Massive Emergency Response in Urban Contexts

Currently, more than one-half of the world’s population lives in cities. In Latin America, estimates reveal that around 80% of the inhabitants live in urban conglomerates and towns, which means that the conditions of vulnerability are accentuated by the increased population densities, unresolved problems of basic needs coverage for their inhabitants and the limited capacity for response to disaster situations, which translates into significant losses in the face of the impact from adverse events.

In some cases, these events have generated a massive number of victims that surpasses the daily capacities for handling multiple patients and other aspects that require integrated actions on the part of the agencies that make up the emergency care systems at the local and national level, which has become evident in recent emergencies, such as the earthquakes in Haiti in January 2010 and in Chile in February of the same year.

In view of this global problem, the International Strategy for Disaster Reduction (UNISDR) has promoted a worldwide campaign Making Cities Resilient: My City is Getting Ready, focusing on local capacity building to reduce the disaster risks, which includes implementing early warning systems and developing emergency management capabilities.

Within the framework of the Campaign and other humanitarian aid and emergency response organisation initiatives, CRID will provide continuity for this topic in the coming Bulletin numbers for September and October, with articles and information resources related to massive emergency response in urban contexts, which, it is hoped, will contribute to the final goal of emergency response: reduce the level of effect caused by the impacts from threats inherent to the state of vulnerability of the population.

In this first issue we are pleased to provide the following selection of resources that have to do with some of the aspects that will be dealt with in the coming numbers:

How to make cities more resilient: A Handbook for local government leaders. A contribution to the global campaign 2010-2015

Sin tiempo para dudar: Enfrentando el riesgo urbano

Building Urban Resilience: Tools for Building Urban Resilience: Integrating Risk Information into Investment Decisions Pilot Cities Report – Jakarta and Can Tho

Disaster Risk Management Today: Global Contexts and Local Tools

Hospitales seguros y riesgo urbano en Centroamérica: Sistematización y lecciones

Mass casualty management systems

Urban governance and community resilience guides

New Section: “Educational Materials for Tsunami Preparedness”

Within the framework for the agreement for cooperation between the Regional Centre for Disaster Information (CRID) and the UNESCO Office DIPECHO Projects in Santiago de Chile, an area for Educational Materials on Tsunami Preparedness has been developed, which is available on the CRID institutional portal and at the one for Education and Risk Management.

This area is intended to promote dissemination and use of educational materials in Spanish produced by ministries of education, national risk management offices, oceanographic institutes, seismological services, universities, United Nations agencies and NGOs that could contribute to strengthen the capability for tsunami risk reduction from within both formal and informal educational settings. The section offers a variety of publications, technical documents and audio-visual materials of use for teachers, students and the community in general.

We invite you to visit this new section and the following Web address: http://www.cridlac.org/esp_recursos_unesco_new.shtml

If you would like to collaborate with this initiative, please contact Giovana Santillán (g.santillan@unesco.org), Project Coordinator for DIPECHO VII “Strengthening the Regional Tsunami Early Warning System in Chile, Colombia Ecuador and Peru”. OREALC/UNESCO Santiago.

Call for significant experiences for the Regional Platform for Disaster Risk Reduction the Americas

As part of the activities being developed within the framework for preparation of the Third Session of the Regional Platform for Disaster Risk Reduction in the Americas PR12, to be held in Argentina 29-31 October 2012, UNISDR, together with the OAS have launched a call to identify and systematise significant experiences on risk reduction in the Americas, including topics related to climate change adaptation.

More information on the call for papers and the procedure for nomination of the experiences can be found both in Spanish and English through the following links:

In English: http://www.eird.org/index-eng.htm
In Spanish: http://www.eird.org/index-esp.html .

Report with Climate Perspectives for Central America now Available (period for August-October 2012)

Between 17 and 19 July, the 37th Central American Climate Forum (FCAC) and 17th Forum on Applications of Climate Forecasts to Food Security (FAPC) were held in San Jose, Costa Rica, coordinated by the Regional Committee on Hydrological Resources from the Central American Integration System (CRRH-SICA) and the Regional Programme for an Information System on Food and Nutritional Security (PRESISAN, from the Regional Programme for Food and Nutritional Security for Central America (PRESANCA II, under SICA and the European Union).

Meteorologists and climatologists from the Central American countries prepared the quarterly climate forecast for the period August through October 2012, which is shared with and analysed by regional sectorial experts, including those in disaster risk management, who were responsible for producing the FAPC report. This report is disseminated among users and decision makers throughout the region, and presents the impact of climate conditions on each sector, as well as corresponding recommendations to prevent negative effects and to mitigate them.

Outstanding during this quarterly period has been the appearance of a new El Niño event that supposes a tendency towards irregular rainfall in the Pacific and central zones of Central America and the Caribbean. Download the FAPC report here.

If you are interested in further information please contact Adriana Bonilla, Project Officer at CRRH-SICA, her address is adriana.bonilla@recursoshidricos.org

Map of Natural Threats in the State of Río de Janeiro, Brazil

During the 9th National Civil Defence Forum (6-8 June), the Civil Defence School for the State of Río de Janeiro presented the Map of Natural Threats for the State of Río de Janeiro. This map is a product of the 1st Workshop on the Hyogo Framework of Action (HFA) that was organised during the first semester of this year by the Secretariat of Civil Defence for the State of Río de Janeiro, through the Civil Defence School.

During the thirteen sessions included in the Workshop, ninety-two mayor’s offices were present and they analysed 460 natural threats characteristic of Río de Janeiro, which in turn were identified and prioritised by the Civil Defence of each of these city halls. Among the most prevalent threats are: land slides, flash flooding, inundations, rain and forest fires.

An aspect that is important to mention is that the Map is part of an unpublished project in Brazil in concordance with meeting the HFA goals. Shortly, the Map will be presented at the International Urbanism Seminar in Colombia and at the 3rd Session of the Regional Platform for Disaster Reduction in the Americas, to be held in Argentina 29 thru 31 October.

Download the Map here and a scientific article on this resource published in the August number of the journal Emergência, one of the major Brazilian publications dealing with disasters.

For additional information please contact Paulo Renato Martins Vaz (paulorenatovaz@gmail.com), director of the Civil Defence School for the State of Río de Janeiro.

List of Essential Medications for Emergencies and Disasters in the Caribbean

This publication, available in English, offers a list of medications that will aid in reducing excess mortality and morbidity due to communicable and non-communicable diseases in populations affected by disasters and emergencies. This technical document is the result of an inter-programme effort by two PAHO/WHO Areas: Primary Care Based Healthcare Systems and Healthcare Technologies and Emergency and Disaster Preparedness.

The included list is proposed as a first approximation for use as a contribution to national level disaster preparedness plans that require periodic updates. CRID offers the publication at the electronic address: http://www.crid.or.cr/digitalizacion/pdf/eng/doc19082/doc19082.htm

NEWS BRIEFS

“Instrument for Local Government Self-Evaluation on Disaster Resilience” LG-SAT now available
The Regional Office for the Americas at the United Nations Office for Disaster Risk Reduction (UNISDR), invites cities and local governments to advance the processes for multiple-player consultation, which would allow them to analyse the degree of progress in regard to disaster risk reduction, DRR, and the goals set within the Hyogo Framework for Action, HFA. More…

Latin American Forum on Disaster Risk Reduction in Higher Education, Panama City, Panama, from August 28 to 30, 2012
The Latin American Forum on Disaster Risk Reduction in Higher Education will take place in Panama City, Panama, from August 28 to 30, 2012. This regional event will assemble representatives from universities, higher education accreditation agencies, Latin American university associations and networks, and other organizations to discuss the role of higher education in disaster risk reduction (DRR). More...

ICLEI Resilient Cities: Webinar Series
From 1 September through 30 November 2012 this Forum will be open on the Web, which will be focused on the topics of Urban Resilience and Adaptation. The activity represents another opportunity for encounter and exchange among professionals and local government experts. More…

Manual for Risk Exposure Evaluation in the face of Natural Threats in Central America – El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras and Nicaragua
This Manual was published under cooperation among SNET, INSIVUMEH, COPECO, INETER and BGR under the Project: ‘Mitigation of Geo-Risks in Central America’. The purpose behind the Manual is to aid national and geo-scientific intergovernmental and territorial planning authorities to strengthen their capacities for mapping and evaluation of risks in the face of geo-threats. More...

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CEPREDENAC Information Bulletin (Spanish)
OFDA/USAID Bulletin (Spanish - English)

NEW PUBLICATIONS AT CRID

You can have access to a collection of more than 19.000 information resources on risk management through the CRID website. To consult other publications of interest for you, visit our web .

Inundaciones: Preprarados para actuar. (2012)
Banco Interamericano de Desarrollo (BID)

Sin Tiempo para Dudar: Enfrentando el Riesgo Urbano. Una mirada a las intervenciones urbanas llevadas a cabo por las Sociedades de la Cruz Roja en Latinoamérica y el Caribe. (2012)
Federación Internacional de Sociedades de la Cruz Roja y de la Media Luna Roja (FICR)

Protección de la niñez en situación de emergencias. Protección de la niñez en albergues. Apoyo socio-emocional para niños, niñas y adolescentes: KUSIWASI. (2012)
Plan Internacional Perú

Resilient Cities 2012: Congress Report. (2012)
Alice Balbo y otros

Sistemas de Alerta Temprana 10 preguntas y 10 respuestas para la comunidad educativa de Panamá. (2012)
Federico Armién y otros

INVITATIONS, COURSES AND EVENTS AUGUST-SEPTEMBER 2012

Formidable footprint - A national community and neighborhood exercise series
Date: August 25
Place: :United States of America (Nationwide))
Organizer: Disaster Resistant Communities Group LLC (DRC)
Web: http://www.drc-group.com/

41st Global conference on disaster management
Date: August 30
Placer: : United States of America (Washington, Seattle)
Organizer: Global Conference on Disaster Management (GCDM)
Web: http://disasterconference.org

Regional workshop on disaster risk management in Latin America and the Caribbean.
Date: Sept 3-5
Place: Argentina (Buenos Aires)
Organizer: Argentina - government, Ministry of Science, Technology and Productive Innovation Integrated Research on Disaster Risk (IRDR) International Council for Science, ROLAC (ICSU) National Council for Scientific and Technical Research, Argentina (Gov)
Web:http://www.irdrinternational.org/2012/07/13/regional-workshop-on-disaster-risk-management-in-latin-america-and-the-caribbean/

Adopting disaster resilient construction at the local level
Date: Sept 7
Placer: United States of America (Glen Allen, VA)
Organizer: National Ready Mixed Concrete Association (NRMCA)
Web: : http://www.nrmca.org/