DISASTER RISK REDUCTION Kol

REVIEW
BASIC CONCEPTS OF DISASTER
 Disaster
is "a sudden, calamitous occurrence that causes great harm, injury, destruction,
and devastation to life and property”. It disrupts the usual course of life, causing
both physical and emotional distress such as an intense feeling of helplessness and
hopelessness.

According to the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO, 2008), disaster is

“a serious disruption of the functioning of a community or a society involving
widespread human, material, economic or environmental losses and impacts,
which exceeds the ability of the affected community or society to cope using
its own resources”.

Its impacts may include loss of life, injury, disease and other negative effects
on human physical, mental, and social wellbeing, together with damage to
properties, destruction of assets, loss of services, social and economic
disruptions, and environmental degradation.

 Classification of Disasters:

Natural Disasters-

natural phenomenon is caused by natural forces, such as earthquakes,

typhoon, volcanic eruptions, hurricanes, fires, tornados, and extreme
temperatures. They can be classified as rapid onset disasters and those with
progressive onset, such as droughts that lead to famine. These events,
usually sudden, can have tremendous effects.

Man-made – Disasters-

caused by man are those in which major direct causes are identifiable
intentional or non-intentional human actions.
SUBDIVIDED INTO THREE CATEGORIES:
Technological/industrial disasters –
Unregulated industrialization and inadequate safety standards increase the
risk for industrial disasters.
Terrorism/Violence-

The threat of terrorism has also increased due to the spread of

technologies involving nuclear, biological, and chemical agents used to
develop weapons of mass destruction.

Complex humanitarian emergencies –

the term complex emergency is usually used to describe the

humanitarian emergency resulting from an international or civil war. In such
situations, large numbers of people are displaced from their homes due to
the lack of personal safety and the disruption of basic infrastructure
including food distribution, water, electricity, and sanitation, or communities
are left stranded and isolated in their own homes unable to access
assistance.
Risk and Disaster Risk-

Risk has various connotations within different disciplines. In general,

risk is defined as “the combination of the probability of an event and its
negative consequences” (UNISDR, 2009). The term risk is thus
multidisciplinary and is used in a variety of contexts. It is usually associated
with the degree to which humans cannot cope (lack of capacity) with a
situation (e.g. natural hazard).

The term disaster risk refers to the potential (not actual and realized)
disaster losses, in lives, health status, livelihoods, assets, and services which
could occur in a community or society over some specified future time
period.

Disaster risk is the product of the possible damage caused by a hazard

due to the vulnerability within a community. It should be noted that the
effect of a hazard (of a particular magnitude) would affect communities
differently (Von Kotze, 1999:35).
It can also be determined by the presence of three variables:
hazards (natural or anthropogenic);
vulnerability to a hazard
coping capacity
linked to the reduction, mitigation, and resilience to the vulnerability of a
community.

BASIC CONCEPTS OF DISASTER

RISK FACTORS
 Disaster risk as defined in the first module, has three
important elements such as:

1. Exposure - the “elements at risk from a natural or man-made hazard

event (Quebral, 2016).
2. Hazard-a potentially dangerous physical occurrence, phenomenon
or human activity that may result in loss of life or injury, property
damage, social and economic disruption, or environmental
degradation.
3. Vulnerability - the condition determined by physical, social,
economic and environmental factors or processes, which increase
the susceptibility of a community to the impact of hazard (Food and
Agriculture Organization of the United nation, FAO 2008).

Risk Factors are processes or conditions, often development-related, that

influence the level of disaster risk by increasing levels of exposure and
vulnerability or reducing capacity.

 The following are also taken into consideration when risk

factors underlying disaster are involved:

Severity of exposure - which measures those who experience disaster

firsthand which has the highest risk of developing future mental problems,
followed by those in contact with the victims such as rescue workers and
health care practitioners and the lowest risk are those most distant like
those who have awareness of the disaster only through news.

Gender and Family - the female gender suffers more adverse effects. This
worsens when children are present at home. Marital relationships are placed
under strain.

Age - adults in the age range of 40-60 are more stressed after disasters but
in general, children exhibit more stress after disasters than adults do.

Economic status of country - evidence indicates that severe mental

problems resulting from disasters are more prevalent in developing countries
like the Philippines.
FACTORS WHICH UNDERLIE DISASTERS:

1. Climate Change - can increase disaster risk in a variety of ways – by

altering the frequency and intensity of hazards events, affecting
vulnerability to hazards, and changing exposure patterns. For most
people, the expression “climate change” means the alteration of the
world’s climate that we humans are causing such as burning of fossil
fuels, deforestation and other practices that increase the carbon footprint
and concentration of greenhouse gases in the atmosphere.

2. Environmental Degradation - changes to the environment can

influence the frequency and intensity of hazards, as well as our exposure
and vulnerability to these hazards. For instance, deforestation of slopes
often leads to an increase in landslide hazard and removal of mangroves
can increase the damage caused by storm surges (UNISDR, 2009b). It is
both a driver and consequence of disasters, reducing the capacity of the
environment to meet social and ecological needs.

4. Globalized Economic Development - It results in an increased

polarization between the rich and poor on a global scale. Currently
increasing the exposure of assets in hazard prone areas, globalized
economic development provides an opportunity to build resilience if
effectively managed. By participating in risk sensitive development
strategies such as investing in protective infrastructure, environmental
management, and upgrading informal settlements, risk can be
reduced. Dominance and increase of wealth in certain regions and
cities are expected to have increased hazard exposure (Gencer,
2013).

3. Poverty and Inequality - Impoverished people are more likely to live in

hazard exposed areas and are less able to invest in risk-reducing
measures. The lack of access to insurance and social protection means
that people in poverty are often forced to use their already limited assets
to buffer disaster losses, which drives them into further poverty. Poverty
is therefore both a cause and consequence of disaster risk (Wisner et al.,
2004), particularly extensive risk, with drought being the hazard most
closely associated with poverty (Shepard et al., 2013). The impact of
disasters on the poor can, in addition to loss of life, injury and damage,
 cause a total loss of livelihoods, displacement, poor health, food
insecurity, among other consequences.

5. Poorly planned and Managed Urban Development - A new wave of

urbanization is unfolding in hazard-exposed countries and with it, new
opportunities for resilient investment emerge. People, poverty, and disaster
risk are increasingly concentrated in cities. The growing rate of urbanization
and the increase in population density (in cities) can lead to creation of risk,
especially when urbanization is rapid, poorly planned and occurring in a
context of widespread poverty.

6. Weak Governance - weak governance zones are investment

environments in which public sector actors are unable or unwilling to assume
their roles and responsibilities in protecting rights, providing basic services
and public services. Disaster risk is disproportionately concentrated in lower-
income countries with weak governance (UNISDR, 2015a). Disaster risk
governance refers to the specific arrangements that societies put in place to
manage their disaster risk (UNISDR, 2011a; UNDP, 2013a) within a broader
context of risk governance (Renn, 2008 in UNISDR, 2015a). This reflects how
risk is valued against a backdrop of broader social and economic concerns
(Holley et al., 2011).

The Human Effect of Natural and Man-Made Disasters

1. Displaced Populations
One of the most immediate effects of natural disasters is population
displacement. When countries are ravaged by earthquakes or other
powerful forces of nature, many people need to abandon their homes and
seek shelter in other regions. A large influx of refugees can disrupt
accessibility of health care and education, as well as food supplies and
clean water.

2. Health Risks
Aside from the obvious immediate danger that natural disasters
present, the secondary effect can be just as damaging. Severe flooding
can result in stagnant water that allows breeding of waterborne bacteria
and malaria carrying mosquitoes. Without emergency relief from
international aid organizations and others, death tolls can rise even after
the immediate danger has passed.

3. Food Scarcity
 The aftermath of natural disasters affects the food supplies. Thousands
of people around the world are hungry because of destroyed crops and
loss of agricultural supplies, whether it happens suddenly in a storm or
gradually in a drought. As a result, food prices rise reducing families’
purchasing power and increasing the risk of severe malnutrition or worse.

4. Emotional Aftershocks
Natural disasters can be particularly traumatic for young children.
Confronted with scenes of destruction and the deaths of friends and loved
ones, many children develop post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), a
serious psychological condition resulting from extreme trauma.

Great damage caused by a disaster can be reduced if everyone will take

responsibility in anticipating its effects. Here are some ways on how to plan
ahead of a disaster:

1. Check for hazards at home.

2. Identify safe place indoors and outdoors
3. Educate yourself and family members
4. Have Disaster kits/supplies on hand.
5. Develop an emergency communication plan.
6. Help your community get ready.
Practice the Disaster Preparedness Cycle

BASIC CONCEPTS OF DISASTER

The Different Perspective on Disaster:
 Physical Perspective
When disaster strikes, physical consequences–damage, destruction,
disruption, displacement, death, disability–are most often overt and
observable.
This view disaster as an event that brings damage to physical
elements such as buildings, including people and their properties. These
cited effects of a disaster can be easily measured .The most common
questions focused for assessment is on the number of families affected,
casualties, extent of damaged in infrastructure and properties in different
industries.

 Psychological Perspective
 Psychological research has shown that disasters can cause serious
mental health consequences for victims. These consequences take the form
of Posttraumatic Stress Disorder and a variety of other disorders and
symptoms which have been less investigated

From this exploration of the psychological dimensions of disaster, it is

apparent that behavioral health consequences are public health
consequences are inseparable.

 Socio – cultural perspective

Socio-cultural factors play a key role in the vulnerability of certain

groups to disasters. They can have a marked impact on the success or failure
of disaster risk reduction approaches in communities.
Disaster is analyzed based on how people respond considering their
social conditions and cultural setting. These two factors are important
determinants of the degree of risk, resilience and vulnerability of those
affected.

 Economic perspective

A natural disaster can be defined as a natural event that causes a

perturbation to the functioning of the economic system, with a significant
negative impact on assets, production factors, output, employment and
consumption. One salient component of assessing the impact of disaster
impact from this view is defining direct economic cost and indirect losses.

 Political Perspective

Natural disasters are commonly thought to be less politically

contentious than armed conflicts. Deliverance of government services to
constituents can be a plus or minus factor in disaster risk reduction and
management. Government interventions should be present in following
phases of DRRRM: Prevention Mitigation Preparedness Recovery Failure to do
so adversely affects the capacity and opportunities of those affected to cope
and recover from the impacts of disaster.

 Environmental Perspective

Disaster are not random and do not occur by accident. They are
convergence of hazards and vulnerable conditions. Disaster not only reveal
underlying social, economic, political and environmental problems, but
unfortunately contribute to worsening them.

According to UNISDR there are four (4) main types of vulnerability:

1. Physical Vulnerability
may be determined by aspects such as population density levels,
remoteness of a settlement, the site, design and materials used for
critical infrastructure and for housing (UNISDR).
Demographic factors such as population density, age of population and
distribution of population are various condition causes a population more
vulnerable. The more dense the population, the more people might be
affected so it requires more efficient response should have. As well as
very old and very young and women age group are less mobile during
the hazard event which make them more vulnerable.

2. Social Vulnerability

refers to the inability of people, organizations and societies to withstand

adverse impacts to hazards due to characteristics inherent in social
interactions, institutions and systems of cultural values. It is linked to the
level of well-being of individuals, communities and society. It includes
aspects related to levels of literacy and education, the existence of peace
and security, access to basic human rights, systems of good governance,
social equity, positive traditional values, customs and ideological beliefs and
overall collective organizational systems (UNISDR).

3. Economic Vulnerability.

The level of vulnerability is highly dependent upon the economic

status of individuals, communities and nations the poor are usually more
vulnerable to disasters because they lack the resources to build sturdy
structures and put other engineering measures in place to protect
themselves from being negatively impacted by disasters. (UNISDR)

4. Environmental Vulnerability.

Natural resource depletion and resource degradation are key aspects

of environmental vulnerability. This is one aspect that both communities
and government must be sensitive about. Mitigation measures like
reforestation and natural resource protection and conservation must be
undertaken to reduce natural disaster risk and vulnerability.(UNISDR)