustainability, resilience, business continuity, risk management), and the diversity of research perspectives.
Of the four phases of emergency management, mitigation, preparedness, response and recovery, perhaps the place that individuals can make the biggest difference in their own state of resiliency and survival of a disaster is in the preparedness phase. Being prepared before a disaster strikes makes sense yet many people fail to take even simple, precautionary steps to reduce the consequences of destruction and mayhem produced by natural events such as earthquakes, volcanos and tornados (see Paton et al, 2001, Mileti and Peek, 2002; Tierney, 1993, Tierney et al, 2001).