What can we learn from the spatial patterns of disasters? What human and structural factors need to be addressed to explain hazard vulnerability? As populations grow and the climate warms, how can natural hazards be mitigated? Thoroughly revised and updated, and now with a more global perspective, the second edition of this accessible text provides an integrated framework for understanding and managing natural hazards. Numerous case studies from around the world illustrate the complexities of extreme geophysical events and highlight their physical, social, political, and economic dimensions. The text identifies essential principles for tackling the fundamental causes of differential vulnerabilities that perpetuate human distress, and for promoting recovery and resilience. New to This Edition *New frameworks for understanding human resilience and adaptive capacity in recovery, dynamics of risk and uncertainty, and more. *Chapter on spatial and temporal aspects of hazards. *Discussions of cutting-edge topics, such as chronic disasters, controversies in international aid, and how hazards affect regions differentially. *Many new case studies, including Hurricanes Katrina and Charley, Superstorm Sandy, the 2011 Japan tsunami, Ecuador's chronic volcanic hazard, and others. *Reflects 20 years of research advances across the physical and social sciences, development trends, new technologies, and ongoing global climate change.

Each year, approximately 1,100 Americans 65 and older die in home fires and another 3,000 are injured. These statistics, combined with the fact that adults ages 50 or more care for and will soon enter this high-risk group, inspired USFA to develop a new public education campaign targeting people ages 50-plus, their families and caregivers. People between 65 and 74 are nearly twice as likely to die in a home fire as the rest of the population. People between 75 and 84 are nearly four times as likely to die in a fire. People ages 85 and older are more than five times as likely to die in a fire. A Fire Safety Campaign for People 50-Plus encourages people ages 50 and older - including the high risk 65-plus group - to practice fire-safe behaviors to reduce fire deaths and injuries. The strategy is to inform and motivate adults as they enter their fifties so that stronger fire safety and prevention practices are integrated into their lives prior to entering the higher fire-risk decades. In addition, many Baby Boomers are currently caring for family members ages 65-plus and can encourage fire safe habits.

The Agency Administrator's Guide to Critical Incident Management is designed to assist Agency Administrators in dealing with critical incidents. A critical incident may be defined as a fatality or other event that can have serious long-term adverse effects on the agency, its employees and their families or the community. Although fire incidents inspired this document, it also has application to other types of incidents. The Agency Administrator is the highest-ranking agency line officer with direct responsibility for the personnel involved in the incident (for example, BLM District Manager, Park Superintendent, Forest Supervisor, Refuge Manager, BIA Agency Superintendent or State land manager). Through effective, efficient, and timely leadership, Agency Administrators are responsible for the overall management of critical incidents within their jurisdiction. This document includes a series of checklists to guide an Agency Administrator through those difficult and chaotic days that follow a death, serious injury, or other critical or highly visible event. The time to use it is now This document needs to be reviewed and updated at least annually. The availability of Critical Incident Stress Management (CISM) teams and related resources varies constantly - it is imperative that local units pre-identify in this plan the CISM resources that can support local unit needs. This guide was designed as a working tool to assist Agency Administrators with the chronological steps in managing the incident. It also provides a detailed overview of Agency Administrators' responsibilities before a critical incident occurs, during the actual management of the incident, and after the incident activity has taken place. It is not intended to take the place of local emergency plans or other detailed guidance. It should be used in conjunction with other references as well as the attached appendixes. This guide can also be used as a worksheet (both in preparation for and in management of a critical incident) by Agency Administrators and others with oversight responsibilities during a critical incident.

In the summer of 2004, the U.S. Fire Administration (USFA) launched its most comprehensive and intensive public fire education campaign for elderly Americans. A FIRE SAFETY CAMPAIGN FOR PEOPLE 50 PLUS provides detailed fire prevention information to assist fire departments and other USFA partners in mitigating the risk of fire fatalities and injuries among the 50 and over population. This report, Fire and the Older Adult, analyzes the fire risk to persons aged 65 and older as a complement to that campaign. The report provides an extensive review of the fire situation for older adults in the United States and evaluates fire risk factors and risks of fire injury and fatality among that population group. On average, more than 1,000 Americans aged 65 years and older die each year in home fires and more than 2,000 are injured. In 2001 alone, 1,250 older adults died as the result of fire incidents. Moreover, the elderly are 2.5 times more likely to die in a residential fire than the rest of the population. With the U.S. Census Bureau predicting that increases in the senior population will continue to outpace increases in the overall population, the elderly fire problem will undoubtedly grow in importance. After offering an overview of the U.S. demographics of the 65 and older population, this report discusses how physical, emotional, social, economic, and residential factors have unique impacts on seniors.

Wildfires, floods, hazardous material spills, hurricanes, earthquakes, and tornadoes- emergencies can strike anytime, anywhere. In fact, the number of annual federal disaster declarations has more than doubled over the past few decades. All juvenile justice residential facilities need plans to prepare for, respond to, and recover from these emergencies so that the essential services they provide can become operational again as soon as possible after an emergency strikes. Emergency planning for these facilities takes on even greater significance because children are often the most vulnerable population in disasters, and protecting them from physical harm and trauma is essential. Emergency Planning for Juvenile Justice Residential Facilities provides information about how facilities can ensure that youth receive the supports and services they require as they experience the disruptions that emergencies inevitably cause. This document emphasizes the importance of ongoing communication and collaboration with community partners in the emergency planning process. In addition, facilities are encouraged to prepare for all emergencies that may affect their geographical area-for everything from a fire in a building to a major flood, earthquake, or hurricane that impacts the surrounding region. The emergency management cycle encompasses four interdependent phases: prevention/mitigation, preparedness, response, and recovery. Prevention/mitigation measures create a safer environment and facilitate recovery from later emergencies by reducing the risk of serious damage. Preparedness in the form of drills and exercises helps ensure an effective and efficient emergency response. During the recovery phase, careful assessments of what worked and what did not contribute to improved preparedness for subsequent emergencies. All phases are vital elements in the emergency management cycle. This publication provides key principles and recommendations, but it is not overly prescriptive. Emergency planners inevitably will need to adapt these guidelines to the particular requirements of their facilities. This document is targeted to state, county, and local juvenile justice authorities charged with the custodial care and supervision of youth in the juvenile justice system, with particular focus on those authorities who oversee residential treatment and correctional and detention facilities that house juveniles via court-ordered placements. The principles outlined in this document may also apply to emergency planning for youth in out-of-home placement. Through its step-by-step guidance in the planning process, Emergency Planning for Juvenile Justice Residential Facilities will help ensure the efficient continuation of operations during an emergency, the reduction of risk to the physical plant, and, most importantly, the safety and well-being of youth and staff in our nation's juvenile justice residential facilities.

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The first book on the Bhopal disaster, written on site a few weeks after the accident. "The people knew right away the source of the poisonous air, although it was incredible and shocking. Thousands had fled their homes a few months before upon the occasion of a small discharge of gas and an associated rumor of disaster. Now they choked and screamed at one another to rise and flee, aiding each other when they could, the choking and gagging leading the fully blinded. Some stepped out of their huts at the first whiffs, strangling, and were too blinded to turn back in, were swept in the gathering human torrent and often never saw their families, neighbors and friends again..." "A moving account of a shattering experience." - Arun Gandhi "Rightly, Al de Grazia highlights the important role of a Free Press. The Press has had to battle secrecy and suppression to expose the full extent of the Bhopal tragedy. Conitnuing now to assail the shocking failures of managers and officials in India and the USA, we must demand the reform of the irresponsible liaison between governments and multinational corporations." - S. B. Kolpe

The original Earthquakes -A Teacher's Package for K-6 (FEMA 159) was developed as a joint effort of the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) and the National Science Teachers Association (NSTA) under contract with FEMA. NSTA's project team produced an excellent product. Since its publication in 1988, over 50,000 teachers have requested copies. This revised version brought members of the original project team together with a group of teachers who had used the materials extensively in their classroom and served as teacher-educators at FEMA's Tremor Troop workshops. About 75% of the original material remains unchanged: a few activities were removed and a few added. A major change was the addition of assessments throughout the units. The examples we provide relate to life outside the classroom and/or activities similar to those of scientists. We also added matrices linking activities to the National Science Education Standards. The Teacher's Package has five units. Each of the first four units is divided into three levels: Level 1, for grades K-2; Level 2, for grades 3-4; and Level 3, for grades 5-6. Since classes and individuals vary widely you may often find the procedures in the other levels helpful for your students. The last unit has four parts with activities for students in all grades, K-6. Unit L, Defining an Earthquake, builds on what students already know about earthquakes to establish a working definition of the phenomenon. Legends from near and far encourage children to create their own fanciful explanations, paving the way for the scientific explanations they will begin to learn in this unit. Unit I, Why and Where Earthquakes Occur, presents the modern scientific understanding of the Earth's structure and composition, and relates this to the cause of earthquakes. Unit II, Physical Results of Earthquakes, provides greater understanding of the processes that shape our active Earth. Earthquakes are put in the context of the large- and small-scale changes that are constantly at work on the continents as well as the ocean floor. Unit IV, Measuring Earthquakes, explains earthquakes in terms of wave movement and introduces students to the far-ranging effects of earthquakes. Unit V, Earthquake Safety and Survival, focuses on what to expect during an earthquake; how to cope safely; how to identify earthquake hazards; and how to reduce, eliminate, or avoid them.

Recent earthquakes around the world show a pattern of steadily increasing damages and losses that are due primarily to two factors: (1) significant growth in earthquake-prone urban areas and (2) vulnerability of the older building stock, including buildings constructed within the past 20 years. In the United States, earthquake risk has grown substantially with development while the earthquake hazard has remained relatively constant. Understanding the hazard requires studying earthquake characteristics and locales in which they occur while understanding the risk requires an assessment of the potential damage to the built environment and to the welfare of people - especially in high risk areas. Estimating the varying degree of earthquake risk throughout the United States is useful for informed decision-making on mitigation policies, priorities, strategies, and funding levels in the public and private sectors. For example, potential losses to new buildings may be reduced by applying seismic design codes and using specialized construction techniques. However, decisions to spend money on either of those solutions require evidence of risk. In the absence of a nationally accepted criterion and methodology for comparing seismic risk across regions, a consensus on optimal mitigation approaches has been difficult to reach. While there is a good understanding of high risk areas such as Los Angeles, there is also growing recognition that other regions such as New York City and Boston have a low earthquake hazard but are still at high risk of significant damage and loss. This high risk level reflects the dense concentrations of buildings and infrastructure in these areas constructed without the benefit of modern seismic design provisions. In addition, mitigation policies and practices may not have been adopted because the earthquake risk was not clearly demonstrated and the value of using mitigation measures in reducing that risk may not have been understood. This study highlights the impacts of both high risk and high exposure on losses caused by earthquakes. It is based on loss estimates generated by HAZUS(r)-MH, a geographic information system (GIS)-based earthquake loss estimation tool developed by the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) in cooperation with the National Institute of Building Sciences (NIBS). The HAZUS tool provides a method for quantifying future earthquake losses. It is national in scope, uniform in application, and comprehensive in its coverage of the built environmen

One of the activities authorized by the Dam Safety and Security Act of 2002 is research to enhance the Nation's ability to assure that adequate dam safety programs and practices are in place throughout the United States. The Act of 2002 states that the Director of the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), in cooperation with the National Dam Safety Review Board (Review Board), shall carry out a program of technical and archival research to develop and support: improved techniques, historical experience, and equipment for rapid and effective dam construction, rehabilitation, and inspection; devices for continued monitoring of the safety of dams; development and maintenance of information resources systems needed to support managing the safety of dams; and initiatives to guide the formulation of effective policy and advance improvements in dam safety engineering, security, and management. With the funding authorized by the Congress, the goal of the Review Board and the Dam Safety Research Work Group (Work Group) is to encourage research in those areas expected to make significant contributions to improving the safety and security of dams throughout the United States. The Work Group (formerly the Research Subcommittee of the Interagency Committee on Dam Safety) met initially in February 1998. To identify and prioritize research needs, the Subcommittee sponsored a workshop on Research Needs in Dam Safety in Washington D.C. in April 1999. Representatives of state and federal agencies, academia, and private industry attended the workshop. Seventeen broad area topics related to the research needs of the dam safety community were identified. To more fully develop the research needs identified, the Research Subcommittee subsequently sponsored a series of nine workshops. Each workshop addressed a broad research topic (listed below) identified in the initial workshop. Experts attending the workshops included international representatives as well as representatives of state, federal, and private organizations within the United States. Impacts of Plants and Animals on Earthen Dams; Risk Assessment for Dams; Spillway Gates; Seepage through Embankment Dams; Embankment Dam Failure Analysis; Hydrologic Issues for Dams; Dam Spillways; Seismic Issues for Dams; Dam Outlet Works. Based on the research workshops, research topics have been proposed and pursued. Several topics have progressed to products of use to the dam safety community, such as technical manuals and guidelines. For future research, it is the goal of the Work Group to expand dam safety research to other institutions and professionals performing research in this field. The proceedings from the research workshops present a comprehensive and detailed discussion and analysis of the research topics addressed by the experts participating in the workshops. The participants at all of the research workshops are to be commended for their diligent and highly professional efforts on behalf of the National Dam Safety Program. The National Dam Safety Program research needs workshop on Hydrologic Issues for Dams was held on November 14-15, 2001, in Davis, California. The Department of Homeland Security, Federal Emergency Management Agency, would like to acknowledge the contributions of the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Hydrologic Engineering Center, which was responsible for the development of the technical program, coordination of the workshop, and development of these workshop proceedings. A complete list of workshop facilitators, presenters, and participants is included in the proceedings.

The US Dam Safety community has similar needs and activities to those of the European (EU) Dam Safety community. There has been an emphasis in the EU community on investigation of extreme flood processes and the uncertainties related to these processes. The purpose of this project was to cooperate with the organizations involved in these investigations over a three year period. The purpose of this cooperation was to: 1) coordinate US and EU efforts and collect information necessary to integrate data and knowledge with US activities and interests related to embankment overtopping and failure analysis, 2) Utilize the data obtained by both groups to improve embankment failure analysis methods, and 3) provide dissemination of these activities and their results to the US dam safety community. Dissemination was to be accomplished by: 1) Conducting a special workshop at a professional society meeting involving invited speakers from Europe and the United States. This session was held as a one day workshop at the Annual Conference of the Association of State Dam Safety Officials 2004 Dam Safety. The title of the day long workshop was; "Workshop on International Progress in Dam Breach Evaluation." Ten presentations were included in the workshop (see appendix for manuscripts). 2) A final report integrating EU and US research findings and results related to earthen embankment overtopping failure over the 3-year period would be developing and reporting in the form of a FEMA/USDA document. This report is included in the following pages.

Communities face many challenges following a disaster, including determining where the limited resources for their recovery are to be expended. After the initial "emergency" phase of a disaster response is completed, such as the rescue of those in need, the repair of critical services including water and power, and the restoration of key governmental functions, a community becomes focused on its long-term rebuilding. It is important to understand that there may be multiple funding sources available after a disaster event, but that resources may not be sufficient to undertake all the projects a community may ultimately need for full recovery. A first step for many communities may be to look to existing local comprehensive plans, capital improvement plans, hazard mitigation plans, or other similar documents to identify previously developed project priorities. The process identified in this Recovery Value Tool builds upon those priorities and provides a systematic methodology to evaluate recovery projects for the community. Fundamentally, this tool allows for an evaluation of priorities based upon the impacts of the recent disaster and the physical and community needs that have been caused by the event. Therefore, this process can provide a comprehensive evaluation of the needs, identify the most effective projects for the resources available, and allow for a more holistic combination of resources to accomplish the community's goals. This version of the Long-Term Community Recovery (LTCR) Recovery Value Tool presents a standardized methodology for determining the recovery value of post-disaster reconstruction projects. Prioritizing need, identifying projects to meet the need and determining which projects have the highest recovery value are critical steps to guide a community's long-term recovery from a disaster. The Tool incorporates best practices developed on a number of successful pilot recovery planning initiatives throughout the country. The Tool has been released with expedited review and is intended to meet the immediate needs of the communities impacted by the 2005 hurricane season. It is expected that revisions will be made to this tool as a result of refinement of the Long-Term Community Recovery planning process. The objective of the Recovery Value Tool is to assist in determining a project's value to the long-term recovery of a community from a particular disaster. The Recovery Value Tool will: Define what a Recovery Value is and how it fits into the planning process; Provide an objective assessment of each project's recovery value; Assist in determining implementation priorities; Provide documentation to funding agencies regarding a project's anticipated long-term impact.