tag:theconversation.com,2011:/id/topics/emergency-response-39472/articlesEmergency response – The Conversation2024-03-28T17:33:56Ztag:theconversation.com,2011:article/2203372024-03-28T17:33:56Z2024-03-28T17:33:56ZA human, environmental and economic emergency response to the Baltimore Key Bridge collapse<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/585126/original/file-20240328-22-lc2w7h.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=0%2C0%2C4993%2C3079&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">A Coast Guard cutter passes the cargo ship Dali that collided with the Francis Scott Key Bridge in Baltimore, Md. on March 26. </span> <span class="attribution"><span class="source">(AP Photo/Steve Helber)</span></span></figcaption></figure><p>On March 26, the container ship Dali in Baltimore’s industrial harbour <a href="https://apnews.com/article/baltimore-bridge-collapse-cargo-ship-dali-09aeffc6fa81f3069d4ba226def90555">struck an interstate highway bridge</a>, causing it to catastrophically collapse. Eight highway maintenance workers were <a href="https://www.cbsnews.com/baltimore/news/who-is-missing-in-baltimores-francis-scott-key-bridge-collapse-what-we-know-about-those-unaccounted-for/">thought to be on the bridge at the time of collapse</a>. Two were <a href="https://www.wbaltv.com/article/baltimore-bridge-collapse-update-2-rescued-so-far/60305176">rescued</a>, and two bodies <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2024/03/27/us/victims-death-latest.html">were recovered</a>. Four workers remain missing, and are now <a href="https://www.nbcnews.com/news/us-news/maryland-bridge-collapse-francis-scott-key-bridge-boat-baltimore-rcna145047">presumed dead</a>.</p>
<p>The ship-bridge collision was a technological disaster, defined as an event caused by <a href="https://edis.ifas.ufl.edu/publication/FY1230">a malfunction of a technological structure</a> or human error in controlling or handling the technology. </p>
<p>In this case, the root cause of the disaster involved the interaction of two types of transportation technologies: a moving container ship and a fixed bridge.</p>
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Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/human-centred-design-can-help-reduce-accidents-like-the-recent-ethiopian-airlines-boeing-737-crash-113987">Human-centred design can help reduce accidents like the recent Ethiopian Airlines Boeing 737 crash</a>
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<h2>A history of bridge collapses</h2>
<p>The disaster is not unprecedented — between 1960 to 2015 there have been <a href="https://conference-service.com/pianc-panama/documents/agenda/data/full_papers/full_paper_46.pdf">35 major bridge collapses</a> due to collisions by ships or barges.</p>
<p>On Feb. 22, in Guangzhou, south China, a container ship rammed into a bridge pillar leading to the subsequent <a href="https://www.ctvnews.ca/world/container-ship-hits-bridge-in-south-china-killing-5-and-knocking-section-of-roadway-into-the-water-1.6778666">collapse of the Lixinsha Bridge</a>, and killing five people. </p>
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<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/585122/original/file-20240328-16-gkxw2h.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="photo of ships and boats sail on a river. a bridge with a section missing from the middle is in the foreground" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/585122/original/file-20240328-16-gkxw2h.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/585122/original/file-20240328-16-gkxw2h.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/585122/original/file-20240328-16-gkxw2h.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/585122/original/file-20240328-16-gkxw2h.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/585122/original/file-20240328-16-gkxw2h.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/585122/original/file-20240328-16-gkxw2h.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/585122/original/file-20240328-16-gkxw2h.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
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<span class="caption">A massive container ship crashed into the Lixinsha Bridge in southern China on Feb. 22, 2024.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">(Lu Hanxin/Xinhua via AP)</span></span>
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<p>The collapse of <a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/local/2024/03/26/francis-scott-key-bridge-history-baltimore/">Baltimore’s Francis Scott Key Bridge</a> serves as another stark reminder that despite our technological prowess, accidents involving transportation technology will continue to occur when we least expect them.</p>
<h2>The immediate response</h2>
<p>The immediate response started with a mayday call from the troubled ship causing police to take action to prevent more cars from going onto the bridge. U.S. Coast Guard watchstanders received <a href="https://www.news.uscg.mil/Press-Releases/Article/3718320/coast-guard-multiple-partners-agencies-responding-to-francis-scott-key-bridge-c/">a report at 1:27 a.m.</a> of a container ship colliding with the bridge, and immediately deployed <a href="https://www.cnn.com/us/live-news/baltimore-key-bridge-collapse-03-27-24/index.html">search and rescue boats to the shipping channel in Baltimore’s harbour</a>.</p>
<p>The first 24 hours after the collapse focused on saving more lives, to no avail. People who survived the <a href="https://www.reuters.com/world/us/what-do-we-know-about-baltimores-francis-scott-key-bridge-2024-03-26/">56-metre fall from the bridge deck</a> into the Patapsco River then faced <a href="https://www.today.com/news/baltimore-bridge-collapse-survivors-cold-water-rcna145083">water temperatures of nine degrees Celsius</a>. </p>
<p>If not immediately rescued, chances of survival in cold river water become difficult due to <a href="https://www.weather.gov/safety/coldwater">cold shock and hypothermia</a> setting in.</p>
<p>Tons of submerged bridge wreckage and tidal currents created <a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/nation/2024/03/26/search-rescue-baltimore-bridge-collapse/">perilous conditions</a> for rescue operations. After an extensive search and rescue effort until sunset on March 26, the next-day emergency response activity transitioned to the grim task of recovery of the dead.</p>
<p>About eight hours after the collapse, the mayor of Baltimore declared a <a href="https://mayor.baltimorecity.gov/news/press-releases/2024-03-26-mayor-scott-issues-state-emergency">state of emergency</a>. The governor then issued <a href="https://governor.maryland.gov/Lists/ExecutiveOrders/Attachments/39/EO%2001.01.2024.09%20Declaration%20of%20a%20State%20of%20Emergency_Accessible.pdf">an executive order</a>, declaring a state of emergency for Maryland.</p>
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<span class="caption">The Port of Baltimore is one of the busiest harbours in the U.S.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">(Shutterstock)</span></span>
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<p>A <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2024/03/26/us/state-of-emergency-maryland-bridge-collapse.html">state of emergency</a> allows officials to temporarily use extraordinary powers. Suspension of laws and regulations, quick redirection of funds, rapid deployment of personnel and the facilitation of federal aid are all reasons why a state of emergency would be declared. </p>
<p>The collision caused all maritime traffic to be stopped — <a href="https://www.industryweek.com/supply-chain/article/21285314/port-blocked-by-baltimore-bridge-collapse-is-key-hub-for-us-shipping">a significant impact on one of the busiest harbours in the United States</a> as a port of entry for foreign goods. Most of the Port of Baltimore’s shipping terminals are located within <a href="https://mpa.maryland.gov/Documents/2021TerminalMap.pdf">the area blocked by bridge collapse debris</a>.</p>
<p>In this case, the emergency declarations <a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/dc-md-va/2024/03/27/baltimore-key-bridge-rebuild-timeline/">may allow governments to waive regulations</a> around competitive bidding to speed the eventual bridge rebuilding project.</p>
<h2>Pollution and debris clean-up</h2>
<p>Immediately after the collision, response operations include preventing environmental contamination. As the distressed cargo ship was departing to the Port of Colombo, Sri Lanka, it had on board about <a href="https://abc11.com/dali-cargo-ship-baltimore-bridge-collapse-patapsco-river/14577560/">1.8 million gallons of fuel</a>. Out of the thousands of containers being transported, <a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/dc-md-va/2024/03/27/baltimore-bridge-collapse-bodies-missing-workers/">56 containers contained 764 tons of hazardous materials</a>. </p>
<p>Removing the damaged steel latticework of the bridge’s trusses off the bow of the ship will be a challenging feat. </p>
<p>Debris now blocks navigation along the Fort McHenry Channel. The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers has started <a href="https://www.nab.usace.army.mil/Media/News-Releases/Article/3719448/army-corps-of-engineers-is-supporting-recovery-operations-following-francis-sco/">underwater surveys</a> to assess what needs to be done for debris removal.</p>
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<iframe width="440" height="260" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/9IG9OBINuvg?wmode=transparent&start=0" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen=""></iframe>
<figcaption><span class="caption">U.S. White House press briefing after the Baltimore bridge collision.</span></figcaption>
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<p>The debris removal effort will be especially complex as sensitivity is required. In and around the same area where the <a href="https://www.marinelog.com/news/corps-supporting-recovery-operations-following-baltimore-bridge-collapse/">federal debris removal assessment</a> is taking place, rescue officials were searching for bodies — the <a href="https://www.cnn.com/us/live-news/baltimore-key-bridge-collapse-03-28-24/h_586e28d0a65dece9b4f0577972b94592">search has been paused for safety reasons</a>.</p>
<p>The <a href="https://mdsp.maryland.gov/Organization/Pages/FieldOperationsBureau/UnderwaterRecoveryTeam.aspx">Maryland State Police underwater recovery team</a> has responsibilities involving the recovery of the bodies of the missing highway workers. </p>
<h2>Unified command response</h2>
<p>Unified command is an emergency management technique applied when <a href="https://www.nrt.org/sites/2/files/UC%20TAD%201-26-07%20FINAL.pdf">there is more than one agency with incident jurisdiction</a>. </p>
<p>The Fort McHenry navigation channel and the I-695 bridge itself fall under multiple local, state and federal jurisdictional responsibilities. On March 27, a <a href="https://www.keybridgeresponse2024.com/post/baltimore-s-francis-scott-key-bridge-collapses-after-mv-dali-allided-with-bridge-column">unified command joint information centre</a> was established to co-ordinate emergency responses.</p>
<p>Sadly, within the first 48 hours search and rescue transitioned to search and recovery. Operations will be moving in the direction of salvage and <a href="https://homeport.uscg.mil/Lists/Content/Attachments/1626/MTSRU%20Information%20Sheet%20v4%200.pdf">port recovery</a>. </p>
<p>Going forward, the main priority is clearing the shipping channel to reopen the Port of Baltimore. True to form to the characteristics of a technological disaster, it will take a while to determine the scope of the impacts. </p>
<p>For the immediate future, timelines for when the Baltimore Harbour can return to normal will remain elusive.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/220337/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Jack L. Rozdilsky receives support for research communication and public scholarship from York University. He also has received research support from the Canadian Institutes of Health Research.</span></em></p>A cargo ship leaving the Port of Baltimore collided with a bridge in a technological disaster that may have claimed the lives of up to six maintenance workers on the bridge at the time.Jack L. Rozdilsky, Associate Professor of Disaster and Emergency Management, York University, CanadaLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/2209402024-01-17T23:10:26Z2024-01-17T23:10:26ZWe can’t rely on the ‘dogs breakfast’ of disaster warnings to do the hard work of building community resilience<p>In the wake of cyclone Jasper, the new Australian Warning System has been roundly criticised. The system has been characterised as a “dog’s breakfast” and a “<a href="https://www.abc.net.au/news/2023-12-16/ex-tropical-cyclone-jasper-bugs-australian-warning-system/103235574">cock-up of massive proportions</a>”.</p>
<p>For both emergency warnings, as well as for general awareness-raising around disaster preparedness, one-way communications are the default in risk management. </p>
<p>This reliance on communications is wishful thinking.</p>
<p>Whether as text messages and alerts when disasters strike, or as pamphlets and expert advice to encourage preparedness, we need to rethink how we use communications if we want more resilient communities.</p>
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Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/when-disaster-strikes-emergency-responders-cant-respond-to-every-call-communities-must-be-helped-to-help-themselves-216644">When disaster strikes, emergency responders can't respond to every call. Communities must be helped to help themselves</a>
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<h2>Warnings reflect unreasonable expectations</h2>
<p>As <a href="https://www.abc.net.au/news/2023-12-16/ex-tropical-cyclone-jasper-bugs-australian-warning-system/103235574">noted by Australians</a> in the aftermath of cyclone Jasper and the <a href="https://www.theage.com.au/politics/victoria/the-maribyrnong-river-flood-warnings-that-receded-then-went-unheeded-20230928-p5e8ft.html">Maribyrnong floods</a>, the advice in warnings is often perceived to be incorrect, late, vague, and confusing.</p>
<p>Rather than an error that can be <a href="https://www.theage.com.au/politics/victoria/maribyrnong-flood-forecasting-and-early-warnings-must-be-improved-report-finds-20231006-p5ea7x.html">fixed with better content</a>, this reflects unreasonable expectations. </p>
<p>We expect a warning to be sufficiently abstract to be useful across large regions and for many people with varying levels of exposure and capacity. </p>
<p>At the same time, we also expect information specific enough for stressed and possibly traumatised individuals to implement in life-threatening situations.</p>
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<p>In response to recommendations from numerous inquiries, authorities have applied standards and terminology to ensure consistency. While this sounds reasonable, it means that future warnings will continue to be ineffective.</p>
<p>It is worth repeating that risks are <a href="https://www.preventionweb.net/files/670_72351.pdf">dynamic</a> and personal. Communications useful to a young, well-connected longtime resident will be received very differently by a middle aged, isolated, “tree change” individual who has grown up in urban areas.</p>
<p>That a generic warning is unable to satisfy the needs of diverse individuals, experiencing varying levels of hazard, spread over large areas, and over time is unsurprising. What is surprising is the belief that “better warnings” will.</p>
<h2>Repeating the same mistakes</h2>
<p>Warnings and awareness raising for disaster preparedness reflect how the risk sector relies on communications to “engage” the public. This is based on a <a href="https://wires.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/full/10.1002/wcc.570">discredited</a> approach that assumes communications can prompt targeted, lasting behaviour change.</p>
<p>The development of the <a href="https://www.australianwarningsystem.com.au">Australian Warning System</a> reflects this reliance. It is a position reaffirmed in the reports, commissions, and inquiries that have followed recent Australian disasters. </p>
<p>For example, in the 2020 <a href="https://www.royalcommission.gov.au/system/files/2020-12/Royal%20Commission%20into%20National%20Natural%20Disaster%20Arrangements%20-%20Report%20%20%5Baccessible%5D.pdf">Royal Commission into National Natural Disaster Arrangements</a>, a whole chapter is dedicated to “Emergency Information and Warnings”. </p>
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Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/disastrous-floods-in-wa-why-were-we-not-prepared-197407">Disastrous floods in WA – why were we not prepared?</a>
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<p>Similarly, one focus of the ongoing <a href="https://www.parliament.vic.gov.au/floodinquiry">inquiry</a> into the 2022 Victorian floods is on the “adequacy and effectiveness of early warning systems”. As it was for the 2011 <a href="http://floodsreview.archive.vic.gov.au/about-the-review/final-report.html">Comrie Review</a>, communications go unquestioned as the primary way to engage the public.</p>
<p>Frustration with repeated failure is becoming evident as successive commissions and inquiries hear the echoes of past efforts. The NSW 2022 <a href="https://www.nsw.gov.au/nsw-government/projects-and-initiatives/floodinquiry">flood inquiry</a> stands out for its blunt recognition that Australians appear to be locked in a cycle. Disasters expose systemic failings that result in recommendations that go unimplemented. The report read:</p>
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<p>The Inquiry heard a deep sense of frustration from many flood-affected residents and community members over a lack of implementation and change over time, despite multiple previous reviews. Many were sceptical that this Inquiry would succeed in effecting significant change. Similar findings on implementation (or lack thereof) were made in the 2020 NSW Independent Bushfire Inquiry, which recommended that a central accountability mechanism be established to track implementation of the report.</p>
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<p>But what is missed in all of these reviews is a critical examination of our tendency to default to communications.</p>
<h2>The cost of being reactive</h2>
<p>Part of the problem with our reliance on communications is that, in the case of warnings, by the time they arrive we are reacting to an unfolding crisis, rather than preparing for one. This raises the costs significantly.</p>
<p>The resulting costs of disasters, currently $38 billion annually, are <a href="https://www.deloitte.com/au/en/services/economics/perspectives/building-australias-natural-disaster-resilience.html">expected to rise</a> to between $73 and $94 billion annually by 2060, according to a Deloitte report. The report argued:</p>
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<p>The Australian economy is facing $1.2 trillion in cumulative costs of natural disasters over the next 40 years even under a low emissions scenario. This shows there is the potential for large economic gains from investments to improve Australia’s resilience to natural disasters. Targeted investments in both physical (such as infrastructure) and community (such as preparedness programs) resilience measures are predicted to significantly reduce the increasing costs of natural disasters</p>
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<p>Disaster costs are an unavoidably shared burden. Whether in the form of disaster response, relief, and recovery or in the form of investment in preparedness, <a href="https://www.pm.gov.au/media/64-million-package-ex-tropical-cyclone-jasper-disaster-recovery">public funds</a> will inevitably be required in ever-larger amounts.</p>
<p>This situation results in <a href="https://www.afr.com/policy/economy/australia-s-floods-were-fourth-most-costly-global-disaster-in-2022-20230110-p5cbhx">astronomical expenditures</a> during events and, later, “pinching pennies” for preparedness. This bias towards response and recovery over preparedness is known, made all the more frustrating because preparedness is <a href="https://www.pc.gov.au/inquiries/completed/disaster-funding/report">shown to be</a> cost-effective.</p>
<h2>So what should happen instead?</h2>
<p>Communications do not create community resilience, they activate it. </p>
<p>Our recent research shows that, <a href="https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/epdf/10.1111/jfr3.12861">rather than communications</a>, we need to engage meaningfully with communities. This means respecting their positions and values and appreciating that resilience is a long, slow, collaborative process that requires humility, active listening, experience, reflection, and support. </p>
<p>Our research shows that by conducting one-on-one engagement with members of the community, we can better understand their circumstances and support their agency. This has helped people as they learn about risk. They’ve shared lessons with their neighbours and helped family members to better protect themselves. This means we’re seeing knowledge and risk mitigation <a href="https://www.worldscientific.com/doi/epdf/10.1142/S2345737623410014">circulate through communities</a>. </p>
<p>This way of partnering takes time and takes work, but it opens pathways for the learning and behaviour changes that help our communities expand their resilience. While it is expensive, the predicted costs of disasters more than justify such efforts.</p>
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Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/every-australian-will-be-touched-by-climate-change-so-lets-start-a-national-conversation-about-how-well-cope-196934">Every Australian will be touched by climate change. So let's start a national conversation about how we'll cope</a>
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<p>As parts of Queensland and Victoria continue to be battered by disasters, it is time to admit that communications alone do not build resilience. They play an important role, but they are only one element of what needs to be a long-term partnership.</p>
<p>Rather than scooping the “dog’s breakfast” back into the bowl, we need to consider the underlying causes of the mess. With resilience, Australians will be ready and able to share in the growing burden of risk management.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/220940/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Brian Robert Cook receives funding from Melbourne Water. </span></em></p><p class="fine-print"><em><span>Peter Kamstra does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>Whether it’s pamphlets aimed at prevention or text alerts, mass communication is often relied on during disasters. This flawed approach can be improved by engaging meaningfully with communities.Brian Robert Cook, Associate Professor of Geography, The University of MelbourneLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/2166442023-12-21T04:39:12Z2023-12-21T04:39:12ZWhen disaster strikes, emergency responders can’t respond to every call. Communities must be helped to help themselves<p>As record-breaking floods in North Queensland ease and water levels recede, the focus now turns to the mop-up and recovery. Residents have been <a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XgkfqttxNqk">supporting</a> each other through the flood crisis, such as processing donated goods, conducting welfare checks on neighbours and helping each other clean up homes.</p>
<p>Such community resilience in disasters is vital. <a href="https://www.nsw.gov.au/nsw-government/projects-and-initiatives/floodinquiry">Successive</a> <a href="https://www.royalcommission.gov.au/natural-disasters">inquiries</a> have shown we can’t rely solely on emergency services in large disasters. Crews can’t get to every community straight away, or provide support to every household that needs assistance.</p>
<p>Our research shows how communities can be supported to respond in a crisis – during the event, in the immediate aftermath and beyond.</p>
<p>As climate change worsens, extreme weather events are the new norm. Local community building and preparedness is now more important than ever.</p>
<h2>Building disaster resilience</h2>
<p>Volunteer numbers are <a href="https://www.volunteeringaustralia.org/wp-content/uploads/VRP_The-Decline-of-Formal-Volunteering-in-Australia-2001%E2%80%932020-Insights-from-the-HILDA-Survey.pdf">declining nationally</a>. However, when disaster strikes, people show a willingness to step forward and help their communities.</p>
<p>We have researched <a href="https://www.sydney.edu.au/sydney-environment-institute/news/2023/08/02/communities-self-organising-for-climate-disasters.html">community-led responses</a> to disasters in three locations in New South Wales – the Northern Rivers, Blue Mountains and Hawkesbury regions. We examined how community networks organised themselves during the response and recovery phases of the Black Summer bushfires (2019-20) and major floods (2020-22). </p>
<p>We found people leapt into action and helped one another: relaying early warning messages, distributing food when roads were cut and then cleaning up afterwards. They also provided emotional support when the going got tough. This included listening to and supporting flood-affected people who wanted to tell their story and start processing what had happened. Community members also supported elderly people when their at-home support services were cut off for extended periods. </p>
<p>In <a href="https://www.sydney.edu.au/sydney-environment-institute/news/2023/05/01/building-resilience-to-the-mental-health-impacts-of-climate-chan.html">separate research</a> in rural communities affected by drought, fire and flood, we found community-led collective action and planning can foster feelings of belonging and social connection. It can also help communities prepare for the broader consequences of climate change. </p>
<hr>
<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/north-queenslands-record-breaking-floods-are-a-frightening-portent-of-whats-to-come-under-climate-change-220039">North Queensland's record-breaking floods are a frightening portent of what's to come under climate change</a>
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</em>
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<h2>Community resilience in action</h2>
<p>Many community-led resilience initiatives have emerged in the Northern Rivers region in the wake of successive disasters. They include <a href="https://www.floodhelpnr.com.au/">Resilient Lismore</a>, <a href="https://resilientuki.org/">Resilient Uki</a>, <a href="https://www.wardellcore.community/">Wardell CORE</a>, <a href="https://togetherpottsville.org/">Together Pottsville</a>, <a href="https://www.facebook.com/groups/431100262102216">South Golden Beach Community Resilience Team</a>, and <a href="https://www.madr.org.au/#:%7E:text=Main%20Arm%20Disaster%20Recovery%20Inc.%20is%20a%20community%2Drun%20organisation,to%20keep%20the%20community%20safe.">Main Arm Disaster Recovery</a>. </p>
<p>Examples of the activities flowing from these initiatives include:</p>
<ul>
<li>homegrown produce swaps</li>
<li>community gatherings (such as festivals, barbeques and bushfire awareness talks)</li>
<li>creating or joining formal local community groups</li>
<li>creating community resilience plans</li>
<li>bush regeneration projects</li>
<li>improving emergency communications </li>
<li>creating animal welfare plans for disasters. </li>
</ul>
<p>One <a href="https://www.ccrnetwork.org/">community program in Northern NSW</a> was run by community organisation <a href="https://www.planc.org.au">Plan C</a>. The lead author of this article, Rebecca McNaught, is a board member and former consultant to the organisation and co-author Jean Renouf is the founder and chief executive. The program trained and supported more than 270 Northern Rivers residents across six local government areas. Most (80%) of these people were affected by floods in 2022 through loss of property or incomes, and 30% were directly threatened by bushfires in 2019-20.</p>
<p>The program covered the technical aspects of preparing for disasters, such as learning about the roles of fire, police and state emergency services. It also trained participants in disaster risks associated with bushfire, flood, tsunami and landslips.</p>
<p>Disasters can <a href="https://www.mdpi.com/1660-4601/20/13/6285">take a toll on mental health</a>. Training people in how to look after themselves and each other in challenging times is important. The program teaches participants about the benefit of sharing stories about individual experiences, and guides participants in how to provide emotional support to someone who has experienced trauma. The program also covers concepts such as active listening, compassionate communication skills and self-care for both the helper and the person receiving support.</p>
<p>Participants are also mentored and connected to a network of community carers and responders who support each other and their communities to both recover from recent floods and fires and build resilience to future disasters.</p>
<p>The connection of community leaders across the Northern Rivers is essential. Through Whatsapp groups, leaders can express solidarity, share skills and resources, and support each other to work through the governance issues involving community organisations.</p>
<hr>
<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/why-can-floods-like-those-in-the-northern-rivers-come-in-clusters-180250">Why can floods like those in the Northern Rivers come in clusters?</a>
</strong>
</em>
</p>
<hr>
<h2>The benefits are clear</h2>
<p>Communities are important actors in preparing for and recovering from disaster, and should be supported to do this job well. And more robust research into community resilience programs is needed, to better understand what is working, who benefits and why.</p>
<p>Support for this work must come now, before the next disaster, so communities can pull together to withstand the challenges ahead. </p>
<p><em>The authors wish to acknowledge Emma Pittaway and Dr Johanna Nalau for their contributions to this article.</em></p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/216644/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Rebecca McNaught is a Research Fellow at the University Centre for Rural Health (University of Sydney) in Lismore. She has received scholarship funding from the Australian Government's Research Training Program Stipend. She is affiliated with the South Golden Beach, New Brighton and Ocean Shores Community Resilience Team. She has also conducted paid and voluntary work for the Northern Rivers not-for-profit registered charity Plan C. </span></em></p><p class="fine-print"><em><span>Amanda Howard has received funding from Resilience NSW and the new NSW Reconstruction Authority, Infrastructure NSW.</span></em></p><p class="fine-print"><em><span>Jean S. Renouf is a lecturer at Southern Cross University and the CEO of the Northern Rivers not-for-profit registered charity Plan C, which builds community resilience in the Northern Rivers of NSW. Plan C receives funding from Commonwealth and NSW government grants.
</span></em></p><p class="fine-print"><em><span>Jo Longman has received funding from the NSW Dept of Planning, Industry and Environment and the NSW Reconstruction Authority. </span></em></p>The North Queensland floods remind us of the need to build community resilience to disasters – during the event, in the immediate aftermath and beyond.Rebecca McNaught, Research Fellow, University of SydneyAmanda Howard, Associate Professor, University of SydneyJean S. Renouf, Lecturer in Politics and International Relations, Southern Cross UniversityJo Longman, Senior Research Fellow, The University Centre for Rural Health, University of SydneyLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/2162452023-10-26T12:32:16Z2023-10-26T12:32:16ZUN warns that Gaza desperately needs more aid − an emergency relief expert explains why it is especially tough working in Gaza<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/555675/original/file-20231024-27-axqx74.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">A Palestinian boy sits in a World Health Organization truck near a hospital in the southern area of the Gaza Strip. </span> <span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.gettyimages.com/detail/news-photo/palestinian-boy-sits-in-a-truck-of-the-world-health-news-photo/1741639361?adppopup=true">Ahmed Zakot/SOPA Images/LightRocket via Getty Images</a></span></figcaption></figure><p><em>United Nations agencies on Oct. 24, 2023, <a href="https://www.reuters.com/world/middle-east/un-palestinian-refugee-agency-calls-unimpeded-flow-aid-gaza-2023-10-24/">pleaded for more aid</a> to be allowed into Gaza, saying that more than 20 times the amount of food, water and medical supplies and other items that are currently reaching people is needed.</em></p>
<p><em>Egypt first opened its borders for <a href="https://www.reuters.com/world/middle-east/trucks-enter-gaza-carrying-medical-supplies-food-hamas-2023-10-21/">aid deliveries into Gaza on Oct. 21</a>, and since then, <a href="https://www.reuters.com/world/middle-east/third-gaza-bound-aid-convoy-enters-rafah-crossing-egypt-sources-2023-10-23">54 trucks</a> with medical supplies had entered Gaza as of Oct. 23, according to the U.N.</em></p>
<p><em>But the U.N. and other <a href="https://reliefweb.int/report/occupied-palestinian-territory/we-desperately-need-more-humanitarian-aid-come-gaza">international aid groups are warning</a> that the 2.3 million people living in Gaza remain in dire need of more clean water, food, fuel and medical care. The U.N.’s relief agency in Gaza, UNRWA, is also saying that without more fuel, it will have to <a href="https://www.ochaopt.org/content/hostilities-gaza-strip-and-israel-flash-update-18">stop its work</a> on everything from providing medical care to setting up shelters for displaced people on Oct. 25.</em> </p>
<p><em>Safely delivering aid in Gaza has unique complications – including the fact that the U.S. and the European Union classify Hamas as a terrorist group.</em> </p>
<p><em>The Conversation spoke with <a href="https://publichealth.jhu.edu/faculty/664/paul-b-spiegel">Paul Spiegel</a>, an expert on complex humanitarian emergencies at the Center for Humanitarian Health at Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, to better understand the particular challenges this reality creates and how it affects delivering aid to civilians in Gaza.</em> </p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/555676/original/file-20231024-29-xm3ju6.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="People wearing yellow vests wave Egyptian flags at a large white truck." src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/555676/original/file-20231024-29-xm3ju6.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/555676/original/file-20231024-29-xm3ju6.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/555676/original/file-20231024-29-xm3ju6.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/555676/original/file-20231024-29-xm3ju6.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/555676/original/file-20231024-29-xm3ju6.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/555676/original/file-20231024-29-xm3ju6.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/555676/original/file-20231024-29-xm3ju6.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">People greet trucks loaded with humanitarian aid preparing to enter Gaza from Egypt on Oct. 22, 2023.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.gettyimages.com/detail/news-photo/trucks-loaded-with-humanitarian-aid-prepare-to-enter-gaza-news-photo/1740638103?adppopup=true">Ahmed Gomaa/Xinhua via Getty Images</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<h2>What are the challenges with providing aid in conflict zones like Gaza?</h2>
<p>Providing humanitarian assistance in any sudden emergency, like the one <a href="https://apnews.com/article/israel-palestinians-gaza-captives-border-aid-f5976ed58ba508f14d45b72b428125ac">currently happening in Gaza</a>, is complex – in terms of security, logistics and financing. </p>
<p>Often, there are simply not enough appropriate supplies available to quickly get into an acute emergency, which might be in a remote area or might be in a restricted area, as is the case with Gaza. There are <a href="https://reliefweb.int/report/world/aid-worker-security-report-2022-collateral-violence-managing-risks-aid-operations-major-conflict">often security issues</a> that may affect an aid group’s access to a population. And there is the risk that <a href="https://www.icrc.org/en/document/syria-attack-humanitarian-convoy-attack-humanity">aid workers will be attacked</a>, as has <a href="https://www.aidworkersecurity.org/incidents/report">happened increasingly</a> over the last several years. </p>
<p>Typically, a U.N. agency like the World Health Organization would try to get assurances from all groups that are part of a conflict, so that those providing assistance will not be targets of violence. These assurances do not always happen, and then the agencies need to decide if they deliver <a href="https://reliefweb.int/report/world/aid-worker-security-report-2023-figures-glance">the aid or wait until they get a guarantee</a> they won’t be attacked. </p>
<p>There are also concerns about aid, which is intended only for civilians, being diverted for military purposes. This can vary from combatants secretly taking small amounts of supplies for their troops or stealing large truckloads of goods.</p>
<h2>How do politics affect humanitarian work, which is supposed to be neutral?</h2>
<p>Humanitarians try to follow basic principles of <a href="https://guide-humanitarian-law.org/content/article/3/humanitarian-principles/">humanity, independence, neutrality and impartiality</a>. We are not addressing the underlying causal issues related to a crisis. But the politics surrounding an emergency are still often a major, complicating factor in our work. </p>
<p>For example, at the Egyptian <a href="https://www.bbc.com/news/world-middle-east-67121372">Rafah crossing into Gaza</a>, various issues needed to be resolved, such as searching aid convoys for weapons, which items Hamas or other groups could divert from civilians and the assurance that refugees would not cross into Egypt. These and other aspects continue to delay much-needed aid for civilians in Gaza.</p>
<p>In this conflict, I have also seen aid workers express concern that the <a href="https://reliefweb.int/report/occupied-palestinian-territory/interview-israel-palestine-lack-fuel-gaza-now-critical-says-wfp">limited amount of aid</a> currently allowed into Gaza would stay in the south, and consequently be a pull factor for people being displaced from their homes. Or, there is a concern that the aid may not get to where it is most needed, such as all hospitals throughout Gaza. </p>
<p>In other crises, like those in the <a href="https://www.usaid.gov/humanitarian-assistance/democratic-republic-of-the-congo">Democratic Republic of Congo</a> or in Syria, we have heard concerns from all sides of a conflict about how aid may be unevenly or inequitably distributed, depending on where people live or what particular ethnic or religious group they belong to. This can cause tensions and even fighting among different communities.</p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/555677/original/file-20231024-22-hd2tks.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="Two children sit on the ground between rows of white tents and clothing hung on white laundry lines." src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/555677/original/file-20231024-22-hd2tks.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/555677/original/file-20231024-22-hd2tks.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/555677/original/file-20231024-22-hd2tks.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/555677/original/file-20231024-22-hd2tks.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/555677/original/file-20231024-22-hd2tks.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/555677/original/file-20231024-22-hd2tks.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/555677/original/file-20231024-22-hd2tks.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Children play around tents on Oct. 19, 2023, at a U.N. camp set up for Palestinians who fled to the southern Gaza Strip.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.gettyimages.com/detail/news-photo/kids-play-around-tents-at-a-camp-set-up-by-the-united-news-photo/1733642681?adppopup=true">Mustafa Hassona/Anadolu via Getty Images</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<h2>How does Hamas factor into this planning?</h2>
<p>The U.S. and the <a href="https://www.consilium.europa.eu/en/policies/fight-against-terrorism/terrorist-list/#applied">European Union</a> have very <a href="https://www.state.gov/executive-order-13224/">strict rules</a> that will block the financial assets of organizations that give money or support to Hamas, or any other organization they classify as a terrorist group. </p>
<p>These sanctions also prohibit any direct contact between aid groups and a listed <a href="https://www.state.gov/foreign-terrorist-organizations/">terrorist organization like Hamas</a>.</p>
<h2>Can you give an example of what this looks like in practice?</h2>
<p>I arrived in Afghanistan immediately after the <a href="https://www.cfr.org/backgrounder/taliban-afghanistan">Taliban took over</a> in 2021 with the World Health Organization. When that happened, the nongovernmental organizations and U.N. agencies – which receive the largest <a href="https://www.cfr.org/article/funding-united-nations-what-impact-do-us-contributions-have-un-agencies-and-programs">amount of money from the U.S.</a> than from any other country – were not allowed to officially work with the Taliban and their ministries, or to give any money to them. </p>
<p>Previously, most of the global funding for health, for instance, was given to the Afghan Ministry of Public Health, which then had systems in place to disburse the money and monitor how it was spent. These new restrictions made it harder for aid to be delivered. We needed to find new ways of doing work, in order to bypass the Taliban and the Ministry of Public Health, which the former now controlled. This disruption created challenges in terms of both distributing aid quickly and in terms of sustainability, as many of the employees at the ministry left.</p>
<h2>What are the long-term effects of navigating around governments that are classified by some countries as terrorist groups?</h2>
<p>When international assistance is not allowed to go through local governments because of sanctions, the U.N. and international nongovernmental organizations develop and run parallel services, like schools or hospitals. </p>
<p>While this may work in the short term and save lives, these parallel systems have longer-term, negative effects. Government officials may leave their jobs for higher-paying jobs in the U.N. and with NGOs, for example. </p>
<p>We have seen the negative, long-term effects of this firsthand in numerous countries, like Afghanistan, South Sudan and other places where the U.S. and other governments are concerned about terrorism, and consequently have imposed sanctions. </p>
<p>At this point in time, I think that lifesaving aid desperately needs to be provided to civilians in Gaza. Despite the various challenges I have mentioned in this discussion, I believe that humanity must prevail, over all other aspects. It truly is a matter of life and death.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/216245/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Paul Spiegel does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organization that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>Government sanctions against Hamas, which the US and the European Union consider a terrorist group, mean that aid groups are not able to directly work with Hamas.Paul Spiegel, Director of the Center for Humanitarian Health, Johns Hopkins UniversityLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/2144532023-10-03T12:32:53Z2023-10-03T12:32:53ZNationwide test of Wireless Emergency Alert system could test people’s patience – or help rebuild public trust in the system<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/552198/original/file-20231004-23-qzt96a.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=1232%2C0%2C1703%2C2791&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">This message probably popped up on your phone on Oct. 4, 2023. </span> <span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://newsroom.ap.org/detail/EmergencyAlert/b25b11fb1d8a4816b37913430d2b28b4/photo">AP Photo/Wayne Partlow</a></span></figcaption></figure><p>The <a href="https://www.fcc.gov/public-safety-and-homeland-security/policy-and-licensing-division/alerting/general/wireless#block-menu-block-4">Wireless Emergency Alert system</a> had its third <a href="https://apnews.com/article/fema-wireless-emergency-alert-television-7f393986770e111d88ed727a82de58ca">nationwide test</a> on Oct. 4, 2023. The Wireless Emergency Alert system is a public safety system that allows authorities to alert people via their mobile devices of dangerous weather, missing children and other situations requiring public attention.</p>
<p>Similar tests in 2018 and 2021 caused a degree of <a href="https://theconversation.com/covid-19-messages-make-emergency-alerts-just-another-text-in-the-crowd-on-your-home-screen-161153">public confusion</a> <a href="https://doi.org/10.1111/1468-5973.12438">and resistance</a>. In addition, there was confusion around the first test of <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/technology/2023/apr/21/how-the-uk-emergency-alert-system-test-has-been-years-in-the-making">the U.K. system in April 2023</a>, and an outcry surrounding accidental alert messages such as those sent in <a href="https://www.cnn.com/2018/01/30/us/hawaii-false-missile-alert-timeline/index.html">Hawaii in January 2018</a> and in <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2023/04/20/us/florida-emergency-alert.html">Florida in April 2023</a>.</p>
<p>The federal government lists <a href="https://www.fema.gov/emergency-managers/practitioners/integrated-public-alert-warning-system/public/wireless-emergency-alerts">five types of emergency alerts</a>: National (formerly labeled Presidential), Imminent Threat, Public Safety, America’s Missing: Broadcast Emergency Response (Amber), and Opt-in Test Messages. You can opt out of any except National Alerts, which are reserved for national emergencies. The Oct. 4 test was a National Alert.</p>
<p>We are a <a href="https://scholar.google.com/citations?user=XZhS9CMAAAAJ&hl=en">media studies researcher</a> and a <a href="https://scholar.google.com/citations?user=4u167qAAAAAJ&hl=en">communications researcher</a> who study emergency alert systems. We believe that concerns about previous tests raise two questions: Is public trust in emergency alerting eroding? And how might the Oct. 4 test rebuild it?</p>
<h2>Confusion and resistance</h2>
<p>In an ever-updating digital media environment, emergency alerts appear as part of a constant stream of updates, buzzes, reminders and notifications on people’s smartphones. Over-alerting is <a href="https://publisher.abc-clio.com/9781440866036/">a common fear in emergency management circles</a> because it can lead people to ignore alerts and not take needed action. The sheer volume of different updates can be similarly overwhelming, burying emergency alerts in countless other messages. Many people have even <a href="https://doi.org/10.1111/1468-5973.12438">opted out of alerts</a> when possible, rummaging through settings and toggling off every alert they can find. </p>
<p>Even when people receive alerts, however, there is potential for confusion and rejection. All forms of emergency alerts <a href="https://nyupress.org/9781479811632/in-case-of-emergency/">rely on the recipients’ trust</a> in the people or organization responsible for the alert. But it’s not always clear who the sender is. As one emergency manager explained to one of us regarding alerts used during COVID-19: “People were more confused because they got so many different notifications, especially when they don’t say who they’re from.”</p>
<p>When the origin of an alert is unclear, or the recipient perceives it to have a <a href="https://doi.org/10.1017/S1537592721000049">political bias counter to their own views</a>, people may become confused or resistant to the message. Prior tests and use of the Wireless Emergency Alert system have indicated strong anti-authority attitudes, particularly following the much-derided 2018 test of what was then called the Presidential Alert <a href="https://www.fema.gov/emergency-managers/practitioners/integrated-public-alert-warning-system/public/wireless-emergency-alerts">message class</a>. There are also <a href="https://apnews.com/article/fact-check-fema-test-graphene-oxide-covid-vaccine-517946413392">conspiracy theories</a> online about the Oct. 4 test. </p>
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<iframe width="440" height="260" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/D4c9pbiqJHo?wmode=transparent&start=0" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen=""></iframe>
<figcaption><span class="caption">People receive mobile alerts from then-president Donald Trump in a ‘Saturday Night Live’ sketch aired on Oct. 6, 2018.</span></figcaption>
</figure>
<p>Trust in alerts is further reduced by the overall lack of testing and public awareness work done on behalf of the Wireless Emergency Alert system since its <a href="https://www.fcc.gov/news-events/notes/2022/06/09/wireless-emergency-alerts-turn-10-years-old">launch in June 2012</a>. As warning expert Dennis Mileti explained in his 2018 <a href="https://www.fema.gov/blog/preptalks-dr-dennis-mileti-modernizing-public-warning-messaging">Federal Emergency Management Agency PrepTalk</a>, routine public tests are essential for warning systems’ effectiveness. However, the Wireless Emergency Alert system had been tested at the national level only twice before the Oct. 4 test, and there has been little public outreach to explain the system by either the government or technology companies.</p>
<h2>More exposure and info leads to more trust</h2>
<p>The Oct. 4 nationwide test may offer a moment that could rebuild trust in the system. A survey administered in the days immediately following the 2021 national test found that more respondents believed that the National Alert message class label <a href="https://doi.org/10.1111/1468-5973.12438">would signal more trustworthy information</a> than the Presidential Alert message class label. </p>
<p>Similarly, in contrast to the 2021 test, which targeted only select users, the Oct. 4 test was slated to reach all compatible devices in the U.S. Since users cannot opt out of the National Alert message class, the Oct. 4 test is a powerful opportunity to build awareness about the potential benefits of a functional federal emergency alert system.</p>
<p>The Oct. 4 test message stated, “THIS IS A TEST of the National Wireless Emergency Alert system… No action is required by the public.” We instead suggest that action is, in fact, urgently needed to help people better understand the rapidly changing mobile alert and warning ecosystem that confronts them. Familiarity with this system is what will allow it to support public health and safety, and address the crises of the 21st century. </p>
<p>Here are steps that you can take now to help make the Wireless Emergency Alert system more effective:</p>
<ul>
<li><p>The Wireless Emergency Alert system is only one form of emergency alert. Identify which mobile notification systems are used by your local emergency management organizations: police, fire and emergency services. Know which systems are opt-in and opt-out, and opt in to those needed. Ensure access to other sources of information during an emergency, such as local radio and television, or National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration weather radio.</p></li>
<li><p>Understand the meaning of mobile device notification settings. Just because you are opted in to “Emergency Alerts” on your cellphone does not necessarily mean you are signed up to receive notifications from local authorities. Check the <a href="https://www.fema.gov/emergency-managers/practitioners/integrated-public-alert-warning-system/public/wireless-emergency-alerts">FEMA website</a> for information about the Wireless Emergency Alert system and your local emergency management organizations’ websites about opt-in systems. </p></li>
<li><p>Have a plan for contacting family, friends and neighbors during an emergency. Decide in advance who will help the vulnerable members of your community.</p></li>
<li><p>Find out if your local emergency management organizations test their alert systems, and make sure to receive those local tests. </p></li>
<li><p>Anticipate the possibility that mobile systems will be damaged or unavailable during a crisis and prepare essentials for sheltering in place or quick evacuation.</p></li>
</ul>
<p>Finally, push back on the lack of information and rise of misinformation about alerts by sharing reliable information about emergency alerts with your family and friends.</p>
<p><em>This article was updated to indicate that the test occurred on Oct. 4, 2023.</em></p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/214453/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Hamilton Bean has received funding from the Department of Homeland Security and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. </span></em></p><p class="fine-print"><em><span>Elizabeth Ellcessor does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organization that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>If an alert from the federal government popped up on your phone, did you notice it? Did you know who it was from? Did you trust it?Elizabeth Ellcessor, Associate Professor of Media Studies, University of VirginiaHamilton Bean, Associate Professor of Communication, University of Colorado DenverLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1995882023-09-19T12:15:26Z2023-09-19T12:15:26Z3 powerful earthquakes strike Afghanistan in one week – here’s how people around the world prepare for disasters<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/553577/original/file-20231012-17-685tzv.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=0%2C34%2C5760%2C3768&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">Survivors search through rubble on Oct. 7, 2023, in western Afghanistan, where a series of powerful earthquakes have killed thousands.</span> <span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.gettyimages.com/detail/news-photo/search-operation-for-the-bodies-and-those-who-remained-news-photo/1715818309?adppopup=true">Anadolu Agency/via Getty Images</a></span></figcaption></figure><p>Herat, in western Afghanistan, experienced a 6.3 magnititude earthquake on Oct. 11, 2023 – following <a href="https://apnews.com/article/afghanistan-earthquake-herat-c0181a41ae82e68892f7ba8ff988a07b">two more earlier in the same week</a>. </p>
<p>The mountains of Afghanistan are especially prone to earthquakes, but the truth is that earthquakes, flooding and hurricanes can happen anywhere. Nowhere is the risk zero.</p>
<p>But humans can make good decisions to lower the odds of hazards turning into disasters. Technology can help determine where to make investments to save the most lives.</p>
<p>The terrible devastation caused by the three <a href="https://www.reuters.com/world/africa/rescuers-race-find-survivors-over-48-hours-after-morocco-quake-2023-09-11/">6.3 magnitude earthquakes</a> in Afghanistan is the result of the presence of centuries-old historic buildings and the continued use of <a href="https://news.northeastern.edu/2023/09/10/morocco-earthquake-construction/">old construction methods</a>, such as clay bricks and unreinforced masonry. These building materials are <a href="https://encyclopedia.pub/entry/14263">prevalent worldwide</a>, particularly in <a href="https://vividbay.com/concrete-vs-wood-developing-countries-use-concrete/">developing countries</a>.</p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/553110/original/file-20231010-17-j3bviw.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="In a remote, rural setting, a man searches through the debris of what was once a home." src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/553110/original/file-20231010-17-j3bviw.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/553110/original/file-20231010-17-j3bviw.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/553110/original/file-20231010-17-j3bviw.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/553110/original/file-20231010-17-j3bviw.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/553110/original/file-20231010-17-j3bviw.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/553110/original/file-20231010-17-j3bviw.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/553110/original/file-20231010-17-j3bviw.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Mountainous villages in Afghanistan were devastated by a series of strong earthquakes and aftershocks that began on Oct. 7, 2023.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Muhammad Balabuluki/AFP via Getty Images</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p><a href="https://scholar.google.com/citations?user=1rRpM1QAAAAJ&hl=en&oi=ao">Engineers like me</a> tend to focus on tangible decisions related to how buildings are constructed – for example, the amount and location of steel reinforcement. Over the last several decades, I’ve conducted the world’s largest <a href="http://doi.org/10.1061/%28ASCE%29ST.1943-541X.0000222">shake table tests</a>, placing a full-size apartment building on a platform that simulates seismic activity, and I’ve led teams of experts to investigate earthquakes around the world. But devastation – like <a href="https://miyamotointernational.com/2023-herat-afghanistan-earthquake-preliminary-shelter-and-housing-response/?utm_source=English+Global+List&utm_campaign=aa31d6c71e-EMAIL_CAMPAIGN_2018_11_26_05_59_COPY_01&utm_medium=email&utm_term=0_544794d98f-aa31d6c71e-33641653&mc_cid=aa31d6c71e&mc_eid=576174da53">we are seeing in Afghanistan now</a> – continues. </p>
<p>Each disaster underlines the need to make our homes, offices and schools safer and more earthquake-resilient. But retrofitting buildings is expensive – and that cost represents a daunting challenge for developing nations like Afghanistan, <a href="https://www.moroccoworldnews.com/2023/10/358192/historical-sites-in-earthquake-hit-areas-in-morocco-reopen-for-visitors">Morocco</a> and <a href="https://www.un.org/en/turkiye-syria-earthquake-response">Syria</a> – all three of which were devastated recently by major earthquakes. It is also challenging in developed nations like Turkey, Japan and the United States.</p>
<p>And yet, I am optimistic because I know thousands of engineers around the world are working and collaborating to make earthquakes less deadly.</p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/547569/original/file-20230911-8366-vfgz9x.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="A group of people walk by buildings devastated by the earthquake." src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/547569/original/file-20230911-8366-vfgz9x.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/547569/original/file-20230911-8366-vfgz9x.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=436&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/547569/original/file-20230911-8366-vfgz9x.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=436&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/547569/original/file-20230911-8366-vfgz9x.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=436&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/547569/original/file-20230911-8366-vfgz9x.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=547&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/547569/original/file-20230911-8366-vfgz9x.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=547&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/547569/original/file-20230911-8366-vfgz9x.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=547&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">The Morocco earthquake in early September 2023 damaged thousands of homes and buildings, including many of the country’s long-standing historical landmarks.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.gettyimages.com/detail/news-photo/residents-pass-by-damaged-buildings-near-the-epicenter-at-news-photo/1659167845?adppopup=true">Wang Dongzhen/Xinhua News Agency via Getty Images</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<h2>How earthquakes devastate buildings</h2>
<p>Before we can discuss how to make people safer in earthquakes, it helps to understand the forces at work during these destructive events.</p>
<p>The extent of the damage done by an earthquake is determined by several factors, including magnitude – or how much energy the earthquake releases from its fault; depth of <a href="https://www.usgs.gov/faqs/what-a-fault-and-what-are-different-types#:%7E:text=A%20fault%20is%20a%20fracture,millimeters%20to%20thousands%20of%20kilometers">the fault</a> and how far the building is from the epicenter of the quake. </p>
<p>An epicenter is the location on the surface of the Earth above the fault. Essentially, it is ground zero for the quake, where shaking is most intense and buildings are more likely to collapse.</p>
<p>If the columns and walls of a multi-story building are not stiff and strong enough to resist the forces of an earthquake, gravity takes over. The building usually collapses at the bottom floor level, causing the stories above to follow. Anyone inside can be trapped or crushed by falling debris. Stopping this requires significant investment, <a href="https://www.nist.gov/buildings-construction/understanding-building-codes">modern design codes</a> and code enforcement. There are always challenges – but that doesn’t mean there haven’t been some success stories.</p>
<h2>California plans ahead</h2>
<p>Consider the city of San Francisco. More than a decade ago, this densely populated Northern California city realized it had thousands of apartment buildings with parking at the ground level. These are known as “soft-story” buildings and are more prone to collapse because they lack <a href="https://science.howstuffworks.com/engineering/structural/soft-story-seismic-retrofitting.htm">the strength and stiffness of reinforcing</a> at the ground level. Many are likely to collapse in a moderate-to-major earthquake, while many more would require months to repair. </p>
<p>Through a self-study <a href="https://sfgov.org/sfc/sites/default/files/ESIP/FileCenter/Documents/9757-atc522.pdf">completed in 2010</a>, San Francisco recognized that even if nobody was killed or injured in an earthquake, damage to these multi-unit residential buildings would result in a significant number of people losing their homes and leaving the city, changing its character forever. In 2013, the city began <a href="https://sfgov.org/sfc/sites/default/files/ESIP/FileCenter/Documents/10118-Legislation_Final.pdf">a mandatory retrofit program</a>. So far, <a href="https://sfgov.org/sfc/esip/soft-story">more than 700 soft-story buildings</a> have been retrofitted. Federal <a href="https://www.californiaresidentialmitigationprogram.com/How-to-Pay-for-a-Seismic-Retrofit/Earthquake-Soft-Story">grants of up to US$13,000</a> that became available in early 2023 are expected to accelerate this progress.</p>
<p><a href="https://www.ladbs.org/services/core-services/plan-check-permit/plan-check-permit-special-assistance/mandatory-retrofit-programs/soft-story-retrofit-program">Los Angeles</a> followed suit in 2015, passing a law that required retrofitting of both soft-story wood-framed and older concrete buildings prone to collapse. As of 2023, <a href="https://www.latimes.com/california/story/2023-03-22/poll-large-majority-los-angeles-residents-back-earthquake-retrofit">69% of soft-story buildings in LA</a> had been retrofitted. Progress on the concrete structures has been slower but is moving ahead.</p>
<p>Retrofitting a multi-unit apartment buildings in California costs between $60,000 and $130,000 – but the investment for a typical single-family home in the U.S. <a href="https://www.earthquakeauthority.com/Blog/2020/Benefits-Seismic-Upgrades-Why-Retrofit-Your-Home">starts as low as $3,000</a>.</p>
<p>Communities outside the U.S. have also built back better after earthquakes.</p>
<p>In 2005, Kobe, Japan, was rocked by a major earthquake that resulted in more than 5,000 fatalities and $200 billion in damage. As the city rebuilt, officials took the opportunity to improve their building code using updated <a href="https://doi.org/10.1016/S0958-9465(99)00042-6">strengthening and stiffening techniques</a>.</p>
<p>Christchurch, New Zealand, was devastated in 2011 by two earthquakes that destroyed much of the downtown area. While many buildings didn’t collapse – a sign that the building code worked to some degree – many were damaged beyond repair. Demolishing them presented an opportunity to <a href="https://www.atcouncil.org/docman/atc-15-16-papers/188-p4-01-macrae/file">focus on resilient construction</a>. </p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/547591/original/file-20230911-17-v1m7nf.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="Amidst the rubble, a team of uniformed firefighters in hard hats search through the debris left by the quake." src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/547591/original/file-20230911-17-v1m7nf.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/547591/original/file-20230911-17-v1m7nf.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=401&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/547591/original/file-20230911-17-v1m7nf.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=401&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/547591/original/file-20230911-17-v1m7nf.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=401&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/547591/original/file-20230911-17-v1m7nf.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/547591/original/file-20230911-17-v1m7nf.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/547591/original/file-20230911-17-v1m7nf.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">In Amizmiz, Morocco, search-and-rescue teams look for survivors trapped beneath the rubble in September 2023.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.gettyimages.com/detail/news-photo/firefighters-are-seen-digging-among-the-rubble-in-search-of-news-photo/1659521984?adppopup=true">Davide Bonaldo/SOPA Images/LightRocket via Getty Images</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<h2>Focusing efforts</h2>
<p>So how can people and governments figure out where best to invest to decrease our exposure to natural hazards?</p>
<p>The center I co-direct brings together specialists from <a href="http://resilience.colostate.edu">14 universities</a> to determine how to measure a community’s resilience to natural hazards to enable them to plan for, absorb and recover rapidly from hazards. A <a href="https://obamawhitehouse.archives.gov/the-press-office/2013/02/12/presidential-policy-directive-critical-infrastructure-security-and-resil">policy directive</a> during the Obama administration resulted in funds being focused on improving resilience throughout the U.S.</p>
<p>To improve resilience, we have to be able to quantify and measure it. To do this, we’ve developed a computer model called <a href="https://doi.org/10.1016/j.rcns.2023.07.004">IN-CORE</a> that communities can use to measure the short- and long-term effects of “what if” scenarios on their households, social institutions, physical infrastructure and local economy. Each interacting algorithm that makes up the model is based on scientifically rigorous research documented in the teams’ <a href="http://resilience.colostate.edu/publications.shtml">almost 200 peer-reviewed publications over the last eight years</a>. Our system allows stakeholders to make resilience-informed decisions and measure the impacts on vulnerable populations. For example, we know that it is vital that social institutions such as schools and hospitals <a href="https://www.asce.org/publications-and-news/civil-engineering-source/civil-engineering-magazine/issues/magazine-issue/article/2021/03/performance-based-seismic-design-succeeds-in-turkey">remain intact</a> after a disaster.</p>
<p>One example of utilizing IN-CORE is the center’s engagement with Salt Lake County, Utah. The county is planning for a major earthquake – an event that is inevitable <a href="https://earthquake.usgs.gov/cfusion/external_grants/reports/G13AP00003.pdf">according to experts from the U.S. Geological Survey</a>. Understanding where investment will have its biggest impact is critical because time and money are limited. Our system will help Salt Lake County determine which building retrofits will provide the most return on investment based on physical services, social services and economic and population stability.</p>
<p>One goal of the <a href="https://www.in-core.org">IN-CORE Project</a> is to assist communities recently identified by the Federal Emergency Management Agency, or FEMA, as <a href="https://www.fema.gov/partnerships/community-disaster-resilience-zones">Community Disaster Resilience Zones</a>. These are areas in the U.S. most at risk from the effects of natural hazards and climate change. </p>
<p>More broadly, we plan to partner with communities and regions worldwide, always staying focused on ensuring socially equitable solutions. For example, as recent earthquakes in Morocco and Afghanistan show, it is important to consider not just urban centers, but rural communities that often <a href="https://www.cnn.com/2023/09/12/africa/morocco-earthquake-village-atlas-mountains/index.html">suffer a great deal of loss</a>.</p>
<p><em>This article was updated to include details from the Afghanistan earthquakes in October 2023.</em></p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/199588/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>John van de Lindt receives funding from the National Institute of Standards and Technology to co-lead the development of IN-CORE mentioned in the article. </span></em></p>One way to prevent the destruction wrought by a devastating earthquake – like the one that hit Morocco in September 2023 – is to construct resilient homes and buildings.John van de Lindt, Professor of Civil Engineering, Colorado State UniversityLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/2095712023-07-16T11:56:46Z2023-07-16T11:56:46ZJoining forces: How collaboration can help tackle Canada’s escalating wildfire threat<p>Wildfires have become a hot topic in Canada this year — and for good reason. Thousands of Canadians have been evacuated from their homes. Millions have experienced smoky skies and air quality advisories. More hectares of land in Canada were burned by <a href="https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/canada-fires-map-air-quality-1.6871563">mid-June than in any previous year </a> since records began. </p>
<p>As our experiences with wildfires <a href="https://www.unep.org/news-and-stories/press-release/number-wildfires-rise-50-2100-and-governments-are-not-prepared">become more and more common</a> in concert with <a href="https://www.bbc.com/news/science-environment-65837040">changing climates</a>, one pressing question keeps cropping up: How do we manage wildfires more effectively and efficiently to minimize impacts on Canadians? </p>
<p>A part of the answer lies in how emergency response decisions are made.</p>
<p>Decisions made by those in charge of wildfire response can have a major impact on how quickly the fire is contained. The federal government has flagged <a href="https://www.cbc.ca/news/politics/national-disaster-response-agency-1.6868209">disaster response as a national priority</a> and paved the way for a <a href="https://theconversation.com/canada-urgently-needs-a-fema-like-emergency-management-agency-207400">new disaster response agency</a> that could support stronger co-ordination and response to disasters across Canada.</p>
<p>As experts in management and governance (including disaster response, planning, policy and collaboration) we examined two major wildfires — the Fort McMurray, Alta. wildfire of 2016 and Sweden’s Västmanland wildfire of 2014 — and found that the key to minimizing the impacts of wildfires is effective collaboration.</p>
<h2>What does wildfire management look like?</h2>
<p>Most fires, when first identified, are addressed at the municipal or regional levels by local teams. When a fire escalates in size or severity, governments at the provincial or territorial levels <a href="https://www.publicsafety.gc.ca/cnt/rsrcs/pblctns/2017-mrgnc-mngmnt-frmwrk/index-en.aspx">take over management</a> roles. Resources at the federal level are engaged if this escalates further.</p>
<p>During the critical response phase of an ongoing wildfire emergency — where the fire is not considered contained — a wide range of <a href="https://doi.org/10.1111/puar.13518">resources and co-ordination</a> is required. This includes monitoring, communications, evacuation, logistics and firefighting efforts. </p>
<p>Each of these roles have different agencies, departments and organizations in charge. And those in charge during these volatile times need to quickly adapt to the shifting risks and effects associated with uncontrolled wildfires.</p>
<p>However, practically managing and co-ordinating this critical emergency response continues to be a major challenge.</p>
<p>In the <a href="https://open.alberta.ca/publications/may-2016-wood-buffalo-wildfire-post-incident-assessment-report">Fort McMurray wildfire</a> in 2016, a State of Local Emergency was declared when the fires were spotted seven kilometres away from the town. A Regional Emergency Operations Centre was then established to support the needs of the region in terms of emergency response. </p>
<p>But two days later, the fire grew to a size and severity that prompted the <a href="https://globalnews.ca/news/3031111/fort-mcmurray-wildfire-calls-for-2nd-highway-after-88k-near-misses-during-mass-evacuation/">evacuation of 88,000 people</a> and the highest operational level of emergency response engaged. </p>
<p>The wildfire management required a quick <a href="https://www.taylorfrancis.com/chapters/edit/10.4324/9780429244308-2/upscaling-collaborative-crisis-management-daniel-nohrstedt-julia-baird-%C3%B6rjan-bodin-ryan-plummer-robert-summers">‘scaling up’</a> from regional to full provincial control. This included the active involvement of regional, municipal, provincial and federal resources including firefighters and evacuation supports.</p>
<p>Despite management efforts at levels from regional to federal, the fire ultimately burned more than 500,000 hectares and destroyed 2,400 structures including many homes.</p>
<h2>Minimizing wildfire impacts</h2>
<p>As we studied the Fort McMurray and Västmanland wildfires we looked closely at the role of collaboration in emergency response under conditions of urgency and uncertainty during major wildfires. We studied not only how people communicated with each other, but also the tasks they tackled and the connections between those tasks.</p>
<p>As Canadians and policy makers engage in nationwide conversations and new plans on emergency response, our research offers three key lessons from the past that could shape a safer future.</p>
<p><strong>1) Establishing the right connections</strong></p>
<p>Working together with various emergency response teams is critical to the success of its management. </p>
<p>However, it is not a matter of “the more collaboration, the better.” That strategy can decrease the effectiveness. Instead, it is critical to establish the <a href="https://doi.org/10.1111/puar.13518">‘right’ connections</a> between emergency managers.</p>
<p>Strategic collaborations enable organizations and decision-makers to co-ordinate their work across tasks that rely on each other in some way. For example, evacuation and logistics teams can work well with co-ordinated efforts as evacuation routes need to be organized in a way that leads to shelters for evacuees and vice versa.</p>
<p><strong>2) Building relationships in calmer times</strong></p>
<p>Relationships tend to be formed with supervisors, previous contacts, members of the same organization and others that are connected to existing contacts. While these ways of connecting can be useful, they may not be the ‘right’ collaborators in times of urgency.</p>
<p>The preparatory phase of emergency management must focus on <a href="https://doi.org/10.1007/s10113-019-01546-z">how — and with whom — connections are made</a>. Making purposeful efforts to build relationships and trust among those who will work on the same, or connected, tasks in non-emergency times can be very valuable in increasing effectiveness and efficiency of emergency response.</p>
<p>An emergency manager from Alberta we interviewed stated that response happens at the “speed of trust,” where trust is assumed and second-guessing decisions is not an option. The only way to do that is to build relationships ahead of the emergency.</p>
<p><strong>3) Structure and flexibility</strong></p>
<p>Structured systems, like the <a href="https://www.alberta.ca/incident-command-system-alberta.aspx">Incident Command System</a> (ICS), are used across Canada to help manage emergency incidents and planned events. These systems set out who does what, and how, in clear terms. </p>
<p>Sweden’s approach is much more flexible and self-organized. They operate on the principle of “responsibility” that supports those in management roles retaining those same roles in times of emergency. However, Sweden has no planned approach to co-ordinate across multiple organizations and agencies in emergency situations.</p>
<p>We found that combination of <a href="https://doi.org/10.1016/j.gloenvcha.2023.102729">structure and flexibility</a> is needed for effective emergency management. </p>
<p>Structure, like in the ICS system, provides strength in having a clear framework for how to co-ordinate among those who do not usually interact. Flexibility, like in Sweden’s system, creates opportunities to work with trusted others. We advise creating more opportunities within a structured system for strategic relationship building.</p>
<h2>Co-ordination is not enough</h2>
<p>In the wake of disasters, emergency response teams working in different capacities and different levels <a href="https://doi.org/10.1016/j.gloenvcha.2023.102729">need to agree on goals and working procedures for the specific scenario</a>, and not only on improving co-ordination.</p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="A fire crew cuts a fire line across a boggy area." src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/537527/original/file-20230714-21802-ymm8xc.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/537527/original/file-20230714-21802-ymm8xc.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=303&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/537527/original/file-20230714-21802-ymm8xc.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=303&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/537527/original/file-20230714-21802-ymm8xc.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=303&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/537527/original/file-20230714-21802-ymm8xc.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=381&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/537527/original/file-20230714-21802-ymm8xc.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=381&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/537527/original/file-20230714-21802-ymm8xc.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=381&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Shifting authority from local emergency managers can be difficult, especially in times of uncertainty, like wildfires, that leave no room for delayed decision-making.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">(AP Photo/The Duluth News-Tribune, Bob King)</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>These agreements are especially critical in efficiently <a href="https://www.taylorfrancis.com/chapters/edit/10.4324/9780429244308-2/upscaling-collaborative-crisis-management-daniel-nohrstedt-julia-baird-%C3%B6rjan-bodin-ryan-plummer-robert-summers">scaling up</a> crisis management from a local level to a broader and more collaborative one. This can be challenging as local emergency managers are connected to the place in which they work and are often the first to take control.</p>
<p>This shift, or scaling up, is further challenged by uncertainty. Wildfires are unpredictable and the situation can change quickly, leaving no room for delayed decisions. Timing is essential to mobilize resources when most urgently needed.</p>
<p>Emergency managers should consider the art and timing of scaling up — managing the shifts in authority and uncertainty — by building relationships that support agreement and collaborative skill-sets of those likely to be involved in future emergency response situations.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/209571/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Julia Baird receives funding from the Canada Research Chairs program. </span></em></p><p class="fine-print"><em><span>Angela Guerrero receives funding from the Australian Research Council and the Swedish Research Council (FORMAS).</span></em></p><p class="fine-print"><em><span>Daniel Nohrstedt receives funding from the Swedish Research Council and the Centre of Natural Hazards and Disaster Science (CNDS). </span></em></p><p class="fine-print"><em><span>Örjan Bodin receives funding from the Swedish Research Council (FORMAS) and the Swedish Environmental Protection Agency</span></em></p><p class="fine-print"><em><span>Robert J Summers receives funding from the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council of Canada, the Canadian Institutes of Health Research, the Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council of Canada, and the University of Alberta.
</span></em></p>Effective collaboration may be a key to minimizing impacts of the growing wildfire season in Canada.Julia Baird, Associate Professor and Canada Research Chair in Human Dimensions of Water Resources and Water Resilience, Brock UniversityAngela Guerrero, Research fellow, Faculty of Engineering, Queensland University of TechnologyDaniel Nohrstedt, Professor of Political Science, Research Coordinator in Centre of Natural Hazards and Disaster Science, Uppsala UniversityÖrjan Bodin, Professor in Environmental Science/Sustainability Science, Stockholm UniversityRobert J Summers, Director, School of Urban and Regional Planning, University of AlbertaLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/2050262023-06-25T20:03:52Z2023-06-25T20:03:52ZThe Black Summer bushfires put an enormous strain on families with young children. We can’t make the same mistakes again<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/529740/original/file-20230602-27-y427tr.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=16%2C0%2C1862%2C1081&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">
</span> <span class="attribution"><span class="source">Author provided</span></span></figcaption></figure><p>Floods, bushfires, heatwaves, cyclones. Australia is no stranger to emergencies. But during disasters we’re <a href="https://bmcpublichealth.biomedcentral.com/articles/10.1186/s12889-019-7528-0">better prepared</a> to support pet owners than families with babies and toddlers. </p>
<p>Until now, the experiences and needs of families with very young children during emergencies have been largely invisible and overlooked.</p>
<p>Our new <a href="https://www.breastfeeding.asn.au/resources-community-protection-infants-and-young-children-bushfire-emergencies-project">research</a>, a collaboration between the <a href="https://www.breastfeeding.asn.au/">Australian Breastfeeding Association</a> and Western Sydney University, highlights the challenges faced by the parents of very young children in disasters, and how we need to support them.</p>
<p>We looked at families affected by Australia’s catastrophic Black Summer bushfires of 2019-20. However, there are lessons for how we prepare for, and manage, any type of future emergency.</p>
<hr>
<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/200-experts-dissected-the-black-summer-bushfires-in-unprecedented-detail-here-are-6-lessons-to-heed-198989">200 experts dissected the Black Summer bushfires in unprecedented detail. Here are 6 lessons to heed</a>
</strong>
</em>
</p>
<hr>
<h2>What we did and what we found</h2>
<p>We surveyed and interviewed 256 parents of children from newborn to four years old at the time of the Black Summer bushfires, and 63 emergency responders.</p>
<p>We found caring for a very young child profoundly impacted parents’ bushfire experiences. Preparing to evacuate was more complex and physically difficult. Parents were under-prepared. Many did not have an evacuation plan and found it difficult to gather what they needed when they had to leave.</p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/529746/original/file-20230602-15-1y7tye.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="Woman with young baby in baby carrier packing to leave" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/529746/original/file-20230602-15-1y7tye.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/529746/original/file-20230602-15-1y7tye.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=450&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/529746/original/file-20230602-15-1y7tye.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=450&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/529746/original/file-20230602-15-1y7tye.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=450&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/529746/original/file-20230602-15-1y7tye.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=566&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/529746/original/file-20230602-15-1y7tye.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=566&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/529746/original/file-20230602-15-1y7tye.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=566&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">What to pack in an emergency? Many parents found they were under-prepared.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">M. George</span>, <span class="license">Author provided</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<hr>
<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/evacuating-with-a-baby-heres-what-to-put-in-your-emergency-kit-127026">Evacuating with a baby? Here's what to put in your emergency kit</a>
</strong>
</em>
</p>
<hr>
<h2>Evacuation centres weren’t child-friendly</h2>
<p>Women commonly evacuated on their own with their partner staying behind to protect property. </p>
<p>These mothers found it difficult to keep their children safe in large evacuation centres due to overcrowding, the presence of strangers and animals, and because there were limited resources for caring for children.</p>
<figure class="align-right zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/529743/original/file-20230602-17-o1il2g.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="Van at evacuation centre with toddler" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/529743/original/file-20230602-17-o1il2g.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=237&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/529743/original/file-20230602-17-o1il2g.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=800&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/529743/original/file-20230602-17-o1il2g.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=800&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/529743/original/file-20230602-17-o1il2g.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=800&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/529743/original/file-20230602-17-o1il2g.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=1005&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/529743/original/file-20230602-17-o1il2g.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=1005&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/529743/original/file-20230602-17-o1il2g.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=1005&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">When parents evacuated, spaces weren’t always suitable for young children.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="license">Author provided</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>Some emergency responders were aware of the vulnerability of children and their caregivers in large evacuation centres. </p>
<p>They described child protection concerns and physical dangers. They described unsafe practices by unsupported caregivers, such as washing baby bottles in toilet sinks, and unsafe sleep situations. They highlighted a need to proactively support parents.</p>
<p>Parents and emergency responders repeatedly said evacuation centres should have a separate space for families with very young children.</p>
<p>Families who could evacuate to the home of family or friends or to child-friendly venues such as preschools or doctors’ surgeries fared much better. One parent who was evacuated to a preschool told us:</p>
<blockquote>
<p>to the children it was like a holiday because they had all the play equipment, they had a huge, big play area out the back.</p>
</blockquote>
<p>The kindness of emergency responders, strangers and community members was greatly appreciated. One woman described how a shop employee, after seeing her with her toddler and realising she had evacuated, immediately offered her home saying:</p>
<blockquote>
<p>Do you need somewhere to stay? […] I live just walking distance […] here’s my key.</p>
</blockquote>
<h2>Pregnant women were at risk</h2>
<p>Women prioritised their children’s wellbeing over their own and often did not eat or drink properly. This was particularly concerning for pregnant and breastfeeding women. </p>
<p>Two of the five pregnant women we interviewed fainted while queuing for food and assistance. One of these women told us:</p>
<blockquote>
<p>I was so worried about my kids. I’d given them water, supplied them with food […] that I would just forget […] to eat myself, to drink […] The ambulance people asked me, ‘Have you had anything to drink today?’ […] I couldn’t even answer the question. I was like, ‘I don’t even remember if I have or not’.</p>
</blockquote>
<h2>Feeding infants could be hard</h2>
<p>Parents often found it difficult to access the resources they needed to care for their children.</p>
<p>Those who were formula feeding found it particularly difficult as infant formula, water, detergent and electricity were often not available. One parent told us:</p>
<blockquote>
<p>I had absolutely no way to ensure the bottles were cleaned as we only had a bit of water and paper towel to wipe them out with. The bottles did not have any contact with detergent on over six days.</p>
</blockquote>
<p>Those distributing infant formula did not always check whether parents had resources such as clean water or a way of heating water. Donations of infant formula were often out-of-date, not in the location needed, or more than required. One mother told us:</p>
<blockquote>
<p>People were trying to help. However it was an overwhelming amount of formula.</p>
</blockquote>
<p>Women who were breastfeeding were often grateful they had a secure food supply for their baby. One woman said:</p>
<blockquote>
<p>I am so lucky I was still breastfeeding […] I could comfort my baby and make her feel sense of normality, I was also able to feed my child without needing to worry about safe food or bottle preparation and supplies.</p>
</blockquote>
<p>Some mothers found it difficult to breastfeed in crowded evacuation centres, became dehydrated or interpreted infant fussiness and frequent feeding as meaning there was a problem with their milk. </p>
<p>They needed support to be able to continue breastfeeding that was not always available and some stopped breastfeeding as a result.</p>
<hr>
<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/babies-and-toddlers-might-not-know-theres-a-fire-but-disasters-still-take-their-toll-129699">Babies and toddlers might not know there's a fire but disasters still take their toll</a>
</strong>
</em>
</p>
<hr>
<h2>We need to do better in future emergencies</h2>
<p>When asked what they would do differently if they were in another emergency, parents said pack an evacuation kit and leave earlier. </p>
<p>But the onus shouldn’t be just on parents. Australian emergency planning and response needs an overhaul to better protect infants and young children, and their caregivers. </p>
<p>Existing emergency policies, planning, and guidance should be evaluated with a “young child lens” and adjusted to ensure families are properly supported. People who are experts on young children should be involved in this work.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/205026/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Karleen Gribble is Project Lead on the Australian Breastfeeding Association's Community Protection for Infants and Young Children in Bushfire Emergencies Project and is an Australian Breastfeeding Association Scientific Advisor, Educator and Counsellor. Karleen is also on the steering committee of the international interagency collaboration the Infant and Young Child Feeding in Emergencies Core Group. She has been involved in the development of international guidance and training on infant and young child feeding in emergencies for over a decade. She is a member of the Public Health Association of Australia. The research described in this article was supported by an Australian Government Protecting Australian Communities-Local Stream Grant.</span></em></p><p class="fine-print"><em><span>Michelle Hamrosi is the Community Engagement Officer on the Australian Breastfeeding Association's Community Protection for Infants and Young Children in Bushfire Emergencies Project. Michelle is also a General Practitioner and an International Board Certified Lactation Consultant, as well as a Clinical Lecturer for the Australian National University’s
Rural Medical School. Michelle volunteers as an ABA Breastfeeding Counsellor and Group Leader for the Australian Breastfeeding Association Eurobodalla Group. She is also a member of Doctors for the Environment, Climate and Health Alliance and Australian Parents for Climate Action. </span></em></p><p class="fine-print"><em><span>Naomi Hull is an RN, IBCLC, and has an MPH. She works for the Australian Breastfeeding Association (ABA) as Senior Manager, Breastfeeding Information and Research. Naomi volunteers as a Breastfeeding Counsellor on the ABA National Breastfeeding Helpline and as the National Coordinator for the World Breastfeeding Trends Initiative Australia. Naomi is also a member of the Public Health Association of Australia. </span></em></p>Parents and emergency responders repeatedly said evacuation centres should have a separate space for families with very young children. Here’s what else we could do.Karleen Gribble, Adjunct Associate Professor, School of Nursing and Midwifery, Western Sydney UniversityMichelle Hamrosi, Clinical lecturer, Rural Clinical School, Australian National UniversityNaomi Hull, Research Assistant, Australian National UniversityLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/2081632023-06-21T22:51:54Z2023-06-21T22:51:54ZTitanic submersible ‘catastrophic implosion’: questions remain about the costs and ethics of rescuing tourist expeditions<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/533315/original/file-20230621-23-8fpk5h.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=0%2C244%2C5607%2C3786&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">The vessel Polar Prince towing OceanGate Expeditions submersible vessels from St. John's, N.L., as it leaves to tour the Titanic wreck site on May 29, 2023.</span> <span class="attribution"><span class="source">(Shutterstock)</span></span></figcaption></figure><p>The U.S. Coast Guard announced Thursday <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/world/2023/jun/21/titanic-sub-timeline-titan-submersible-missing-vessel">that debris found on the seafloor</a> was identified as belonging to the Titan, <a href="https://www.theglobeandmail.com/canada/article-missing-titanic-tourist-sub-explained/">the OceanGate submersible that had disappeared on June 18</a>. Teams from different countries — including the United States, Canada, the United Kingdom and Germany — were conducting search missions under a very tight timeline. </p>
<p>The discovery, close to the site of the Titanic, indicates the end of search-and-rescue operations for the five people onboard, who were killed in a ‘<a href="https://www.cnn.com/2023/06/22/us/submersible-titanic-oceangate-search-thursday/index.html">catastrophic implosion</a>,’ according to the Coast Guard.</p>
<p>As one of the largest international marine search-and-rescue operations, the incident raised questions about risk management, search-and-rescue operations, costs and ethical aspects of responses.</p>
<p><div data-react-class="Tweet" data-react-props="{"tweetId":"1671950254281818113"}"></div></p>
<h2>Ocean incidents</h2>
<p>A significant number of economic activities — including shipping, fishing and offshore oil and gas drilling — are conducted in marine environments. These activities can lead to occurrences of accidents and casualties of different types. </p>
<p>Annually, a large number of incidents happen in the Canadian marine environment. Between 2011 and 2020, <a href="https://www.tsb.gc.ca/eng/stats/marine/2021/ssem-ssmo-2021.html">284 occurrences were reported each year</a> that had an annual average of 15.6 fatalities during the same period. </p>
<p>These numbers suggest that relative to the huge number of marine activities and the number of incidents, conventional marine-based operations are relatively safe and the emergency responses to them are effective. </p>
<h2>An unusual situation</h2>
<p>The search-and-rescue operations <a href="https://oceangate.com/our-subs/titan-submersible.html">for the Titan</a> have been proven to be unusual, as measured by the complexity, costs, time sensitivity and scale. Unlike search-and-rescue operations on the ground that can be undertaken by volunteers and with little or no equipment, marine search and rescue is a <a href="https://www.ccg-gcc.gc.ca/publications/search-rescue-recherche-sauvetage/sar-canada-res-eng.html">highly specialized operation</a>. </p>
<p>It requires high-tech equipment, tools, training, co-ordination and capacity. In the current case, <a href="https://www.nbcnews.com/news/world/live-blog/missing-titanic-submersible-live-updates-rcna90315">the search area was not measured in square kilometres or miles</a> — rather, it was in cubic measurements (3D), because the vessel could have been anywhere around the surface, in shallow or deep waters, <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/live/2023/06/20/us/titanic-missing-submarine">or on the ocean floor</a>.</p>
<p>While there are capable teams with the needed equipment and training for most marine disasters, they are not sufficient to cover a large area with limited information or uncertainty about the situation. </p>
<p><div data-react-class="InstagramEmbed" data-react-props="{"url":"https://www.instagram.com/p/Ctup4lQs5SP","accessToken":"127105130696839|b4b75090c9688d81dfd245afe6052f20"}"></div></p>
<h2>Operational outcomes</h2>
<p>This search operation was among the costliest in recent history. We need to wait to see how much of this cost will be covered by insurance, OceanGate or the public. </p>
<p>This event will generate significant discussions around the public burden of private risks and risk-taking behaviours, and how risks in certain areas are regulated. And it could count for about one-third of Canada’s annual average marine fatalities if it’s considered a Canadian incident.</p>
<p>Particularly, it will bring to the forefront questions about <a href="https://www.seattletimes.com/nation-world/extreme-travel-rescue-operations-are-expensive-and-who-pays-is-unclear/">balancing acceptable risks with available emergency response capacities</a>, including search-and-rescue. </p>
<h2>Risk assessments</h2>
<p>When embarking on risky operations, such as deep-sea touristic exploration, two elements need to be added to risk assessments: 1) Do we have adequate and timely internal and external capacity to handle a potential incident?; and 2) What are the total response costs of an incident? </p>
<p>While certain risky activities or operations may be acceptable based on a private assessment of risk, they may not be acceptable if we ponder these two aspects.</p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="A small submersible is seen underwater." src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/533316/original/file-20230621-27-kan0vv.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/533316/original/file-20230621-27-kan0vv.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=384&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/533316/original/file-20230621-27-kan0vv.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=384&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/533316/original/file-20230621-27-kan0vv.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=384&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/533316/original/file-20230621-27-kan0vv.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=483&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/533316/original/file-20230621-27-kan0vv.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=483&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/533316/original/file-20230621-27-kan0vv.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=483&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">OceanGate’s Titan submersible dives underwater.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">(OceanGate Expeditions via AP)</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>Unfortunately, many conventional risk assessments, particularly in the private sector organizations, do not pay sufficient attention to available emergency response capacities. </p>
<p>When considering <a href="https://www.outlookindia.com/business/titan-submersible-here-s-a-timeline-of-how-rescue-mission-is-unfolding-in-the-atlantic-ocean-news-296702">the Titan’s search-and-rescue operation</a>, it became clear this small emergency surpassed the capacity of the resources that were operating in the area.</p>
<p>Teams from other places and countries joined the effort, but it took several days for a unified command centre for search-and-rescue to take shape.</p>
<p>Conducting a survey of available emergency response capacities to risk assessments can make a significant difference in risk management and regulation.</p>
<p>Similarly, many current risk assessments do not fully include emergency response costs in their calculations. While it is not a major consideration for many regular daily activities and operations because the emergency response is within regular possibilities, certain operations — particularly on remote marine environments — ought to add these costs into their risk assessment. </p>
<p>In doing so, risks may become more or less acceptable in terms of mitigation policies and regulations. Incorporating these aspects into risk assessments and regulations could help ensure that private operators provide additional safety and risk mitigation measures and assume responsibility for incurred costs.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/208163/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Ali Asgary does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>A team of rescuers has located debris from the Titan, indicating the end of search-and-rescue efforts. Risky undertakings need to assess the cost and capacity of any potential rescue needs.Ali Asgary, Professor, Disaster & Emergency Management, Faculty of Liberal Arts & Professional Studies & Director, CIFAL York, York University, CanadaLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1968632022-12-21T15:34:47Z2022-12-21T15:34:47ZI research mass shootings, but I never believed one would happen in my own condo in Vaughan, Ont.<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/502314/original/file-20221221-25-aaw7s4.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=0%2C0%2C4959%2C3024&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">Police cones and tape are seen outside of a condominium building the day after a shooting in Vaughan, Ont.</span> <span class="attribution"><span class="source">THE CANADIAN PRESS/Arlyn McAdorey</span></span></figcaption></figure><iframe style="width: 100%; height: 100px; border: none; position: relative; z-index: 1;" allowtransparency="" allow="clipboard-read; clipboard-write" src="https://narrations.ad-auris.com/widget/the-conversation-canada/i-research-mass-shootings--but-i-never-believed-one-would-happen-in-my-own-condo-in-vaughan--ont-" width="100%" height="400"></iframe>
<p>On the evening of Dec. 18, five people were killed in a mass shooting at a large condominium in the community of Vaughan, Ont., located just north of Toronto. A 73-year-old resident of the building — a man who had <a href="https://www.thestar.com/news/gta/2022/12/19/man-identified-as-vaughan-mass-killer-targeted-condo-board-in-frivolous-andor-vexatious-lawsuit.html">a long-standing dispute with the resident-based condominium governing board</a> — opened fire on condo board members and others.</p>
<p>As an associate professor of disaster and emergency management, I have analyzed other Canadian mass shootings like the <a href="https://theconversation.com/toronto-mass-shooting-how-the-city-is-coping-a-month-later-100813">2018 incident on crowded Danforth Ave. in Toronto</a> and the <a href="https://theconversation.com/canada-deals-with-mass-shooting-in-nova-scotia-in-the-midst-of-the-coronavirus-pandemic-136795">2020 shooting spree in Nova Scotia that left 22 people dead</a>.</p>
<p>But this mass shooting was different for me. That’s because I live in the building.</p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/502284/original/file-20221221-13-79ciiy.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="police in tactical gear lit by red police car lights" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/502284/original/file-20221221-13-79ciiy.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/502284/original/file-20221221-13-79ciiy.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=450&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/502284/original/file-20221221-13-79ciiy.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=450&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/502284/original/file-20221221-13-79ciiy.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=450&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/502284/original/file-20221221-13-79ciiy.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=566&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/502284/original/file-20221221-13-79ciiy.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=566&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/502284/original/file-20221221-13-79ciiy.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=566&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">York Regional Police respond to a mass shooting in Vaughan, Ont. on Dec. 18.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">(J. Rozdilsky)</span>, <span class="license">Author provided</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>I now face the cognitive dissonance of what it means to have both professional and personal survival perspectives of first-hand exposure to a mass shooting.</p>
<h2>An otherwise normal Sunday evening</h2>
<p>The night of Dec. 18 started off as an otherwise normal Sunday evening. But then I heard a fire alarm and, like many other residents of Bellaria Tower, exited the building. At the time, I had no knowledge of being in the vicinity of an active shooter.</p>
<p>I took the stairs down to the lobby, made my way to the garage and still thinking this was likely a false fire alarm, which usually meant waiting outside for a while, I left the complex to run some errands. </p>
<p>When I returned about two hours later, the level of police response on the scene — along with a large media presence — made it clear this was not a typical fire evacuation. I arrived as heavily armed tactical officers were making sure it was safe to return into the building.</p>
<p>We later learned the rampage ended in the hallways of the building when the shooter was <a href="https://www.yrp.ca/en/Modules/News/index.aspx?newsId=8479495b-ee68-4a36-b9da-f9a4350c653b">killed by a police officer</a>. </p>
<h2>Re-entering a crime scene</h2>
<p>In the aftermath, residents gathered outside on the other side of yellow police line tape. It was five hours before I was able to return to my home. When we were allowed to re-enter the building, well after midnight, police officers escorted the returning residents around the perimeter of crime scenes in the main lobby.</p>
<p>That night, I saw things that I cannot unsee. There were pools of blood on the pavement outside the lobby and more blood on the floor inside.</p>
<figure>
<iframe width="440" height="260" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/xF7N3nKu0cY?wmode=transparent&start=0" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen=""></iframe>
<figcaption><span class="caption">Six people died in a mass shooting incident in Vaughan, Ont., including the alleged shooter.</span></figcaption>
</figure>
<p>While I was not physically injured in the incident, I fall into the category of one who was present during the shooting. According to research conducted on the <a href="https://doi.org/10.1016/j.eclinm.2022.101555">community-level adverse mental health impacts of mass shootings</a>, primary exposure refers to the impacts faced by those who were injured or present and in danger of being shot. </p>
<p>I’m distressed that my neighbours and I are now facing the <a href="https://doi.org/10.1177/1524838015591572">mental health consequences of a mass shooting</a>, simply because we happened to live in a particular condominium building where this horrendous incident took place.</p>
<p>In the days after being exposed to a mass shooting, it is difficult to pin down my thoughts while living in the environment of a mass shooting crime scene. </p>
<h2>Run, hide or defend</h2>
<p>During a mass shooting, individual actions one can take in response are <a href="https://www.yrp.ca/en/crime-prevention/Run--Hide--Defend-.asp">run, hide or defend</a>. At the time, I reacted to a fire alarm, meaning I ran out the building. Had I known there was an active shooting in progress, my behaviour may have changed. At the very least, I would have considered what my most viable survival option may have been.</p>
<p>A main experiential takeaway is that during a mass shooting, appearances of the incident unfolding around me were deceiving. I did not realize that I was in an active shooter situation until I was out of it.</p>
<p>Conducting research immediately after a disaster presents <a href="https://doi.org/10.1038/d41586-019-03534-z">ethical challenges that the researcher must navigate</a>. A researcher’s goal is to learn from disaster experiences so that lessons learned in the aftermath can be used to increase public safety in the future.</p>
<p>A major issue in conducting quick-response research is access. <a href="https://www.designsafe-ci.org/data/browser/public/designsafe.storage.published/PRJ-2908">Access allows for purposeful sampling</a>, where a goal of the field researcher is to get proximity to a disaster site and interact with the site itself and people with specific knowledge regarding the event.</p>
<p>The Vaughan condominium mass shooting will rank as one of <a href="https://globalnews.ca/news/6840650/mass-killings-canada/">Canada’s worst mass killings</a>. From a professional perspective, I have direct access to a <a href="https://www.cnn.com/2022/12/18/world/condo-shooting-vaughan-canada/index.html">horrendous disaster site</a>. </p>
<p>That degree of access is something that is, in theory, beneficial for a disaster researcher. But it’s also the type of access that I personally never wanted to have.</p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/502315/original/file-20221221-14-p5tjas.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="bouquets in the snow near a building entrance" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/502315/original/file-20221221-14-p5tjas.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/502315/original/file-20221221-14-p5tjas.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=450&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/502315/original/file-20221221-14-p5tjas.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=450&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/502315/original/file-20221221-14-p5tjas.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=450&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/502315/original/file-20221221-14-p5tjas.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=566&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/502315/original/file-20221221-14-p5tjas.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=566&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/502315/original/file-20221221-14-p5tjas.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=566&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">After a mass shooting in Vaughan, Ont., people leave flowers at a makeshift memorial.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">(J. Rozdilsky)</span>, <span class="license">Author provided</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/196863/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Jack L. Rozdilsky is a Professor at York University who receives external funding from the Canadian Institutes of Health Research as a co-investigator on a project supported under operating grant Canadian 2019 Novel Coronavirus (COVID-19) Rapid Research Funding.</span></em></p>A university professor who researches emergency management suddenly found himself in the middle of one of Canada’s worst mass shootings.Jack L. Rozdilsky, Associate Professor of Disaster and Emergency Management, York University, CanadaLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1829032022-08-03T17:13:05Z2022-08-03T17:13:05ZCanada’s international disaster responders have skills and experience that could be deployed in emergencies here at home<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/476623/original/file-20220729-19-uyyv4z.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=29%2C59%2C1928%2C1191&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">A medical worker looks through the debris of a medical lab in Port-au-Prince, Haiti following an earthquake in January 2010. </span> <span class="attribution"><span class="source">THE CANADIAN PRESS/Adrian Wyld</span></span></figcaption></figure><p>Responding to international emergencies following natural disasters gives health-care workers knowledge and skills that are crucial in a crisis. They are uniquely prepared for the unpredictable conditions that follow disasters.</p>
<p>In Haiti after the <a href="https://www.britannica.com/event/2010-Haiti-earthquake">disastrous 2010 earthquake</a>, I was working as a physician with a medical team from the International Federation of the Red Cross. When a young woman joined us for hospital rounds one day, I noticed her Canadian accent.</p>
<p>Afterwards, I asked her who she was. She was a medical student from Saskatchewan who had decided simply to show up and help. She’d flown to the Dominican Republic and hitchhiked to Haiti. It was very unsafe for her to have done this alone, and without previous experience or training there was little for her to do but go back home.</p>
<p>It was clear she’d come out of a sincere desire to help, but had no idea what was really required, nor how disaster relief is organized.</p>
<h2>Unique skills and experience</h2>
<p>In 2004, I was working with an International Red Cross team in <a href="https://www.britannica.com/event/Indian-Ocean-tsunami-of-2004">Aceh, Indonesia, after the catastrophic tsunami</a>. I recall realizing how little I could have done without the many skills and deep experience of my colleagues, who quickly set up an independently functioning field hospital on a soccer field, complete with its own clean water supply. Without them, I’d have been as helpless as that medical student I’d meet later in Haiti.</p>
<p>Such skills and attributes can be learned on the job, and many Canadians have already learned them though international experience. We need to do much more to prepare ourselves for increasingly frequent <a href="https://www.canada.ca/en/public-health/services/health-promotion/environmental-public-health-climate-change/climate-change-public-health-factsheets-floods.html">domestic disasters</a> and <a href="https://doi.org/10.1007/s11069-018-3488-4">emergencies</a> by identifying, organizing, improving and utilizing the resources we already have.</p>
<p>I have had the opportunity to serve in many international humanitarian crises, and I learn from each one. I learn from other people who do this work and the attributes that make them successful, whether through the <a href="https://www.redcross.ca/">Red Cross</a>, <a href="https://www.doctorswithoutborders.ca/">Médecins Sans Frontières/Doctors Without Borders</a> or other NGOs that respond to the world’s disasters.</p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/476644/original/file-20220729-5168-uyyv4z.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="A street scene with billowing smoke in the background and a firefighter in the foreground" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/476644/original/file-20220729-5168-uyyv4z.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/476644/original/file-20220729-5168-uyyv4z.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=360&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/476644/original/file-20220729-5168-uyyv4z.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=360&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/476644/original/file-20220729-5168-uyyv4z.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=360&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/476644/original/file-20220729-5168-uyyv4z.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=452&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/476644/original/file-20220729-5168-uyyv4z.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=452&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/476644/original/file-20220729-5168-uyyv4z.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=452&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Smoke rises from railway cars that were carrying crude oil after derailing in downtown Lac-Mégantic, Que. in July 2013.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">THE CANADIAN PRESS/Paul Chiasson</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>They have learned to be relentlessly practical, endlessly adaptive and resilient, and to see themselves as individual parts of highly integrated, efficient and well-organized teams, ready to work as soon as they land.</p>
<p>Once a response transitions from emergency to recovery, we all return to our “day” jobs across Canada and around the world. In my case, that’s serving as a family physician in Hamilton and teaching at McMaster University’s Department of Family Medicine and Michael G. DeGroote School of Medicine. Since the next call could come at any time, I think about what we’ve learned and how we can use these lessons.</p>
<h2>Disasters at home</h2>
<p>We are very fortunate to live where we do, in relative prosperity, peace and safety, but recent history has proven disasters do happen here.</p>
<p>Think of the <a href="https://www.thecanadianencyclopedia.ca/en/article/lac-megantic-rail-disaster">train derailment and fire in Lac-Mégantic</a>, prolonged wildfires in <a href="https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/british-columbia/bc-wildfires-2021-timeline-1.6197751">western and northern Canada</a>, or <a href="https://www.aptnnews.ca/national-news/extreme-flooding-causes-evacuation-orders-for-first-nations-in-b-c/">flooding around Hudson Bay</a> and <a href="https://www.thestar.com/calgary/2018/04/23/many-millions-of-dollars-southern-alberta-begins-to-tally-flood-damage.html">elsewhere</a>. </p>
<p>Consider the early stages of the COVID-19 pandemic and the <a href="https://nationalpost.com/news/canada/why-canadas-hospital-capacity-was-so-easily-overwhelmed-by-the-covid-pandemic">strain on Canadian hospitals</a>, including <a href="https://doi.org/10.1503%2Fcmaj.1095856">shortages of equipment</a> and personnel and the <a href="https://search.bvsalud.org/global-literature-on-novel-coronavirus-2019-ncov/resource/en/covidwho-1232817">logistical challenges</a> of moving tests, personal protective equipment and vaccines to where they were needed.</p>
<p>Our various levels of government did their best to respond to the pandemic, but their responses may have been faster and better if they’d made use of people who had worked through similar crises abroad.</p>
<p>Our experts go out into the world and gain incredible experience, then go back to their regular jobs, as doctors, nurses, logistics planners, engineers, security experts or water engineers. As a country, we don’t do enough to catalogue their skills and experiences so we can be ready when the time comes here — as it has, and as it surely will again.</p>
<h2>Abundant expertise and experience</h2>
<p>Some colleagues and I recently <a href="https://doi.org/10.9778/cmajo.20210127">published a paper in the <em>Canadian Medical Association Journal Open</em></a> describing how lessons from the field can help in Canada. Our paper was based on interviews with people who had been deployed on multiple international crisis missions — some of them dozens of times.</p>
<p>The results showed how international deployment had acted as a real-life training setting by helping clinicians and team members acquire or refine specific skills, including agile decision-making, communication and collaboration during high-stress situations.</p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="A gymnasium filled with cots and folding chairs" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/476645/original/file-20220729-5473-5dvq9l.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/476645/original/file-20220729-5473-5dvq9l.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=413&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/476645/original/file-20220729-5473-5dvq9l.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=413&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/476645/original/file-20220729-5473-5dvq9l.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=413&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/476645/original/file-20220729-5473-5dvq9l.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=518&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/476645/original/file-20220729-5473-5dvq9l.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=518&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/476645/original/file-20220729-5473-5dvq9l.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=518&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Cots litter the gym floor at a reception centre set up for evacuees from Fort McMurray, Alta when the city was evacuated during a wildfire in 2016.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">THE CANADIAN PRESS/Greg Halinda</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>The research participants noted that being part of a disaster response team puts an individual in a very challenging environment where it is crucial to learn attributes like assessing complex situations quickly and reaching well-considered decisions. Experiencing broken infrastructure, limited resources and chaotic environments in disaster settings taught the participants to be “able to think outside the box.”</p>
<p>The participants said that understanding the aims and context of the local community is important for dealing with the challenges of the work and addressing problems effectively. They emphasized the importance of cultural sensitivity during international deployments, including learning about and accepting other cultures, countries and languages. They noted that when responding to a disaster or emergency, engaging and truly partnering with the local community ensures an effective, culturally appropriate and sustainable response.</p>
<p>That kind of learning is highly valuable, and we should be feeding this spark.</p>
<p>The main lesson is this: Canada has abundant expertise and experience here at home, but we don’t use it well — perhaps because we simply don’t know what we have.</p>
<p>Before the next domestic disaster, it would be ideal for governments to create, maintain and use a central bank of expertise and contacts related to humanitarian and disaster response, featuring people who have learned to work quickly, pragmatically and, above all, in teams.</p>
<p>Canadians are good in disasters. I have seen it.</p>
<p>We need to realize, especially after this pandemic, that disasters don’t only happen “over there.” Let’s put this on the front burner and improve disaster preparedness at home.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/182903/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Dr. Lynda Redwood-Campbell is affiliated with the Canadian Red Cross. She is a delegate on the Canadian Red Cross Emergency Response Unit team and deploys intermittently with the team.</span></em></p>The unique skills of Canadian health-care workers with international disaster experience could be a valuable resource during domestic emergencies.Lynda Redwood-Campbell, Professor of Family Medicine, Global health Lead, Humanitarian and disaster response expertise, McMaster UniversityLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1766812022-02-11T20:42:45Z2022-02-11T20:42:45ZThe occupation of Ottawa by the ‘freedom convoy’ has the potential for an urban siege<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/445959/original/file-20220211-15-i2905w.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=0%2C23%2C5287%2C3490&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">Trucks parked in front of the Chateau Laurier in Ottawa during the protest against COVID-19 restrictions.</span> <span class="attribution"><span class="source">THE CANADIAN PRESS/Justin Tang</span></span></figcaption></figure><p>Ontario’s <a href="https://youtu.be/pZWSHBhSHqU">declaration of a state of emergency in response to the so-called “freedom convoy” and its occupation of public space in Toronto and Ottawa and at the U.S.-Canada border in Windsor is intended to end the disruptions caused by protestors</a>. </p>
<p>The announcement criminalizes disruptive acts like blocking roads and border crossings, and gives police the power to respond with charges and penalties ranging from $100,000 in fines to a year in prison.</p>
<p>Two weeks after thousands of protesters in trucks rolled into Ottawa on Jan. 28 protesting vaccine mandates for cross-border truck drivers, hundreds of self-proclaimed “freedom convoy” activists remain embedded in the city’s downtown core. Persons with a variety of <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2022/02/07/world/canada/canada-protesters-ottawa.html">grievances related to far right causes and anti-vaccine sentiments</a> remain in place with <a href="https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/ottawa/watson-state-of-emergency-update-1.6342156">400 to 500 trucks blockading downtown Ottawa</a>. </p>
<p>From a disaster and emergency management perspective, the hazard being realized in Ottawa arises from specific human behaviours — or more accurately, misbehaviour. The protest has produced temporary increase in population that has evolved into an an unlawful occupation. As days turn into weeks, the chance of an ugly and tragic ending increases.</p>
<p>An appropriate and measured police response stressing de-escalation has emboldened protestors to dig in. Frustration from Ottawa residents is being misdirected towards local authorities, who are otherwise well-prepared to deal with routine emergency planning required for a variety of contingencies. But this is a non-routine and increasingly bizarre social hazard situation. And as occupiers hunker down to prolong the disruption, the chances of a dangerous stand-off between police and protesters increase.</p>
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<figcaption><span class="caption">The <em>Washington Post</em> reports on the occupation of Ottawa’s streets.</span></figcaption>
</figure>
<h2>Emergency plans</h2>
<p>It is not out of the ordinary that an event of some sort will bring a temporary population influx into Canada’s capital city. What is out of the ordinary is the rare crisis situation Ottawa now is facing, where protestors continue to purposely operate outside of the bounds set for public safety at large events.</p>
<p>Activities ranging from celebrations to protests can bring tens of thousands into the city, albeit on a temporary basis. Such influxes of people have risks but do not necessarily represent a hazard. </p>
<p>For example, as part of Canada’s sesquicentennial celebration in July 2017, a French theatrical performance involving a giant robotic dragon and spider attracted <a href="https://globalnews.ca/news/3939739/canada-150-numbers/">750,000 people to downtown Ottawa during a four-day period</a>. As with most mass gatherings, people were able to come and go safely without incident. That event illustrated that Ottawa can safely manage events much larger than the current occupation.</p>
<p>To prevent disasters, emergency planning takes place on multiple levels to provide safety for large crowds and public spaces. </p>
<p>Examples of this planning are the guidance of the <a href="https://www2.gov.bc.ca/assets/gov/public-safety-and-emergency-services/emergency-preparedness-response-recovery/local-government/majorplannedeventsguidelines.pdf">Major Planned Events Working Group</a> in British Columbia, and the established special event-planning processes practised in cities like <a href="https://documents.ottawa.ca/sites/documents/files/event_guide_en.pdf">Ottawa</a> and <a href="https://www.toronto.ca/business-economy/industry-sector-support/events/criteria-definitions-and-examples/">Toronto</a>. </p>
<p>The current disaster unfolding in downtown Ottawa is a non-routine mass gathering and has many elements that undermine existing emergency planning. It is a population influx with no outflux, which is problematic, as those who stay behind are <a href="https://ottawa.ctvnews.ca/several-people-arrested-for-bringing-gas-to-freedom-convoy-demonstrators-in-ottawa-police-say-1.5770413">attempting to create their own infrastructure to sustain their occupation</a>.</p>
<p>Those participating in the protest have selfishly decided that public health and safety guidelines do not apply to them. They have also engaged in subterfuge by <a href="https://nationalpost.com/news/canada/ottawa-protesters-employ-gas-can-subterfuge-to-frustrate-police">swarming, distracting and subverting police</a>. This all indicates that planning for the “freedom convoy” relies on <a href="https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/convoy-protesters-police-tactical-knowledge-1.6345854">organized systems to support the co-ordination and logistics of the occupation</a>.</p>
<p><div data-react-class="InstagramEmbed" data-react-props="{"url":"https://www.instagram.com/p/CZpaMtCFn6p","accessToken":"127105130696839|b4b75090c9688d81dfd245afe6052f20"}"></div></p>
<h2>MOVE: A cautionary tale</h2>
<p>Understanding other cases of how unusual hazards produced by urban occupations were brought to an end can shed light on what a worst-case scenario for Ottawa may look like. One <a href="https://www.npr.org/sections/codeswitch/2015/05/18/407665820/why-did-we-forget-the-move-bombing">lesser-known prolonged urban crisis</a> that shares some of the same complexities as the Ottawa occupation was a situation from 1985 in Philadelphia.</p>
<p>MOVE is a <a href="https://philadelphiaencyclopedia.org/archive/move/">Black communal movement combining Black nationalism and green anarchism</a>. After a sordid history of racially charged and increasingly violent confrontations with police, <a href="https://collaborativehistory.gse.upenn.edu/stories/move">MOVE retreated into a fortified row house in the middle of a residential block</a>. In 1978, after a 15-month-long siege, a police officer was killed as hundreds of police officers swarmed the building the group was occupying. </p>
<p>Seven years later, in 1985, <a href="https://www.vox.com/the-highlight/2019/8/8/20747198/philadelphia-bombing-1985-move">police used a helicopter to drop a bomb on the MOVE house to end another standoff, killing 11 people, including five children</a>. The police and the city <a href="https://zeitgeistfilms.com/film/letthefireburn">allowed the resulting fire to burn, destroying the surrounding neighbourhood and leaving 250 people homeless</a>.</p>
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<figcaption><span class="caption">A documentary from <em>The Guardian</em> on the 1985 bombing of the MOVE house by Philadelphia police.</span></figcaption>
</figure>
<p>A Philadelphia Special Investigation Commission determined that <a href="https://snaccooperative.org/ark:/99166/w6kh5hdr">choices made by authorities to end the standoff in a forceful manner were grossly negligent</a>. </p>
<p>The tragic ending of the MOVE occupation and standoff is a cautionary tale. The rapid escalation of tensions resulting from actions to evict dedicated persons who occupy makeshift defensive positions in an urban setting can result in unintended and regrettable consequences. </p>
<h2>Calls for police action</h2>
<p>Authorities in Ottawa have been wise to take a risk-reduction approach of de-escalation and containment with the intention of giving the occupiers time to make their own choice to leave.</p>
<p>However, as the occupation drags on and nuisance levels increase, there will be additional pressure on the police to act. Current frustration and perceptions that authorities are unable to manage the situation are misplaced.</p>
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<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/what-the-freedom-convoy-reveals-about-the-ties-among-politics-police-and-the-law-176680">What the 'freedom convoy' reveals about the ties among politics, police and the law</a>
</strong>
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</p>
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<p>A peaceful ending is still possible if police are able to facilitate a safe exit for occupiers who wish to leave. On the other hand, when lines are crossed and the continued occupation creates an intolerable public safety risk, authorities can quickly end the occupation by force at a time of their own choosing. </p>
<p>It will be unfortunate for Canada if those local, provincial or federal authorities who are eventually tasked to end the Ottawa occupation are required to choose between options which are all risky, dangerous and controversial.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/176681/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>ack L. Rozdilsky is a Professor at York University who receives funding from the Canadian Institutes of Health Research as a co-investigator on a project supported under operating grant Canadian 2019 Novel Coronavirus (COVID-19) Rapid Research Funding.</span></em></p>As the “freedom convoy” and occupation of Ottawa drags on, the potential for a violent stand-off between protestors and police increases, which in turn decreases the chances of a peaceful resolution.Jack L. Rozdilsky, Associate Professor of Disaster and Emergency Management, York University, CanadaLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1741892021-12-23T15:43:10Z2021-12-23T15:43:10ZTo get through the COVID-19 pandemic, we need to learn how to live in an ongoing disaster<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/438925/original/file-20211223-19-1w5rn2k.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=0%2C10%2C3600%2C2382&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">People wait in line — some for over two hours — at a PCR COVID-19 test site in Toronto.</span> <span class="attribution"><span class="source">(THE CANADIAN PRESS/Chris Young)</span></span></figcaption></figure><iframe style="width: 100%; height: 175px; border: none; position: relative; z-index: 1;" allowtransparency="" src="https://narrations.ad-auris.com/widget/the-conversation-canada/to-get-through-the-covid-19-pandemic--we-need-to-learn-how-to-live-in-an-ongoing-disaster" width="100%" height="400"></iframe>
<p>As Canada approaches the 700-day mark of the pandemic, the disaster’s state of play is as grim as it is discouraging. On Dec. 22, Canada reported 12,114 new COVID-19 infections — <a href="https://www.ctvnews.ca/health/coronavirus/canada-sets-new-single-day-record-for-covid-19-infections-1.5717161">a record for daily cases since the start of the pandemic</a>. </p>
<p>With a patchwork of <a href="https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/provinces-territories-travel-restrictions-covid-1.6284713">provincial pandemic restrictions across Canada changing daily</a>, many holiday season activities have either been scaled back or cancelled for the second year in a row. The context for these disruptions is that as we approach the end of 2021, <a href="https://nationalpost.com/news/canada/cp-newsalert-canada-surpasses-grim-milestone-with-30000-covid-19-deaths">the number of Canadians killed by COVID-19 has surpassed 30,000</a>.</p>
<p>At this point in the COVID-19 disaster, it is beyond the capacity of federal or provincial governments to provide a way out of this emergency. COVID-19 has no respect for norms or established practices of how we deal with disaster. Prime Minister Justin Trudeau has resorted to suggesting <a href="https://globalnews.ca/news/8466612/canada-omicron-covid-update/">Canadians hunker down to stop the spread of omicron</a>. </p>
<p>Canadians need to rethink their relationship to the pandemic by learning to live in a state of continual disaster for the foreseeable future.</p>
<h2>Contrasting messages</h2>
<p>In a wide-ranging federal government news conference, the Trudeau administration projected an approach of prudence.</p>
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<figcaption><span class="caption">Trudeau tells Canadian to ‘hunker down’ to get through the COVID-19 pandemic.</span></figcaption>
</figure>
<p>The <a href="https://www.politico.com/news/2021/12/22/trudeau-canadians-hunker-down-omicron-525998">Canadian approach is a stark contrast to the American approach</a>, which is to not panic about omicron and to try to enjoy the holidays. Pointed questions from reporters <a href="https://www.cp24.com/news/trudeau-freeland-push-back-at-biden-on-covid-19-holiday-gatherings-1.5717017">forced the Trudeau government to push back at U.S. President Biden’s message</a> that vaccinated persons could gather safely for the holidays, despite the spread of omicron. </p>
<p>Deputy Prime Minister Chrystia Freeland rejected the notion that <a href="https://www.ctvnews.ca/politics/we-re-a-careful-country-freeland-contrasts-omicron-responses-of-canada-u-s-1.5717005">the federal government was in any way offering a counsel of panic or a counsel of despair</a>.</p>
<p>Leading up to the holiday season, common activities included <a href="https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/ottawa/covid-19-rapid-tests-ottawa-ontario-holiday-blitz-lcbo-1.6289540">waiting in lines — sometimes futilely — at liquor stores to obtain take-home testing supplies</a>, <a href="https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/toronto/ontario-rapid-antigen-tests-pcr-tests-covid-19-1.6294606">not being able to obtain testing results in a timely manner</a>, and <a href="https://www.thestar.com/news/gta/2021/12/20/as-hunger-games-scramble-for-vaccine-doses-returns-toronto-officials-urge-residents-to-have-patience-persistence.html">a “hunger games scramble” for vaccination and booster appointments</a>. </p>
<p>Experiences such as these do not contribute to reducing panic or despair.</p>
<h2>The disaster cycle</h2>
<p>Emergency management planning often uses a four-phase disaster cycle: <a href="https://www.publicsafety.gc.ca/cnt/mrgnc-mngmnt/mrgnc-prprdnss/mrgnc-mngmnt-plnnng-en.aspx">mitigation, preparedness, response and recovery</a>. In many instances of natural disasters, the four-phase disaster cycle model works well to dissect disasters and better understand them, providing lessons to manage future disasters.</p>
<p>In figuring out how to cope with disasters, the disaster cycle provides reference points to guide responses to a sudden emergency to eventual recovery. For example, an analysis conducted a decade after the <a href="https://blogs.scientificamerican.com/history-of-geology/april--2009-the-laquila-earthquake/">2009 earthquake in L'Aquila, Italy</a> used <a href="https://doi.org/10.1108/DPM-01-2018-0022">the four-phase disaster cycle to dissect the response to a natural disaster</a>. </p>
<p>With the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, we’re still in the emergency part of the disaster. The reference points in the disaster cycle leading from response to recovery are lost, and recovery is not yet discernible. The public is too fatigued to maintain a constant state of preparedness. And the possibility of any mitigation is a distant dream at this point. </p>
<p>Recent research in risk management suggests that disasters are dynamic — <a href="https://doi.org/10.1108/FS-11-2019-0097">the event evolves according to the actions taken to counteract its impact</a>. Considering the changing nature of emergencies and responses incorporates innovation, entrepreneurship, leadership, situational awareness, resilience and learning. </p>
<p>A dynamic approach can help catalyse new thinking on how to deal with the uniqueness of disasters like COVID-19.</p>
<h2>The Blitz spirit</h2>
<p>Perhaps inspiration can be sought from London during the Second World War. Londoners hunkered down <a href="https://daily.jstor.org/what-life-was-like-during-the-london-blitz/">through an eight-month-long German bombing campaign</a>.</p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/438926/original/file-20211223-27-18cb6qe.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="A bus leans against the debris from bombed houses" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/438926/original/file-20211223-27-18cb6qe.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/438926/original/file-20211223-27-18cb6qe.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=360&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/438926/original/file-20211223-27-18cb6qe.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=360&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/438926/original/file-20211223-27-18cb6qe.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=360&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/438926/original/file-20211223-27-18cb6qe.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=452&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/438926/original/file-20211223-27-18cb6qe.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=452&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/438926/original/file-20211223-27-18cb6qe.jpeg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=452&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Almost 20,000 civilians died in London during the Blitz.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:London_Blitz_9_September_1940.jpg">(H. F. Davis)</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>Perhaps intangible traits like those of the <a href="https://www.historic-uk.com/HistoryUK/HistoryofBritain/Blitz-Spirit/">Blitz Spirit</a> are now needed — the ongoing disaster of COVID-19 needs to be met with a grim willingness to carry on. We have no other choice. </p>
<p>Somehow citizens subjected to months of air raids learned to deal with continual disaster. The tenacity and resilience shown during the Blitz can <a href="https://dx.doi.org/10.7326/M20-4984">offer population level insights regarding the current trauma of COVID-19</a> and <a href="https://www.the-hospitalist.org/hospitalist/article/235449/coronavirus-updates/blitz-and-covid-19">offer suggestions to current day hospital workers</a> regarding fears of their hospitals being overrun. </p>
<p>According to historians, <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2020/05/10/health/coronavirus-plague-pandemic-history.html">pandemics typically have two types of endings</a>. The first is the medical ending that is reached when the incidence and death rates plummet. The second is the social ending, where either due to fatigue or other reasons, individuals decide the pandemic is over for them, regardless of the science. Drawing a parallel to the Blitz, imagine the consternation of air raid wardens if individuals tired of <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/lifeandstyle/2009/nov/01/blackout-britain-wartime">blackout regulations</a> and turned on lights at night signalling their location to enemy bombers. </p>
<p>Going into 2022, it is time to accept that we can no longer manage our way out of this disaster. We just have to cope as best we can by hunkering down — there is no other choice.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/174189/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Jack L. Rozdilsky is a Professor at York University who receives funding from the Canadian Institutes of Health Research as a co-investigator on a project supported under operating grant Canadian 2019 Novel Coronavirus (COVID-19) Rapid Research Funding.</span></em></p>Canadians need to rethink their relationship to the pandemic by learning to live in a state of continual disaster for the foreseeable future.Jack L. Rozdilsky, Associate Professor of Disaster and Emergency Management, York University, CanadaLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1670162021-08-30T23:14:24Z2021-08-30T23:14:24ZAutonomous drones could speed up search and rescue after flash floods, hurricanes and other disasters<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/418535/original/file-20210830-31-1ipbint.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=0%2C0%2C5446%2C3647&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">At least 22 people were listed as missing in the days after flash flooding swept through communities in Tennessee in August 2021.</span> <span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://newsroom.ap.org/detail/APTOPIXTennesseeFlooding/7b71e95507a94234a8430aa4745eaec6/photo">AP Photo/Mark Humphrey</a></span></figcaption></figure><p>During hurricanes, flash flooding and other disasters, it can be extremely dangerous to send in first responders, even though people may badly need help. </p>
<p>Rescuers already use drones in some cases, but most require individual pilots who fly the unmanned aircraft by remote control. That limits how quickly rescuers can view an entire affected area, and it can delay aid from reaching victims. </p>
<p>Autonomous drones could cover more ground faster, especially if they could identify people in need and notify rescue teams.</p>
<p>My team <a href="https://scholar.google.com/citations?user=JLhA4-8AAAAJ&hl=en">and I</a> at the <a href="https://www.udayton.edu/engineering/research/centers/vision_lab/index.php">University of Dayton Vision Lab</a> have been designing these autonomous systems of the future to eventually help spot people who might be trapped by debris. Our multi-sensor technology mimics the behavior of human rescuers to look deeply at wide areas and quickly choose specific regions to focus on, examine more closely, and determine if anyone needs help. </p>
<p>The deep learning technology that we use mimics the structure and behavior of a human brain in processing the images captured by the 2-dimensional and 3D sensors embedded in the drones. It is able to process large amounts of data simultaneously to make decisions in real time. </p>
<h2>Looking for an object in a chaotic scene</h2>
<p>Disaster areas are often cluttered with downed trees, collapsed buildings, torn-up roads and other disarray that can make spotting victims in need of rescue very difficult. 3D lidar sensor technology, which uses light pulses, can detect objects hidden by overhanging trees.</p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/261973/original/file-20190304-92310-v7zhtg.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/261973/original/file-20190304-92310-v7zhtg.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/261973/original/file-20190304-92310-v7zhtg.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=326&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/261973/original/file-20190304-92310-v7zhtg.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=326&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/261973/original/file-20190304-92310-v7zhtg.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=326&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/261973/original/file-20190304-92310-v7zhtg.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=410&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/261973/original/file-20190304-92310-v7zhtg.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=410&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/261973/original/file-20190304-92310-v7zhtg.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=410&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Spotting people amid busy surroundings.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">University of Dayton Vision Lab</span>, <a class="license" href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nd/4.0/">CC BY-ND</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>My research team developed an artificial neural network system that could run in a computer onboard a drone. This system emulates some of the ways human vision works. It analyzes images captured by the drone’s sensors and communicates notable findings to human supervisors. </p>
<p>First, the system processes the images to <a href="https://www.udayton.edu/engineering/research/centers/vision_lab/research/wide_area_surveillance/visibility_improvements.php">improve their clarity</a>. Just as humans squint their eyes to adjust their focus, this technology take detailed estimates of darker regions in a scene and computationally lightens the images. </p>
<p>In a rainy environment, human brains use a brilliant strategy to see clearly: By noticing <a href="https://physics.stackexchange.com/questions/203576/why-can-we-see-through-rain">the parts of a scene that don’t change</a> as the raindrops fall, people can see reasonably well despite the rain. Our technology uses the same strategy, continuously investigating the contents of each location <a href="http://doi.org/10.1007/s11263-006-0028-6">in a sequence of images</a> to get <a href="https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007%2Fs11263-014-0759-8">clear information</a> about the objects in that location. </p>
<h2>Confirming objects of interest</h2>
<p>When rescuers search for human beings trapped in disaster areas, the viewers’ minds <a href="https://psycnet.apa.org/record/2017-40276-001">imagine 3D views</a> of how a person might appear in the scene. They should be able to detect the presence of a trapped human even if they haven’t seen someone in such a position before. </p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/261975/original/file-20190304-92280-l9wfb9.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/261975/original/file-20190304-92280-l9wfb9.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/261975/original/file-20190304-92280-l9wfb9.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=345&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/261975/original/file-20190304-92280-l9wfb9.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=345&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/261975/original/file-20190304-92280-l9wfb9.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=345&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/261975/original/file-20190304-92280-l9wfb9.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=434&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/261975/original/file-20190304-92280-l9wfb9.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=434&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/261975/original/file-20190304-92280-l9wfb9.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=434&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Confusing and dim lighting can make it hard to identify people.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">University of Dayton Vision Lab</span>, <a class="license" href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nd/4.0/">CC BY-ND</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>We employ this strategy by computing 3D models of people and rotating the shapes in all directions. We train the autonomous machine to perform exactly like a human rescuer does. That allows the system to identify people in various positions, such as lying prone or curled in the fetal position, even from different viewing angles and in varying lighting and weather conditions. </p>
<p>The system can also be trained to detect and locate a leg sticking out from under rubble, a hand waving at a distance, or a head popping up above a pile of wooden blocks. It can tell a person or animal apart from a tree, bush or vehicle.</p>
<h2>Putting the pieces together</h2>
<p>During its initial scan of the landscape, the system mimics the approach of an airborne spotter, examining the ground to find possible objects of interest or regions worth further examination, and then looking more closely. For example, an aircraft pilot who is looking for a truck on the ground would typically pay less attention to lakes, ponds, farm fields and playgrounds because trucks are less likely to be in those areas. The autonomous technology employs the same strategy to focus the search area to the most significant regions in the scene.</p>
<p>Then the system investigates each selected region to obtain information about the shape, structure and texture of objects there. When it detects a set of features that matches a human being or part of a human, it flags that location, collects GPS data and senses how far the person is from other objects to provide an exact location. </p>
<p>The entire process takes about one-fifth of a second.</p>
<p>This is what faster search-and-rescue operations can look like in the future. A next step will be to turn this technology into an integrated system that can be deployed for emergency response. </p>
<p>We previously worked with the <a href="https://mrmc.amedd.army.mil/">U.S. Army Medical Research and Materiel Command</a> on technology to find wounded individuals in a battlefield who need rescue. We also have adapted the technology to help utility companies <a href="https://www.udayton.edu/engineering/research/centers/vision_lab/research/scene_analysis_and_understanding/pipeline-intrusion-detection.php">monitor heavy equipment</a> that could damage pipelines. These are just a few of the ways disaster responders, companies or even farmers could benefit from technology that can see as humans can see, especially in places humans can’t easily reach.</p>
<p><em>This is an update of an article published March 5, 2019.</em> </p>
<p>[<em>Over 100,000 readers rely on The Conversation’s newsletter to understand the world.</em> <a href="https://theconversation.com/us/newsletters/the-daily-3?utm_source=TCUS&utm_medium=inline-link&utm_campaign=newsletter-text&utm_content=100Ksignup">Sign up today</a>.]</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/167016/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Vijayan Asari does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organization that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>By mimicking the human brain, autonomous drones could locate victims in hard-to-reach places and alert responders to their location within seconds.Vijayan Asari, Professor of Electrical and Computer Engineering, University of DaytonLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1615422021-06-22T16:40:57Z2021-06-22T16:40:57ZHow ‘colonialism by paper cuts’ has undermined Indigenous pandemic leadership<p>In the early days of the COVID-19 pandemic, the <a href="https://www.tsilhqotin.ca/">Tŝilhqot’in National Government</a> (TNG) in British Columbia immediately began preparations for emergency response. </p>
<p>As part of its rapid response, TNG secured contracts with wholesale distributors for food and cleaning supplies to be distributed by staff to community members. This direct delivery reduced community risk of exposure by avoiding having multiple families travel into urban centres, ensured food security for self-isolating households and provided support for those who lost employment. </p>
<p>But the supplies were held up. The issue? A forklift. </p>
<p>The Nation’s emergency response was hampered by waiting for British Columbia’s provincial funding approval through the <a href="https://www2.gov.bc.ca/gov/content/safety/emergency-preparedness-response-recovery/local-emergency-programs/ess">Emergency Support Service Program</a> to rent a forklift to move pallets of food off the delivery truck. </p>
<p>Requiring that approval is an unnecessary administrative burden. It is a form of colonialism by “paper cuts,” an <a href="https://www.theglobeandmail.com/canada/article-canada-must-know-the-truth-before-it-can-achieve-reconciliation-mmiwg/">expression</a> that gained some attention after the <a href="https://www.mmiwg-ffada.ca/final-report/">Final Report on Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women and Girls</a> was released. The term captures how policy and bureaucracy quietly perpetuate colonialism.</p>
<p>One staff member observed: “It sounds like a crazy world where you need approval for a forklift before you can give food to communities in the middle of a pandemic, but those are the types of conversations that we needed to have.” </p>
<p>This staff member spoke to us for our Tŝilhqot’in-led research project on the COVID-19 pandemic, which documented how the Nation exercised its laws and jurisdiction to keep its citizens safe. We are University of British Columbia researchers and a Tŝilhqot’in citizen from ʔEsdilagh, who work with the Nation on emergencies. </p>
<p>Relying on dozens of interviews during the first wave of the pandemic, we produced a detailed report on the Tŝilhqot’in response, <a href="https://www.tsilhqotin.ca/wp-content/uploads/2021/03/TNG-COVID-REPORT-FINAL.pdf"><em>Dada Nentsen Gha Yatastɨg/ Tŝilhqot’in in the Time of COVID</em></a> (which translated means, “I am going to tell you about a very bad disease”).</p>
<p>One of the clear themes of this research is that the minutiae of bureaucratic policy and procedure perpetuates colonialism. Subtle colonialism undermined a fully Tŝilhqot’in-led pandemic response. </p>
<h2>Tŝilhqot’in jurisdiction over emergency management</h2>
<p>The Tŝilhqot’in Nation is comprised of six Tŝilhqot’in communities spread over a large swath of territory in the central interior of British Columbia. The Nation exercises jurisdiction over the whole of its traditional, unceded territory. It is known for a 2014 landmark victory at the <a href="https://scc-csc.lexum.com/scc-csc/scc-csc/en/item/14246/index.do">Supreme Court of Canada</a>, where the court declared <a href="https://indigenousfoundations.arts.ubc.ca/aboriginal_title/">Aboriginal title</a> to a portion of its territory — the first and still only instance of a Canadian court making a declaration of Aboriginal title. </p>
<p>The decision is one important chapter in the Tŝilhqot’in Nation’s <a href="https://www.tsilhqotin.ca/wp-content/uploads/2020/11/2019_08_Agreement_gwetsen_nilti_pathway_agreement_signed.pdf">ongoing work</a> to transition to full governance of its territory.</p>
<p>The Tŝilhqot’in Nation is also a leader in Indigenous emergency management. The Nation negotiated a first-of-its-kind tripartite <a href="https://www2.gov.bc.ca/assets/gov/environment/natural-resource-stewardship/consulting-with-first-nations/agreements/tng_collaborative_emergency_management_agreement_signed.pdf">Collaborative Emergency Management Agreement</a> with B.C. and Canada in 2018, precipitating <a href="https://news.gov.bc.ca/stories/canada-british-columbia-and-first-nations-leadership-council-sign-tripartite-memorandum-of-understan">provincewide agreements</a> in recognition of First Nations. </p>
<p>Previously, we worked with the Nation to document its experiences with the <a href="https://www.tsilhqotin.ca/wp-content/uploads/2020/12/the-fires-awakened-us.pdf">2017 wildfires</a> and to understand how jurisdictional challenges and gaps impeded an <a href="https://theconversation.com/how-indigenous-leadership-is-protecting-communities-from-climate-disasters-115902">Indigenous-led emergency response</a>. </p>
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Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/how-indigenous-leadership-is-protecting-communities-from-climate-disasters-115902">How Indigenous leadership is protecting communities from climate disasters</a>
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<p>Since then, B.C. has enacted the <a href="https://declaration.gov.bc.ca/">Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples Act</a>, which affirms the self-determining rights of Indigenous Peoples. The province is now working to align its laws with the act, including its <a href="https://www2.gov.bc.ca/gov/content/safety/emergency-preparedness-response-recovery/emergency-management-bc/legislation-and-regulations/modernizing-epa">legislation for emergency management</a>. Canada is also <a href="https://www.justice.gc.ca/eng/declaration/about-apropos.html">contemplating legislation</a> to implement the <a href="https://www.un.org/development/desa/indigenouspeoples/declaration-on-the-rights-of-indigenous-peoples.html">UN Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples</a>. </p>
<p>These legislative steps mirror some positive and noticeable changes through the country’s pandemic response. <a href="https://www.canada.ca/en/public-health/services/immunization/national-advisory-committee-on-immunization-naci/guidance-prioritization-initial-doses-covid-19-vaccines.html">Canada</a> and <a href="https://www2.gov.bc.ca/gov/content/covid-19/vaccine/plan">B.C.</a> prioritized Indigenous Peoples for COVID-19 vaccination. Canada provided direct (though limited) <a href="https://www.sac-isc.gc.ca/eng/1585189335380/1585189357198">funding</a> to Indigenous communities with few strings attached to allow flexibility. And B.C. First Nations have been able to maintain <a href="https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/british-columbia/first-nations-agree-to-covid-19-data-sharing-agreement-1.5907175">ongoing dialogue</a> with high-level provincial and federal officials throughout the pandemic.</p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="An Indigenous man gets a vaccinne in his right arm" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/403654/original/file-20210531-15-ky37u4.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/403654/original/file-20210531-15-ky37u4.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=595&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/403654/original/file-20210531-15-ky37u4.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=595&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/403654/original/file-20210531-15-ky37u4.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=595&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/403654/original/file-20210531-15-ky37u4.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=747&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/403654/original/file-20210531-15-ky37u4.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=747&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/403654/original/file-20210531-15-ky37u4.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=747&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Indigenous peoples received priority vaccination during Canada’s pandemic response.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">(Tŝilhqot’in National Government)</span>, <span class="license">Author provided</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<h2>Colonialism by paper cuts</h2>
<p>Our research with the Tŝilhqot’in on the pandemic highlights these improvements and how they have had a tangible effect on the Nation’s pandemic response. But it also highlights how individual racism and historic and <a href="https://engage.gov.bc.ca/app/uploads/sites/613/2020/11/In-Plain-Sight-Summary-Report.pdf">ongoing systemic discrimination</a> undermine Tŝilhqot’in leadership in pandemic response. Our report documents how the Nation relied on knowledge of past epidemics and acted creatively and nimbly to implement protective measures against COVID-19 in spite of enormous constraints.</p>
<p>One of the resounding themes that emerged from our research was that, despite important advances, colonialism persists in subtle ways — through the labyrinth of hidden practices and policies that require Tŝilhqot’in staff to learn, navigate, negotiate and advocate for change. </p>
<p>One example of this is how the Nation is forced to operate on multiple jurisdictional planes. While leadership exercises its inherent jurisdiction as a self-determining nation with a distinct governance structure, it also interfaces with the Canadian state as six separate <a href="https://www.ictinc.ca/blog/indian-act-and-elected-chief-and-band-council-system">band councils</a>. While TNG co-ordinates emergency management across the communities, pandemic funding was initially distributed only to the band councils, neglecting the need for Nation-wide funding and co-ordination. </p>
<p>And yet TNG had to seek recognition as an emergency operations centre and compete with other organizations for separate federal funding. At the same time, the complex needs of the Tŝilhqot’in during the pandemic — needs which are the products of colonialism — require B.C. and Canada to take on active supporting roles. This means that for any given issue (infrastructure, health and wellness, etc), TNG must negotiate with both provincial and federal agencies. Doing so effectively requires new political infrastructure, new government-to-government negotiations and more Tŝilhqot’in citizens and staff channelled into those roles.</p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="A forklift gets food from a delivery truck" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/403652/original/file-20210531-19-1kiyw3n.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/403652/original/file-20210531-19-1kiyw3n.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=450&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/403652/original/file-20210531-19-1kiyw3n.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=450&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/403652/original/file-20210531-19-1kiyw3n.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=450&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/403652/original/file-20210531-19-1kiyw3n.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=566&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/403652/original/file-20210531-19-1kiyw3n.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=566&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/403652/original/file-20210531-19-1kiyw3n.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=566&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">The Tŝilhqot’in National Government worked hard to get food delivered to its communities.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">(Tŝilhqot’in National Government)</span>, <span class="license">Author provided</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>This produces a crushing administrative burden. It is a form of colonialism by “paper cuts.”</p>
<p>It’s an expression that captures the subtle and insidious ways in which colonization manifests on the ground. Communities with limited capacity must expend those limited resources reacting to the policies and practices of the Canadian state by, for instance, spending hours in administrative limbo seeking approval for a forklift. </p>
<p>This bureaucracy diverts staff from other pressing community needs and impedes the advancement of the community’s priorities. Leadership and staff must continually advocate for what Indigenous leaders know is needed, rather than provincial and federal agencies validating at first instance the knowledge and insight from the communities.</p>
<h2>Supporting Indigenous protective measures</h2>
<p>In April 2020, all six Tŝilhqot'in communities decided to erect checkpoints to monitor and regulate travel to and from their reserves.</p>
<p>Leadership determined, after consultation with Elders and community, that these were the best measures for keeping people safe. Staffing these checkpoints, however, fell between the cracks of funding sources. No-strings federal funding had been quickly exhausted meeting basic needs and checkpoints were not eligible for the province’s reservoir of emergency response funding.</p>
<p>Months of advocacy by the Tŝilhqot’in and other B.C. First Nations eventually led to a <a href="https://www2.gov.bc.ca/assets/gov/public-safety-and-emergency-services/emergency-preparedness-response-recovery/embc/policies/eligibility_assessment_supplement_policy_513.pdf">policy change</a> in November that made First Nations checkpoints eligible for provincial emergency funding. By then the Tŝilhqot’in communities had decommissioned their checkpoints due to lack of secure funding. When the second wave hit, however, the Tŝilhqot’in revived the checkpoints and TNG was able to access funding. It turns out, then, that supporting the judgement of the Indigenous leadership was possible all along. </p>
<p>By the next emergency, this should be the baseline, not the hard-fought exception.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/161542/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Jocelyn Stacey receives funding from the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Foundation and the Institute for Catastrophic Loss Reduction. She is the president of the charitable organization, the Pacific Centre for Environmental Law & Litigation.</span></em></p><p class="fine-print"><em><span>Emma Feltes receives funding from the Social Sciences and Humanities and Research Council of Canada and the Institute for Catastrophic Loss Reduction. She is a volunteer with the Tiny House Warriors. </span></em></p><p class="fine-print"><em><span>Crystal Verhaeghe does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>The minutiae of bureaucratic policy and procedure perpetuates colonialism and undermined a fully Tŝilhqot’in-led pandemic response.Jocelyn Stacey, Assistant Professor, Law, University of British ColumbiaCrystal Verhaeghe, ResearcherEmma Feltes, PhD Candidate, Anthropology, University of British ColumbiaLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1606232021-06-10T20:07:51Z2021-06-10T20:07:51ZProceed to your nearest (virtual) exit: gaming technology is teaching us how people respond to emergencies<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/405577/original/file-20210610-15-1mz9j3s.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=51%2C0%2C5699%2C3837&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">
</span> <span class="attribution"><span class="source">Shutterstock</span></span></figcaption></figure><p>Virtual reality (VR) and augmented reality (AR) aren’t just for gaming anymore, they’re also proving to be useful tools for disaster safety research. In fact, they could save lives. </p>
<p>Around the world, natural and human-made disasters such as earthquakes, bushfires and terrorist attacks threaten substantial economic loss and human life.</p>
<p>My <a href="https://www.researchgate.net/publication/343809101_Virtual_and_Augmented_Reality_for_Human_Behaviour_in_Disasters_A_Review">research review</a> looked at 64 papers on the topic of using AR and VR-based experiments (mostly simulating emergency scenarios) to investigate human behaviour during disaster, provide disaster-related education and enhance the safety of built environments.</p>
<p>If we can investigate how certain factors influence people’s decisions about the best course of action during disaster, we can use this insight to further construct an array of VR and AR experiments.</p>
<h2>Finding the optimal fire desing</h2>
<p>Research has shown the potential of AR and VR in myriad disaster contexts. Both of these technologies involve digital visualisation. VR involves the visualisation of a complete digital scene, whereas AR allows digital objects to be superimposed over a real-life background.</p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/405569/original/file-20210610-27-18bb7am.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/405569/original/file-20210610-27-18bb7am.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/405569/original/file-20210610-27-18bb7am.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=298&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/405569/original/file-20210610-27-18bb7am.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=298&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/405569/original/file-20210610-27-18bb7am.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=298&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/405569/original/file-20210610-27-18bb7am.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=374&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/405569/original/file-20210610-27-18bb7am.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=374&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/405569/original/file-20210610-27-18bb7am.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=374&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">This figure helps explain the difference between VR, AR and the real world.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Ruggiero Lovreglio</span>, <span class="license">Author provided</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>VR has already played a key role in designing safety evacuation systems for new buildings and infrastructure. For example, in past research my colleagues and I have used VR to identify which signage is the best to use in <a href="https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s10694-015-0462-5?shared-article-renderer">tunnels</a> and <a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S000368701630182X">buildings</a> during emergency evacuations.</p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/405571/original/file-20210610-19-1xhvcov.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/405571/original/file-20210610-19-1xhvcov.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/405571/original/file-20210610-19-1xhvcov.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=450&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/405571/original/file-20210610-19-1xhvcov.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=450&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/405571/original/file-20210610-19-1xhvcov.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=450&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/405571/original/file-20210610-19-1xhvcov.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=565&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/405571/original/file-20210610-19-1xhvcov.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=565&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/405571/original/file-20210610-19-1xhvcov.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=565&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">A participant in the CAVE (Cave Automatic Virtual Environment) at Lund University, in a VR-based tunnel evacuation experiment.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Ruggiero Lovreglio</span>, <span class="license">Author provided</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>In these studies we asked participants to rank different signs using a questionnaire based on the “<a href="https://www.interaction-design.org/literature/book/the-encyclopedia-of-human-computer-interaction-2nd-ed/affordances">theory of affordances</a>”, which looks at what the physical environment or a specific object offers an individual. In other words, we explored how different signs can be sensed, understood and used by different people during emergencies.</p>
<p>Before building expensive new infrastructure, we can simulate it in VR form and test how different evacuation signage performs for participants. In the case of signage for tunnel exits, research showed:</p>
<p>— green or white flashing lights performed better than blue lights</p>
<p>— a flashing rate of one flash per second or four flashes per second is recommended over a slower rate of, say, one flash per four seconds.</p>
<p>— LED light sources performed better than single and double-strobe lights.</p>
<p>In another non-immersive VR study, we observed participants’ behaviours and <a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S000368701630182X?via%3Dihub">identified</a> which sign was the best to direct people <em>away</em> from a specific exit in case of an emergency (as that exit might lead towards a fire, for instance). </p>
<p>The results showed red flashing lights helped evacuees identify the sign, and the sign itself was most effective with a green background marked with a red “X”. </p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/405572/original/file-20210610-27-rqa9ok.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="A sign with a green background marked with a red 'x'." src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/405572/original/file-20210610-27-rqa9ok.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/405572/original/file-20210610-27-rqa9ok.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=203&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/405572/original/file-20210610-27-rqa9ok.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=203&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/405572/original/file-20210610-27-rqa9ok.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=203&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/405572/original/file-20210610-27-rqa9ok.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=255&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/405572/original/file-20210610-27-rqa9ok.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=255&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/405572/original/file-20210610-27-rqa9ok.JPG?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=255&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">A green background marked with a red ‘x’.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://lup.lub.lu.se/luur/download?func=downloadFile&recordOId=5336038&fileOId=5336054">Joakim Olander (2015)</a>, <span class="license">Author provided</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>VR and AR are uniquely positioned to let experts study how humans behave during disasters — and to do so without physically <a href="https://www.researchgate.net/publication/349383121_A_Multi-role_Multi-user_Multi-technology_Virtual_Reality-based_Road_Tunnel_Fire_Simulator_for_Training_Purposes">harming anyone</a>.</p>
<hr>
<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/what-is-augmented-reality-anyway-99827">What is augmented reality, anyway?</a>
</strong>
</em>
</p>
<hr>
<h2>From Pokemon Go to earthquake drills</h2>
<p>Research projects have tested how AR superimpositions can be used to guide people to safety during a <a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S0925753520301478?via%3Dihub">tsunami warning or earthquake</a>. </p>
<p>In theory, the same approach could be used in other contexts, such as during a terror attack. AR applications could be built to teach people how to act in case of terror attacks by following the rule of <em>escape, hide and tell</em>, as <a href="https://www.nationalsecurity.gov.au/Securityandyourcommunity/Pages/escape-hide-tell.aspx">advised</a> by the government. </p>
<p>Such virtual applications have great potential to educate thousands of people quickly and inexpensively. <a href="https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s10055-020-00447-5">Our latest VR study</a> indicated this may make them preferable to traditional training. </p>
<hr>
<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/antarctica-without-windchill-the-louvre-without-queues-how-to-travel-the-world-from-home-140174">Antarctica without windchill, the Louvre without queues: how to travel the world from home</a>
</strong>
</em>
</p>
<hr>
<p>In some of our experiments, several participants were immersed in <a href="https://www.researchgate.net/project/Modelling-Decision-Making-in-Fire-Evacuation-based-on-Random-Utility-Theory">simulated fire emergencies</a> where they had to evacuate. We <a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S0378437115006007?via%3Dihub">investigated</a> the factors that influenced how participants navigated a space to reach an exit, and <a href="https://linkinghub.elsevier.com/retrieve/pii/S096585641630550X">how they chose</a> between several exits in different fire and social conditions.</p>
<p>Studies on this front have highlighted humans are social animals. In line with “<a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/topics/social-sciences/social-influence">social influence theory</a>”, they tend to follow other people during emergencies. This is a crucial consideration for authorities tasked with designing or implementing disaster evacuation protocols.</p>
<p>Another common behaviour observed was that participants tended to use exits they were already familiar with. </p>
<p>While these findings aren’t necessarily surprising, they help confirm <a href="https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/abs/10.1177/0013916585176003">existing theories</a> about public evacuation behaviours. They also help reinforce observations made during real-life evacuation scenarios — where human lives can hang in the balance.</p>
<p>The next challenge is to ensure that in the future, advanced AR and VR-based training applications do not traumatise or distress participants. </p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/405574/original/file-20210610-23-q280pm.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/405574/original/file-20210610-23-q280pm.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/405574/original/file-20210610-23-q280pm.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=337&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/405574/original/file-20210610-23-q280pm.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=337&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/405574/original/file-20210610-23-q280pm.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=337&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/405574/original/file-20210610-23-q280pm.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=423&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/405574/original/file-20210610-23-q280pm.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=423&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/405574/original/file-20210610-23-q280pm.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=423&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">A VR simulation of a metro station, used in one of our research studies.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Ruggiero Lovreglio</span>, <span class="license">Author provided</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<h2>The myth of overwhelming panic</h2>
<p>It’s worth noting that in the experiments there were no signs of “panic” among participants. Indeed, <a href="https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/full/10.1002/fam.1083?casa_token=imMLq1iOm5gAAAAA%3Asx_oHwQ1LQOtKl1DRVobanKfKdYfykY0KHu6RCIojBJlMR6wS1ao-InKSHrobMrM9JxFP9V1Q_yjxOE">research</a> has shown feeling panicked is very rare in fire scenarios. </p>
<p>Rather, participants took several factors into account before choosing what they deemed was the best option. Generally, people in disaster situations try hard to choose the most reasonable option; whether it leads to danger is another matter. </p>
<p>Our research can help enhance the safety design of buildings, transport terminals and general evacuation protocols. In the meantime, it’s reassuring to know people will more or less rely on their rationality in emergency situations.</p>
<hr>
<p><em>This story is part of a series The Conversation is running on the nexus between disaster, disadvantage and resilience. It is supported by a philanthropic grant from the Paul Ramsay foundation. You can read the rest of the stories <a href="https://theconversation.com/au/topics/disaster-and-resilience-series-97537">here</a>.</em></p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/160623/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Ruggiero Lovreglio does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>Researchers are using mixed reality technologies to investigate how people behave in in emergency situations. The findings are helping shape disaster responses.Ruggiero Lovreglio, Senior Lecturer, Massey UniversityLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1543172021-03-08T13:36:16Z2021-03-08T13:36:16Z5 strategies to prepare now for the next pandemic<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/388110/original/file-20210305-13-82k3mw.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=134%2C0%2C5856%2C3925&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">Stacked disasters – like a winter storm that damages a water system during a pandemic – can provide lessons for the next time around.</span> <span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://newsroom.ap.org/detail/WinterWeatherWaterWoes/c3bfa8a4505c4ce6a0f01d6049eb3089/photo?boardId=d7f2514f50804466b15dfb81ed00d9cd&st=boards&mediaType=audio,photo,video,graphic&sortBy=&dateRange=Anytime&totalCount=33&currentItemNo=0">AP Photo/Rogelio V. Solis</a></span></figcaption></figure><p>While the world is still reeling from the COVID-19 pandemic, public health and emergency management experts are already preparing for the next one. After all, biologists are certain <a href="https://www.who.int/medicines/ebola-treatment/WHO-list-of-top-emerging-diseases/en/">another dangerous new pathogen will emerge</a> sooner or later.</p>
<p>We are public health researchers engaged in both leading <a href="https://public-health.tamu.edu/directory/clendenin.html">public health disaster response</a> and <a href="https://scholar.google.com/citations?user=me4Q9y4AAAAJ&hl=en">evaluating emergency management</a>.</p>
<p>Here are five strategies that will give the world a head start – and maybe even help prevent the next outbreak or epidemic from blowing up into a pandemic.</p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/388113/original/file-20210305-21-1i9k9ru.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="masked man's arm is prepped for injection outdoors" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/388113/original/file-20210305-21-1i9k9ru.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/388113/original/file-20210305-21-1i9k9ru.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=390&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/388113/original/file-20210305-21-1i9k9ru.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=390&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/388113/original/file-20210305-21-1i9k9ru.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=390&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/388113/original/file-20210305-21-1i9k9ru.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=490&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/388113/original/file-20210305-21-1i9k9ru.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=490&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/388113/original/file-20210305-21-1i9k9ru.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=490&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">The public health response in Guinea was swift when new cases of Ebola virus disease were identified in February 2021.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.gettyimages.com/detail/news-photo/health-worker-from-the-guinean-ministry-of-health-cleans-a-news-photo/1231345676?adppopup=true">Carol Valade/AFP via Getty Images</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<h2>1. Shore up the systems already in place</h2>
<p>The identification in February 2021 of <a href="https://www.who.int/csr/don/17-february-2021-ebola-gin/en/">a new outbreak of Ebola in Guinea</a> showed how critical surveillance and reporting are for rapidly responding to and containing infectious disease. </p>
<p>The process generally works like this: Once an astute clinician diagnoses a disease that is <a href="https://wwwn.cdc.gov/nndss/conditions/notifiable/2020/">on the watch list</a> of the World Health Organization and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, she reports the case to local health authorities to investigate. The information gets passed up the chain to the state, federal and international levels.</p>
<p>Clinicians, public health practitioners and labs all around the world send disease reports to groups like the WHO’s <a href="https://extranet.who.int/goarn/">Global Outbreak Alert and Response Network</a>. It aggregates all that data and helps identify outbreaks of new infectious diseases and their pandemic potential.</p>
<p>If a pathogen does make it past local monitors and starts to spread, governments have <a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/topics/medicine-and-dentistry/incident-command-system">emergency management systems in place to respond</a>. These incident command structures provide a framework to respond to crises that range from infectious disease to natural disaster to terrorist attack.</p>
<p>In the U.S., various federal agencies have different responsibilities. They monitor emerging infectious diseases, establish a strategic national stockpile of resources and support the states in their preparedness and response. Responsibility for the emergency response lies with each state – that’s in the U.S. Constitution – so they have flexibility in how they implement everything on a local level.</p>
<p>One practical way to be prepared for a future pandemic is to ensure that all these systems and structures remain stable. That means <a href="https://www.kff.org/coronavirus-covid-19/fact-sheet/the-u-s-government-and-the-world-health-organization/">maintaining funding</a>, training and personnel for a rapid global response even when no pandemic threats are visible on the horizon.</p>
<h2>2. Prepare the public to do its part</h2>
<p>Effective pandemic response requires a clear, consistent voice and an actionable message that reflects best practices based on sound science. Messaging and data that clearly explain how each individual has an important role in curbing the pandemic – and that it might evolve as the pandemic unfolds over time – are critical.</p>
<p>The message to stay home and “<a href="https://www.nytimes.com/article/flatten-curve-coronavirus.html">flatten the curve</a>” to avoid overwhelming health care resources with COVID-19 cases was an essential early <a href="https://www.cdc.gov/coronavirus/2019-ncov/daily-life-coping/personal-social-activities.html">public health message</a> that resonated with many Americans who were not designated as essential workers. However, once initial shutdown orders were lifted and new treatments emerged, there was general confusion about the safety of public gatherings, particularly since <a href="https://theconversation.com/covid-19-messes-with-texas-what-went-wrong-and-what-other-states-can-learn-as-younger-people-get-sick-141563">guidance varied by state or locality</a>.</p>
<p>Guidance is also most effective if it’s tailored to different audiences. In the South, distrust of testing and vaccination efforts by government and health care providers is directly linked to <a href="https://www.countyhealthrankings.org/learn-from-others/webinars/responding-to-crisis-in-the-latino-population-with-an-equity-lens">language barriers and immigration concerns</a>. One strategy to reach diverse and often underserved populations is to rely on leaders in the local faith community to <a href="https://www.globalhealthnow.org/2020-08/fix-us-coronavirus-response-start-culture">help deliver public health messages</a>.</p>
<p>Preparedness requires an “<a href="https://www.fema.gov/emergency-managers/national-preparedness/goal">all of community approach</a>” that engages everyone in the planning stages, especially those from underserved or vulnerable populations. Building relationships now can improve access to information and resources when the next disaster strikes, helping ensure equity and agility in response.</p>
<p>Science and risk communication scholars have started talking about the best ways people can <a href="https://www.who.int/news-room/events/detail/2020/06/30/default-calendar/1st-who-infodemiology-conference">manage the flood of information during a pandemic</a>. Lessons from what’s been called the infodemic of COVID-19 news – some trustworthy but some certainly not – can inform new strategies for sharing reliable info and fostering trust in science.</p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/388105/original/file-20210305-13-2kxz15.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="a" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/388105/original/file-20210305-13-2kxz15.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/388105/original/file-20210305-13-2kxz15.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=189&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/388105/original/file-20210305-13-2kxz15.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=189&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/388105/original/file-20210305-13-2kxz15.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=189&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/388105/original/file-20210305-13-2kxz15.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=238&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/388105/original/file-20210305-13-2kxz15.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=238&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/388105/original/file-20210305-13-2kxz15.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=238&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Participants at a tabletop exercise in Texas that envisioned an Ebola virus disease outbreak.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">The USA Center for Rural Health Preparedness</span>, <a class="license" href="http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nd/4.0/">CC BY-ND</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<h2>3. Get coordinated and practice</h2>
<p>Emergency managers and health care leaders have long recognized that a <a href="https://doi.org/10.3201/eid1906.121478">coordinated response by diverse teams</a> is critical for public health emergencies.</p>
<p><a href="https://www.ready.gov/exercise">Tabletop exercises</a> that simulate real emergencies help officials prepare for crises of all types. Like a fire drill, they bring together community stakeholders to walk through a hypothetical disaster scenario and hash out roles and responsibilities. These practice sessions include people who work in public health, emergency management and health care, as well as federal, tribal, state and local front-line responders.</p>
<p>Practice scenarios must also include the reality of “stacked disasters,” like a hurricane or winter storm that puts even more stress on the disaster response system.</p>
<p>These exercises enable a community to test parts of the overall emergency management plan and determine gaps or areas to strengthen. Ongoing testing and training to the plan ensures everyone is as ready as they can be.</p>
<p>Beyond this training, health care professionals could be cross-trained to <a href="https://www.cidrap.umn.edu/news-perspective/2020/11/covid-related-nursing-shortages-hit-hospitals-nationwide">back up specialized clinical staff</a>, who may need support over the course of a long pandemic.</p>
<p>The COVID-19 pandemic delivered lessons about <a href="https://www.ama-assn.org/delivering-care/public-health/new-hope-fixing-supply-chain-problems-ppe-tests-vaccines">infrastructure and supply chains</a>. Strategic investments can <a href="https://www.whitehouse.gov/briefing-room/presidential-actions/2021/01/21/executive-order-a-sustainable-public-health-supply-chain/">shore up existing strategic national stockpiles</a> of supplies and vaccinations for the future. If necessary, the president can use <a href="https://www.cfr.org/in-brief/what-defense-production-act">the Defense Production Act</a> to order private companies to prioritize federal orders.</p>
<h2>4. Polish the playbook</h2>
<p>After every major disaster response, all of the different groups involved – law enforcement, EMS, fire, emergency management, public health, search and rescue and so on – conduct what are called “after action reviews.” They can improve plans for the next time around.</p>
<p>For instance, after the <a href="https://www.cdc.gov/flu/pandemic-resources/2009-h1n1-pandemic.html">2009 influenza pandemic</a>, the Department of Health and Human Services found that while CDC communication efforts were widely successful, some non-English-speaking populations missed important messages. The <a href="https://www.gao.gov/products/GAO-11-632">after action review noted</a> that distrust in the government increased when vaccine supplies did not meet public expectations. In turn, officials could plan exercises to <a href="https://www.cdc.gov/cpr/readiness/healthcare/documents/PIEET_Cleared_9_5.docx">test and tweak approaches for next time</a>.</p>
<p>A thorough review of the response to the current COVID-19 pandemic at all levels will identify gaps, challenges and successes. Those “After Action” findings need to be integrated into future planning to improve preparedness and response for the next pandemic.</p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/388111/original/file-20210305-13-575k7d.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="seated operators in front of telephone switchboard" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/388111/original/file-20210305-13-575k7d.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/388111/original/file-20210305-13-575k7d.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=451&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/388111/original/file-20210305-13-575k7d.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=451&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/388111/original/file-20210305-13-575k7d.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=451&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/388111/original/file-20210305-13-575k7d.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=567&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/388111/original/file-20210305-13-575k7d.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=567&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/388111/original/file-20210305-13-575k7d.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=567&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">A previous pandemic hastened the end of switchboard operators. Which technologies will get a boost after this one?</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.gettyimages.com/detail/news-photo/telephone-operators-receive-long-distance-calls-from-news-photo/3302030?adppopup=true">Stevens/Topical Press Agency/Hulton Archive via Getty Images</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<h2>5. Build on the new normal</h2>
<p>Back when the <a href="https://www.govexec.com/management/2021/02/1918-pandemic-provides-warning-about-covid-19s-future/172078/">1918 H1N1 influenza pandemic unfolded</a>, few Americans had a telephone. Quarantine rules led more households to <a href="https://www.egi.co.uk/news/what-can-1918-teach-us-about-post-pandemic-tech-adoption/">use phones and hastened research</a> that reduced reliance on human telephone operators. Similarly, no doubt COVID-19 triggered some rapid changes that will last and help the U.S. be ready for future events. </p>
<p>It’s been easier to adapt to the necessary lifestyle changes due to this pandemic thanks to the ways technology has changed the workplace, the classroom and the delivery of health care. Business analysts predict the quick move to video teleconferencing and remote work for offices in 2020 will <a href="https://www.mckinsey.com/featured-insights/future-of-work/the-future-of-work-after-covid-19#">be lasting legacies of COVID-19</a>. A multidisciplinary team here at Texas A&M is tracking how robotics and automated systems are being used in pandemic response in clinical care, public health and public safety settings.</p>
<p>Some of the sudden, dramatic changes to norms and behaviors, like the use of face masks in public, may be among the easiest strategies to keep in place to fend off a future pandemic from a respiratory virus. Just as telephone systems continued to improve over the last 100 years, ongoing innovation that builds on rapid adoption of technologies around COVID-19 will help people adjust to sudden lifestyle changes when the next pandemic strikes.</p>
<p>[<em><a href="https://theconversation.com/us/newsletters/the-daily-3?utm_source=TCUS&utm_medium=inline-link&utm_campaign=newsletter-text&utm_content=experts">Expertise in your inbox. Sign up for The Conversation’s newsletter and get expert takes on today’s news, every day.</a></em>]</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/154317/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>The authors do not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organization that would benefit from this article, and have disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>Shoring up surveillance and response systems and learning lessons from how the COVID-19 pandemic unfolded will help the world be ready the next time around.Tiffany A. Radcliff, Associate Dean for Research and Professor of Health Policy and Management, Texas A&M UniversityAngela Clendenin, Instructional Assistant Professor of Epidemiology and Biostatistics, Texas A&M UniversityLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1554402021-02-18T19:54:17Z2021-02-18T19:54:17ZOne month in, how Biden has changed disaster management and the US COVID-19 response<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/384890/original/file-20210217-19-1614g8u.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=380%2C14%2C4131%2C2730&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">The National Guard joined forces with FEMA to launch a mass vaccination site in Los Angeles.</span> <span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.gettyimages.com/detail/news-photo/motorcyclist-receives-his-covid-19-vaccine-administered-by-news-photo/1231206587">Frederic J. Brown/AFP via Getty Images</a></span></figcaption></figure><p>After one month in office, the Biden administration has fundamentally changed how the federal government responds to the COVID-19 pandemic.</p>
<p>In direct contrast to his predecessor, President Joe Biden is treating this as a national-scale crisis requiring a <a href="https://www.whitehouse.gov/priorities/covid-19/">comprehensive national strategy</a> and federal resources. If that sounds familiar, it should: It’s a return to a traditional – and in many ways proven – approach to disaster management.</p>
<p>The Trump administration deviated dramatically from established emergency management practices. It <a href="https://www.thelancet.com/action/showPdf?pii=S0140-6736%2820%2932545-9">politicized public health and related decision-making processes</a> and <a href="https://www.cnbc.com/2021/02/08/trump-administration-influenced-cdc-guidance-to-suppress-covid-testing-house-panel-says.html">overrode the disaster response roles</a> of federal agencies, including the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the Department of Health and Human Services and the Federal Emergency Management Agency.</p>
<p>Among other things, the Trump administration <a href="https://www.fema.gov/disasters/coronavirus/data-resources/initial-assessment-report">established an entirely new coordination structure</a> headed by a White House task force, then changed the lead federal agency from Health and Human Services to FEMA. Those moves, combined with a disjointed array of other operational task forces, made it difficult to create an integrated response. <a href="https://www.beckershospitalreview.com/data-analytics/hospital-covid-19-data-now-goes-to-hhs-cdc-s-hospital-capacity-data-disappears-7-details-emerge.html">Even basic data collection from hospitals</a> for tracking the coronavirus’s spread was thrown into disarray by changes.</p>
<p>The Biden administration is now reempowering key federal agencies to return to the <a href="https://www.fema.gov/emergency-managers/national-preparedness/frameworks/response">roles</a> <a href="https://www.fema.gov/emergency-managers/national-preparedness/frameworks/recovery">and responsibilities</a> they were designed for within a planned national disaster management structure. </p>
<p>Our <a href="https://publicservice.asu.edu/content/brian-gerber-0">own work in</a> <a href="https://sustainability-innovation.asu.edu/person/melanie--gall/">hazards management</a>, with both governments and nongovernmental organizations, has shown us that fidelity to proper process and respect for expertise is essential to effective disaster management. The Biden administration’s approach to the pandemic so far suggests this is the model it will follow.</p>
<h2>What federal emergency response was designed to do</h2>
<p>By design, the U.S. federal system for managing disasters is decentralized and tiered.</p>
<p>The <a href="https://www.fema.gov/emergency-managers/national-preparedness/frameworks/response">system is structured</a> so that local governments take the lead in managing hazards and responding to local emergencies. But when an emergency becomes a disaster-scale problem, state and federal governments should be prepared to provide financial assistance and other support, particularly logistical support.</p>
<p>FEMA, <a href="https://www.fema.gov/about/history">established in 1979</a> by President Jimmy Carter, has a crucial role as a national emergency management coordinator. Just getting all levels of government to work together effectively, along with private and nonprofit organizations, represents a massive challenge. Major crises over the years, including the <a href="https://www.govinfo.gov/content/pkg/CHRG-107shrg80653/html/CHRG-107shrg80653.htm">Sept. 11 terror attacks</a>, <a href="https://www.govinfo.gov/content/pkg/CRPT-109srpt322/pdf/CRPT-109srpt322.pdf">Hurricane Katrina</a> in 2005 and <a href="https://www.gao.gov/products/GAO-16-90T">Hurricane Sandy</a> in 2012, have helped refine federal strategies and processes and improve preparedness for future disasters – including pandemics.</p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="Joe Biden holds a copy of the national COVID-19 strategy" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/384871/original/file-20210217-19-hrhpic.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=0%2C11%2C7696%2C4769&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/384871/original/file-20210217-19-hrhpic.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/384871/original/file-20210217-19-hrhpic.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/384871/original/file-20210217-19-hrhpic.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/384871/original/file-20210217-19-hrhpic.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/384871/original/file-20210217-19-hrhpic.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/384871/original/file-20210217-19-hrhpic.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">One of Joe Biden’s first moves as president was to issue a national strategy for responding to the pandemic.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.gettyimages.com/detail/news-photo/president-joe-biden-speaks-as-vice-president-kamala-harris-news-photo/1297666586">Alex Wong/Getty Images</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>Pandemic preparedness has been a part of U.S. emergency management planning <a href="https://www.fema.gov/txt/media/factsheets/2009/npd_natl_plan_scenario.txt">since at least 2003</a>. The H1N1 bird flu crisis in 2009 triggered the passage of the <a href="https://www.phe.gov/Preparedness/legal/pahpa/Pages/pahpra.aspx">Pandemic and All-Hazards Preparedness Authorization Act</a> in 2013. That law established Health and Human Services as the lead federal agency, and the statute specifically addresses the development of medical surge capacity, pandemic vaccine and drug development and more. </p>
<p>Managing a pandemic is more challenging than other types of disasters. Unlike a wildfire or tornado, which strikes a specific place for a limited period of time, a global pandemic is all-encompassing, affecting all jurisdictions and every economic sector. It requires focused coordination between public health and emergency response bureaucracies within government and with other key partners such as hospitals. </p>
<p>Given the scale of the COVID-19 pandemic, the federal government normally would have taken the lead in coordinating the response and assistance. Instead, the Trump administration devolved primary responsibility for the pandemic response to state and local governments, despite their limited capacity.</p>
<p>This <a href="https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2021/01/04/the-plague-year?source=search_google_dsa_paid&gclid=Cj0KCQiA962BBhCzARIsAIpWEL0lrIQLjJZ-WCRag9L5kGzKvKbDb_X9Ol4KVmOTPz57Fkodl7Gh3RkaAsmXEALw_wcB">approach was doomed to fail</a>. It muddled use of the <a href="https://www.fema.gov/emergency-managers/national-preparedness/frameworks/response">National Response Framework</a> and created a competitive environment for state and local governments as they scrambled for supplies. It sidelined the agencies involved in pandemic preparedness, such as the CDC and the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases, and it <a href="https://www.pbs.org/newshour/nation/obama-team-left-pandemic-playbook-for-trump-administration-officials-confirm">ignored specific plans for a pandemic response</a>. It also <a href="https://www.vanityfair.com/news/2020/07/how-jared-kushners-secret-testing-plan-went-poof-into-thin-air">politicized resource allocation choices</a> and undermined, <a href="https://www.vox.com/coronavirus-covid19/21497221/donald-trump-covid-19-coronavirus-news-misinformation-study">through misinformation</a>, the importance of public health behaviors such as wearing masks.</p>
<h2>Biden’s return to established practices</h2>
<p>Against this backdrop, the Biden administration’s early efforts to return to established disaster management practice underscore the importance of leadership of complex systems used to address complex problems.</p>
<p>The list of changes in the month since Biden took office is extensive. The administration issued a comprehensive <a href="https://www.whitehouse.gov/wp-content/uploads/2021/01/National-Strategy-for-the-COVID-19-Response-and-Pandemic-Preparedness.pdf">national strategy for pandemic response</a>. It increased the involvement of FEMA and the Department of Defense to <a href="https://www.defense.gov/Explore/News/Article/Article/2503020/dod-to-support-fema-vaccination-effort/">support vaccination distribution</a>, <a href="https://www.whitehouse.gov/briefing-room/statements-releases/2021/02/17/fact-sheet-president-biden-announces-new-actions-to-expand-and-improve-covid-19-testing/">expanded COVID-19 testing</a> for underserved populations and <a href="https://www.whitehouse.gov/briefing-room/statements-releases/2021/01/20/letter-his-excellency-antonio-guterres/">rejoined the World Health Organization</a>, which Trump had pulled out of. Biden also invoked the <a href="https://www.jdsupra.com/legalnews/covid-19-the-biden-administration-s-9963366/">Defense Production Act</a> to mobilize private industry to ramp up production of test kits, vaccines and personal protective equipment. The administration is now <a href="https://www.whitehouse.gov/briefing-room/statements-releases/2021/01/22/fact-sheet-president-bidens-new-executive-actions-deliver-economic-relief-for-american-families-and-businesses-amid-the-covid-19-crises/">advocating for a</a> national COVID-19 relief package in Congress. </p>
<p>The Biden administration’s rapid, strategic reorientation of the federal government to manage the pandemic has parallels for other complex challenges, including developing a national strategy for <a href="https://theconversation.com/biden-plans-to-fight-climate-change-in-a-way-no-u-s-president-has-done-before-152419">addressing climate change</a>. Continuing to refine these processes, including proper management of the federal bureaucracy, and public investments aimed at reducing risk should be priorities for the administration.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/155440/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Brian J. Gerber receives funding from the U.S. Federal Emergency Management Agency, the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, and the National Security Agency. </span></em></p><p class="fine-print"><em><span>Melanie Gall receives funding from the Federal Emergency Management Agency, the National Academies of Sciences' Gulf Research Program, the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, and Feeding America. She is a member of the Association of State Floodplain Managers (ASFPM).</span></em></p>Developing a national disaster response plan for the pandemic was only step one.Brian J. Gerber, Associate Professor, Watts College of Public Service and Community Solutions and Co-Director, Center for Emergency Management and Homeland Security, Arizona State UniversityMelanie Gall, Clinical Professor and Co-Director, Center for Emergency Management and Homeland Security, Watts College, Arizona State UniversityLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1453232020-09-01T05:04:30Z2020-09-01T05:04:30ZTo reduce disasters, we must cut greenhouse emissions. So why isn’t the bushfire royal commission talking about this?<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/355507/original/file-20200831-16-kx90lh.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=30%2C18%2C4010%2C2435&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">
</span> <span class="attribution"><span class="source">Shutterstock</span></span></figcaption></figure><p>With next fire season <a href="https://thenewdaily.com.au/news/2020/08/31/bushfires-season-21-nsw-areas/">already underway</a>,
the bushfire royal commission yesterday released an <a href="https://naturaldisaster.royalcommission.gov.au/system/files/2020-08/Interim%20Observations%20-31%20August%202020_0.pdf">interim report</a>.</p>
<p>Its observations in the wake of our Black Summer suggest the commission’s final report, due on October 28, may recommend a major shake-up of how disaster management is governed at the federal level. This includes setting up a national body focused on recovery from and resilience to future disasters.</p>
<p>Most initial observations are uncontroversial and sensible, but there is a glaring omission. It involves the most urgent measure to reduce the risk of future disasters: reducing greenhouse gas emissions. </p>
<p>In my former role as the United Nations Secretary General’s Special Representative for Disaster Risk Reduction, I saw first-hand the impacts of natural disasters, and nations’ efforts to build their climate change resilience. The royal commission process is a unique opportunity to accelerate progress in these areas, which are so critical for Australia’s future.</p>
<h2>What’s in the report?</h2>
<p>In February, the royal commission was <a href="https://naturaldisaster.royalcommission.gov.au/publications/commonwealth-letters-patent-20-february-2020">tasked</a> with finding ways to improve disaster management in three main areas: </p>
<ol>
<li>how the federal government coordinates with other levels of government </li>
<li>resilience to climate change and mitigating disaster risk </li>
<li>the laws governing the federal government response to national emergencies.</li>
</ol>
<p>The initial observations touch on each of these areas. This includes the need to collate, harmonise and share disaster data across jurisdictions; enhance research in climate and disaster resilience; reassess aerial firefighting capabilities; and plan more effectively around critical infrastructure.</p>
<p>It’s also worth noting the royal commission hasn’t yet formed a view on a key change Prime Minister Scott Morrison <a href="https://www.pm.gov.au/media/address-national-press-club">suggested</a> was necessary in the wake of the bushfires: establishing the legal authority for the federal government to declare a national state of emergency. Currently, only state and territory governments <a href="https://theconversation.com/explainer-what-is-a-state-of-disaster-and-what-powers-does-it-confer-143807">have this power</a>.</p>
<hr>
<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/explainer-what-is-a-state-of-disaster-and-what-powers-does-it-confer-143807">Explainer: what is a 'state of disaster' and what powers does it confer?</a>
</strong>
</em>
</p>
<hr>
<p>And controversially, the commission suggests the long-standing role of the <a href="https://www.afac.com.au/">Australasian Fire and Emergency Service Authorities Council </a>(AFAC) should be transferred to a federal government agency. </p>
<p>AFAC is a non-government organisation that facilitates the deployment of emergency personnel and equipment interstate and internationally. But the states and territories may not be willing to relinquish the engagement they have under the current arrangements.</p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/355509/original/file-20200831-18-13e8mep.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="A bushfire danger rating sign, pointing to 'extreme'" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/355509/original/file-20200831-18-13e8mep.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/355509/original/file-20200831-18-13e8mep.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=450&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/355509/original/file-20200831-18-13e8mep.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=450&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/355509/original/file-20200831-18-13e8mep.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=450&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/355509/original/file-20200831-18-13e8mep.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=566&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/355509/original/file-20200831-18-13e8mep.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=566&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/355509/original/file-20200831-18-13e8mep.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=566&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">The royal commission also reported that many people said terms like ‘watch and act’ were confusing.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Shutterstock</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>Most importantly, the royal commission is considering consolidating disaster recovery and resilience functions in a new national body. </p>
<p>These functions reside in at least three agencies. They include Emergency Management Australia, the National Bushfire Recovery Agency, and the National Drought and North Queensland Flood Response and Recovery Agency.</p>
<p>Consolidation makes good sense as the <a href="https://www.unisdr.org/files/53213_bbb.pdf">recovery phase</a> from disasters can contribute to strengthening resilience. </p>
<p>It’s also sensible to separate the resilience function from the disaster response function, currently led by Emergency Management Australia. In my experience, resilience work rarely gets the whole-of-government attention it deserves when it’s embedded in agencies focused around responding to emergencies. </p>
<h2>Three months of disasters</h2>
<p>After the devastation Black Summer wrought, it’s clear resilience to future disasters must start with action on climate change. So it’s disappointing the royal commission has not yet commented on the need to lower greenhouse gas emissions as rapidly as possible. </p>
<p>Although COVID-19 has masked our awareness of the rapidly increasing climate threat, the evidence — even over just the past three months — is overwhelming.</p>
<p>In June, the <a href="https://www.cbsnews.com/news/arctic-temperature-record-100-4-degrees-earth-warmest-12000-years/">record</a> was set for the highest temperature ever recorded in the Arctic. The associated unprecedented heatwave in Siberia contributed to massive bushfires razing an astonishing <a href="https://news.mongabay.com/2020/07/photos-show-scale-of-massive-fires-tearing-through-siberian-forests/">20 million</a> hectares.</p>
<p>While Siberia burned, severe floods devastated South Asia, China and Japan. One-third of Bangladesh was underwater, affecting almost <a href="https://reliefweb.int/disaster/fl-2020-000164-ind">15 million</a> people. </p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/355708/original/file-20200901-20-1iloggj.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="Two boys use a rubber tube to float in a flooded street in Bangladesh" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/355708/original/file-20200901-20-1iloggj.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/355708/original/file-20200901-20-1iloggj.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/355708/original/file-20200901-20-1iloggj.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/355708/original/file-20200901-20-1iloggj.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/355708/original/file-20200901-20-1iloggj.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/355708/original/file-20200901-20-1iloggj.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/355708/original/file-20200901-20-1iloggj.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Catastrophic floods in Bangladesh were among many disasters that occurred in the last three months.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">EPA/Monirul Alam</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>In China the figure was 63 million, with daily <a href="https://watchers.news/2020/08/14/china-s-flood-season-leaves-219-fatalities-more-than-4-million-evacuated-and-63-million-affected/">rainfall records</a> set across the country. China’s Three Gorges Hydroelectric Dam, the world’s biggest, received the largest inflow of water in its history, <a href="https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2020/08/water-china-gorges-dam-nears-maximum-levels-200821044024067.html#:%7E:text=With%2075%2C000%20cubic%20metres%20per,than%20the%20official%20warning%20level.%22%22">prompting fears</a> last week the dam would be breached. </p>
<hr>
<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/summer-bushfires-how-are-the-plant-and-animal-survivors-6-months-on-we-mapped-their-recovery-142551">Summer bushfires: how are the plant and animal survivors 6 months on? We mapped their recovery</a>
</strong>
</em>
</p>
<hr>
<p>In southern Japan, record-setting rains that dumped 1,000 millimetres of water in just three days forced <a href="https://watchers.news/2020/07/06/record-rain-flood-kyushu-japan-july-2020/">hundreds of thousands</a> of people from their homes.</p>
<p>Then, earlier this month, deadly fires erupted across California, exacerbated by persistent drought and record-setting temperatures. In <a href="https://nymag.com/intelligencer/2020/08/climate-change-has-led-to-extreme-wildfires-in-california.html">just five days</a>, the fires burned more land in the state than was destroyed in all of 2019. </p>
<h2>We can’t ignore climate change</h2>
<p>While it’s difficult to scientifically demonstrate that climate change “causes” any one disaster, the general direction is crystal clear. As the climate continues to warm, the frequency and severity of <a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2212094718301932">these events</a> will increase.</p>
<hr>
<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/california-is-on-fire-from-across-the-pacific-australians-watch-on-and-buckle-up-145170">California is on fire. From across the Pacific, Australians watch on and buckle up</a>
</strong>
</em>
</p>
<hr>
<p>We’re already seeing worrying signs of this in Queensland, our most hazard-prone state. Over the past three years, 53 of Queensland’s 77 local government areas have endured three or more major disasters. And 71 out of 77 local government areas have experienced two or more such events. </p>
<p>These communities are increasingly in the unsustainable situation of chronically recovering from disasters.</p>
<p>The <a href="https://www.pm.gov.au/media/address-national-press-club">prime minister</a> has argued “Australia, on its own, cannot control the world’s climate, as Australia accounts for just 1.3% of global emissions”. </p>
<p>But because we’re <a href="https://www.smh.com.au/environment/climate-change/australia-one-of-the-countries-most-exposed-to-climate-change-bank-warns-20180322-p4z5n8.html">disproportionately vulnerable</a> to the threats of climate change, it’s imperative we convince other nations to reduce their greenhouse gas emissions.</p>
<p>Our international advocacy will only be credible if we strengthen our own ambition to mitigate climate change. And as the government prepares to submit its <a href="https://unfccc.int/sites/default/files/resource/notification_on_ndc_synthesis_2020_ec_2020_306.pdf">updated targets</a> under the Paris Climate Agreement, a recommendation to reduce emissions from the royal commission would be appropriate and extremely useful.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/145323/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Robert Glasser is on the board of the Queensland Reconstruction Authority. </span></em></p>Yesterday, the bushfire royal commission handed down interim observations. But there’s a glaring omission.Robert Glasser, Visiting Fellow, Australian National UniversityLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1436052020-07-30T05:13:26Z2020-07-30T05:13:26ZAUSMAT teams start work in aged care homes today. But what does this ‘SAS of the medical world’ actually do?<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/350338/original/file-20200730-29-1i3bazm.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=0%2C4%2C1000%2C661&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">
</span> <span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.shutterstock.com/image-photo/fire-departments-emergency-response-teams-will-392887153">from www.shutterstock.com</a></span></figcaption></figure><p>The emergency response to Victoria’s COVID-19 crisis <a href="https://www.abc.net.au/news/2020-07-30/victoria-coronavirus-ausmat-arrives-amid-aged-care-crisis/12505478">has been ramped up today</a> with AUSMAT teams now working alongside defence force and hospital nurses in aged care homes.</p>
<p>This comes as the total number of active COVID-19 cases linked to aged care in Victoria is <a href="https://www.abc.net.au/news/2020-07-30/coronavirus-australia-live-news-covid-19-victoria-queensland-nsw/12505700">now at 913</a>.</p>
<p>Federal health minister Greg Hunt <a href="https://www.health.gov.au/ministers/the-hon-greg-hunt-mp/media/doorstop-interview-in-melbourne-on-25-july-2020-0">recently said</a> AUSMAT, or Australian medical assistance teams, are:</p>
<blockquote>
<p>[…] the best of the best. They are the SAS of the medical world.</p>
</blockquote>
<p>But what is an AUSMAT? What can they do? And what do we need to think about when deploying them?</p>
<hr>
<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/view-from-the-hill-aged-care-crisis-reflects-poor-preparation-and-a-broken-system-143556">View from The Hill: Aged care crisis reflects poor preparation and a broken system</a>
</strong>
</em>
</p>
<hr>
<h2>What is a medical assistance team?</h2>
<p>A medical assistance team is a group of doctors, nurses and/or paramedics who provide clinical care and health support during a health crisis, as part of a recognised organisation.</p>
<p>Logistics, environmental health and other personnel often support these clinical teams.</p>
<p>Medical assistance teams contribute to a coordinated health response in an attempt to restore and/or maintain the health capacity of a community affected by disaster or public health emergency.</p>
<p>In Australia, a medical assistance team may be a civilian government team (such as AUSMAT), non-government organisations (such as <a href="https://disasterreliefaus.org/">Disaster Relief Australia</a> or <a href="https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S1574626712000614">St John Ambulance Australia</a>), the Australian Defence Force, or a combination of these.</p>
<p>While an AUSMAT is usually deployed internationally, teams were deployed in Australia during <a href="https://www.health.gov.au/ministers/the-hon-greg-hunt-mp/media/medical-support-from-ausmat-for-bushfire-evacuees">last summer’s bushfires</a>, to help with <a href="https://www.abc.net.au/radio/programs/worldtoday/ausmat-to-arrive-on-christmas-island-ahead-of-china-evacuees/11916666">evacuations</a> from China to Christmas Island at the start of the pandemic, and in April to support <a href="https://www.minister.defence.gov.au/minister/lreynolds/media-releases/adf-and-ausmat-complete-support-north-west-regional-hospital">COVID-19 efforts in northwest Tasmania</a>. </p>
<h2>Who’s in an AUSMAT?</h2>
<p>Health-care professionals in an AUSMAT usually work at hospitals, health services or ambulance services in states and territories across Australia.</p>
<p>When required, they are released from their local duties to be deployed as part of an AUSMAT response.</p>
<p>They are often highly experienced and leaders in their disciplines. Members undertake <a href="https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/21838065/">additional education and training</a> to work in disaster environments and to manage the health response.</p>
<p>They are also highly regarded. AUSMAT was one of the first medical assistance teams worldwide to be <a href="https://www.dfat.gov.au/aid/topics/investment-priorities/building-resilience/humanitarian-policy-and-partnerships/Pages/australian-medical-assistance-teams-ausmat">endorsed by the World Health Organisation</a>.</p>
<h2>How have they been deployed internationally?</h2>
<p>AUSMATs were set up after the <a href="https://www.nma.gov.au/defining-moments/resources/bali-bombings">2002 Bali bombings</a>, then used after the <a href="https://www.ga.gov.au/news-events/features/ten-years-on-2004-indian-ocean-tsunami">2004 Indian Ocean tsunami</a>.</p>
<p><div data-react-class="Tweet" data-react-props="{"tweetId":"1288661589281968128"}"></div></p>
<p>Since then, AUSMATs have been used during crises, mainly in South Asia, Southeast Asia and Oceania, <a href="https://www.dfat.gov.au/aid/topics/investment-priorities/building-resilience/humanitarian-policy-and-partnerships/Pages/australian-medical-assistance-teams-ausmat">including</a> the <a href="https://earthobservatory.nasa.gov/features/PakistanFloods">2010 Pakistan floods</a>, <a href="https://nzhistory.govt.nz/page/christchurch-earthquake-kills-185">2011 Christchurch earthquake</a> and <a href="https://www.abc.net.au/news/2014-05-05/typhoon-haiyan-timeline/5435156?nw=0">Typhoon Haiyan which hit the Philippines in 2014</a>. </p>
<p>AUSMAT also assisted during last year’s Samoan measles outbreak.</p>
<hr>
<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/measles-in-samoa-how-a-small-island-nation-found-itself-in-the-grips-of-an-outbreak-disaster-128467">Measles in Samoa: how a small island nation found itself in the grips of an outbreak disaster</a>
</strong>
</em>
</p>
<hr>
<h2>What are the issues when deploying them during COVID-19?</h2>
<p>The role of an AUSMAT team will change over the duration of their deployment. Based on previous experience, AUSMAT members may provide direct patient care, coordination of care, or leadership roles.</p>
<p>There is the risk that temporarily sending health workers to work in Victoria as part of an AUSMAT will leave their existing hospitals and health services short-staffed.</p>
<p>At this stage, this is not thought to be a great concern as areas outside Victoria are not yet so significantly impacted by COVID-19, making it easier that their home states will manage without them.</p>
<p>However, if the situation worsens in other states, it may become harder to convince these states to release staff to support interstate efforts.</p>
<p>We also need to look after the physical and psychological well-being of AUSMAT health-care professionals.</p>
<p>We prepare them to assist with emergency health efforts but we <a href="http://www.jamieranse.com/2017/09/phd.html">don’t always prepare them to return</a> to their normal roles afterwards. Some find it <a href="https://linkinghub.elsevier.com/retrieve/pii/S1477893909000519">difficult to adjust</a>.</p>
<hr>
<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/4-steps-to-avert-a-full-blown-coronavirus-disaster-in-victorias-aged-care-homes-143177">4 steps to avert a full-blown coronavirus disaster in Victoria's aged care homes</a>
</strong>
</em>
</p>
<hr>
<h2>What are the benefits to other states?</h2>
<p>As well as directly helping the health response where they are sent, there are other benefits to an AUSMAT deployment.</p>
<p>When health workers from other states, such as South Australia and <a href="http://statements.qld.gov.au/Statement/2020/7/1/top-queensland-communicable-diseases-expert-to-help-victoria-battle-covid19">Queensland</a>, work alongside AUSMAT and defence force teams, they can take that experience back to their home states to better prepare for a local COVID-19 outbreak.</p>
<hr>
<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/coronavirus-pandemic-shows-its-time-for-an-australian-centre-for-disease-control-in-darwin-138724">Coronavirus pandemic shows it's time for an Australian Centre for Disease Control – in Darwin</a>
</strong>
</em>
</p>
<hr>
<img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/143605/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Jamie Ranse has previously received competitive, peer-reviewed funding from St John Ambulance Australia to research the role of nurses assisting in disasters.</span></em></p>Medical assistance teams are a group of experienced health workers sent to handle a medical or humanitarian crisis, including from today, the growing number of COVID-19 cases in Victoria’s aged care.Jamie Ranse, Senior Research Fellow; Emergency Care, Griffith UniversityLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1394672020-05-28T00:16:24Z2020-05-28T00:16:24Z‘I’m scared’: parents of children with disability struggle to get the basics during coronavirus<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/337962/original/file-20200527-20245-7f17qz.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=22%2C0%2C2557%2C1699&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">
</span> <span class="attribution"><span class="source">www.shutterstock.com</span></span></figcaption></figure><p>COVID-19 has had a significant impact on all Australians, but there are very good reasons why the impact might be more keenly felt by people with disability and their carers. </p>
<p>Our <a href="https://www.cyda.org.au/resources/details/161/more-than-isolated-the-experience-of-children-and-young-people-with-disability-and-their-families-during-the-covid-19-pandemic">new research</a> on behalf of Children and Young People with Disability Australia (CYDA) provides insight into these issues, capturing the impacts at the height of the pandemic. </p>
<p>These findings throw the daily inequities people with disability face into sharp relief. Without urgent action, future emergencies will have similar impacts.</p>
<h2>How have families found life in the pandemic?</h2>
<p>As coronavirus reached crisis point in Australia, CYDA was concerned that we lacked a coherent national response to assist younger Australians with disabilities. So it launched a survey about families’ pandemic experiences. </p>
<hr>
<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/people-with-a-disability-are-more-likely-to-die-from-coronavirus-but-we-can-reduce-this-risk-134383">People with a disability are more likely to die from coronavirus – but we can reduce this risk</a>
</strong>
</em>
</p>
<hr>
<p>This was designed to explore the specific impact of COVID-19, but also to help plan for future emergencies, including other pandemics, bushfires and floods. </p>
<p>The survey was launched in mid-March and stayed open for almost six weeks. Nearly 700 responses were received, mostly from family members of children and young people with disability. </p>
<h2>Scared and uncertain</h2>
<p>Our report, <a href="https://www.cyda.org.au/resources/details/161/more-than-isolated-the-experience-of-children-and-young-people-with-disability-and-their-families-during-the-covid-19-pandemic">More than Isolated</a>, shows families were confused about how to handle the crisis. </p>
<p>More than 80% of respondents said they lacked information about coronavirus and how it related to children with disability. This exacerbated their distress and uncertainty. </p>
<p>Households reported feeling scared and uncertain about the best ways to act to protect themselves and loved ones, and this was having an impact on the mental health of all family members. </p>
<p>Respondents also reported a great deal of uncertainty about schooling and school closures. As one parent said </p>
<blockquote>
<p>Should we be waiting for school to close or should we keep him at home? Should we keep our other kids home from school to protect him? How serious is this?</p>
</blockquote>
<h2>Missing out on supplies, medication</h2>
<p>More than 60% of respondents were unable to buy essential supplies (such as groceries, special dietary products and hygiene products). Almost 20% said they were unable to buy essential medication. </p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/337964/original/file-20200527-20255-17vgfa5.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/337964/original/file-20200527-20255-17vgfa5.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=450&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/337964/original/file-20200527-20255-17vgfa5.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=450&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/337964/original/file-20200527-20255-17vgfa5.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=450&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/337964/original/file-20200527-20255-17vgfa5.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=566&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/337964/original/file-20200527-20255-17vgfa5.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=566&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/337964/original/file-20200527-20255-17vgfa5.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=566&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Panic buying was particularly hard on families of children with disability.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">James Gourley/AAP</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>While this was an issue for many Australians, often these products were especially necessary for the children and young people with disability. </p>
<hr>
<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/weve-had-a-taste-of-disrupted-food-supplies-here-are-5-ways-we-can-avoid-a-repeat-135822">We've had a taste of disrupted food supplies – here are 5 ways we can avoid a repeat</a>
</strong>
</em>
</p>
<hr>
<p>As one parent reported:</p>
<blockquote>
<p>Families with ASD [Autism Spectrum Disorder] children don’t meet criteria for special shopping times and so we have run out of essential items. In my spare time I’m running around all day looking for toilet paper and food that my child will eat. I’m exhausted.</p>
</blockquote>
<p>The shortages also meant some children and young people went without food or continence supplies. Other families found themselves spending up to three times the usual budget on essential items, sometimes at the expense of paying their rent. </p>
<h2>Less support, declining mental health</h2>
<p>One in three respondents had to deal with the cancellation of support workers. </p>
<p>This was either because the family had to cancel because of concerns about people coming into the home, or the services themselves cancelled. This meant family members had increased support requirements, with some reporting they had to give up their own paid work to care for their kids.</p>
<p>Half of survey respondents reported a decline in mental health, either for themselves or for the child or young person with disability. This increased over the period of the survey. </p>
<p>As another parent reported:</p>
<blockquote>
<p>I’m scared as a parent, I’m scared of failing my child, and I’m scared about
the mental health impacts on me as a parent with absolutely no support. </p>
</blockquote>
<p>Often the impacts were interconnected. For example, service cancellation led to parents’ reduced ability to work, which put stress on obtaining essential supplies. </p>
<p>Some people were unable to access pre-existing support networks, and unsure of what would happen in the days and weeks ahead. Many respondents expressed heartbreaking distress and worry. </p>
<blockquote>
<p>I am struggling significantly to meet my children’s needs … I am completely isolated from any therapies, support workers and family support.</p>
</blockquote>
<h2>Families are struggling: what needs to change</h2>
<p>Many of those who care for children and young people with disability are constantly beset by difficult decisions - balancing work, play, care and education to provide the best possible lives for their kids. </p>
<p>Many people can only manage these things when the world is operating as it normally does. But this pandemic (which was preceded by a summer of horrific bushfires) has thrown these carefully balanced routines off to such a degree that families are struggling to cope. </p>
<figure class="align-center ">
<img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/337965/original/file-20200527-20223-ppi166.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/337965/original/file-20200527-20223-ppi166.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/337965/original/file-20200527-20223-ppi166.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/337965/original/file-20200527-20223-ppi166.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/337965/original/file-20200527-20223-ppi166.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/337965/original/file-20200527-20223-ppi166.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/337965/original/file-20200527-20223-ppi166.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px">
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Families’ carefully balanced routines have been thrown off by recent disasters.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Sean Davey/AAP</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>There are lessons that we can learn from this pandemic that can inform future emergency responses. </p>
<p>Our survey findings point to the importance of information that is tailored to children and young people with disability. </p>
<p>The fragmentation of national and state/territory responsibilities (especially around education) made for <a href="https://theconversation.com/i-have-never-felt-so-frightened-australias-coronavirus-schools-messaging-must-address-teacher-concerns-135934">confusing messaging for these families</a>, and this continues. </p>
<p>It is crucial the voices of children and young people with disability and their families are heard and responded to in emergency planning. </p>
<hr>
<p>
<em>
<strong>
Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/how-coronavirus-could-forever-change-home-health-care-leaving-vulnerable-older-adults-without-care-and-overburdening-caregivers-137220">How coronavirus could forever change home health care, leaving vulnerable older adults without care and overburdening caregivers</a>
</strong>
</em>
</p>
<hr>
<p>But improving messaging and ensuring a more coherent response will not solve many of the issues. </p>
<p>It is well established that people with disability face <a href="https://humanrights.gov.au/our-work/education/face-facts-disability-rights">significant inequities</a> in many facets of their lives (from health to work, education and social interaction). The only way we will prevent an impact like this again is to address the various inequities faced on a daily basis by children and young people with disability and their caregivers. </p>
<p>This is not a new observation, but it is also at the heart of the <a href="http://www.austlii.edu.au/au/other/dfat/treaties/2008/12.html">Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities</a> that Australia is a signatory to. </p>
<p>There is a richness in diversity and human experience and this needs to be valued and planned for. </p>
<p>During this period of the COVID-19 pandemic there was not enough recognition that some groups might require more support and intervention so that they can be viewed as equally valued members of society. </p>
<p><em>CYDA is a not-for-profit community-based organisation and <a href="https://www.cyda.org.au/about/who-we-are">receives its core funding</a> from the Department of Social Services</em></p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/139467/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Helen Dickinson receives funding from the Australian Research Council The National Health and Medical Research Council and the Victorian and Commonwealth governments.</span></em></p><p class="fine-print"><em><span>Sophie Yates does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organisation that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>New research shows almost 20% of families caring for children with special needs were unable to buy essential medication during coronavirus.Helen Dickinson, Professor, Public Service Research, UNSW SydneySophie Yates, Postdoctoral Fellow, UNSW SydneyLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1352662020-04-02T12:33:28Z2020-04-02T12:33:28ZCoronavirus: Strategic National Stockpile was ready, but not for this<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/324644/original/file-20200401-23151-1ohrngg.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=74%2C0%2C8256%2C5499&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">Members of the Maryland Air National Guard arrange medical supplies for shipment from the Strategic National Stockpile.</span> <span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.af.mil/News/Article-Display/Article/2121498/maryland-guard-helping-with-strategic-national-stockpile-push/">Master Sgt. Christopher Schepers/Maryland Air National Guard</a></span></figcaption></figure><p>As the COVID-19 crisis unfolds, Americans have been hearing a lot about an obscure but vast federal trove of emergency supplies, the <a href="https://www.phe.gov/about/sns/Pages/default.aspx">Strategic National Stockpile</a>. </p>
<p>Much of the discussion concerns its shortcomings. Hospitals and first responders have faced <a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/national/health-science/desperate-for-medical-equipment-states-encounter-a-beleaguered-national-stockpile/2020/03/28/1f4f9a0a-6f82-11ea-aa80-c2470c6b2034_story.html">dire shortages</a> of critical equipment such as ventilators and protective masks. It is clear that the national stockpile does not have nearly <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/2020/03/31/us/governors-trump-coronavirus.html">enough of such supplies</a> to meet the present need. </p>
<p>Meanwhile, there are plenty of things in the stockpile that aren’t particularly helpful right now – botulism antitoxin, for instance, and millions of doses of smallpox vaccine. As a <a href="https://scholar.google.com/citations?user=Ec2QA54AAAAJ&hl=en&oi=ao">scholar</a> who focuses on the role of <a href="https://www.ucpress.edu/book/9780520295766/unprepared">expert knowledge in addressing an uncertain future</a>, I have long been interested in how decisions are made about what to put into the Strategic National Stockpile.</p>
<p>The question of what to store in case of an emergency points to a broader issue: how security and health officials decide which threats are most urgent to prepare for. This is a matter of collective judgment rather than technical calculation. </p>
<h2>Figuring out what to prepare for</h2>
<p>The overall contents of the national stockpile are classified, as are its locations. But some details are available in <a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/to-your-health/wp/2018/04/24/inside-the-secret-u-s-stockpile-meant-to-save-us-all-in-a-bioterror-attack/">journalistic accounts</a> and <a href="https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK396378/">governmental reports</a>, including the existence of at least six large warehouses scattered in different parts of the country. It was managed by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention before being transferred to the assistant secretary for preparedness and response in the Department of Health and Human Services in 2018.</p>
<p>The Strategic National Stockpile was established in 1999, as health and security officials in the Clinton administration became increasingly worried about the massive stocks of anthrax and smallpox that the <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/1999/06/13/world/government-report-says-3-nations-hide-stocks-of-smallpox.html">Soviet Union had accumulated</a>. As the Soviet government collapsed and the Cold War ended, it was not clear where all those weaponized pathogens had gone – or who had them. For this reason, much of the Strategic National Stockpile consists of boxes and vials of countermeasures to address potential bioweapon attacks. </p>
<p>In 2001, a policy planning exercise called “Dark Winter,” conducted by a group of public officials at Andrews Air Force Base in Maryland, simulated a devastating smallpox attack on the United States. According to the <a href="http://www.centerforhealthsecurity.org/our-work/events-archive/2001_dark-winter/about.html">scenario</a>, developed by a D.C.-based biosecurity think tank, a shortage of smallpox vaccine led to widespread civil unrest and political breakdown. Participants were not able to contain the simulated outbreak using existing public health and policy measures.</p>
<p>In the aftermath of the exercise, officials added enough smallpox vaccine to the Strategic National Stockpile to be able to inoculate <a href="https://www.naccho.org/blog/articles/smallpox-preparedness-planning-understanding-the-strategic-national-stockpile-and-potential-weaponization#reflist">the entire U.S. population</a>. The assumption was that to avoid the breakdown seen in “Dark Winter,” the country would need to have sufficient vaccine available in advance of a future smallpox attack.</p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/324648/original/file-20200401-23095-3u5doz.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/324648/original/file-20200401-23095-3u5doz.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/324648/original/file-20200401-23095-3u5doz.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=397&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/324648/original/file-20200401-23095-3u5doz.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=397&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/324648/original/file-20200401-23095-3u5doz.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=397&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/324648/original/file-20200401-23095-3u5doz.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=499&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/324648/original/file-20200401-23095-3u5doz.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=499&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/324648/original/file-20200401-23095-3u5doz.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=499&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">One small vial can contain 100 doses of a smallpox vaccine.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Smallpox_vaccine.jpg">James Gathany/CDC/Wikimedia Commons</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<h2>New concerns arise</h2>
<p>But security officials were also concerned about other potential threats. To respond in the event of a chemical attack, the stockpile accumulated <a href="https://www.phe.gov/about/sns/Pages/products.aspx#_Toc523920172">2,000 packages</a> of <a href="https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/to-your-health/wp/2018/04/24/inside-the-secret-u-s-stockpile-meant-to-save-us-all-in-a-bioterror-attack/">nerve agent antidote</a>. </p>
<p>To address the threat of an anthrax attack, it acquired stocks of a novel anthrax vaccine procured from a biotechnology company under a <a href="https://homelandprepnews.com/stories/33929-barda-will-procure-emergent-biosolutions-av7909-anthrax-vaccine-in-strategic-national-stockpile/">US$1.5 billion contract</a> with the government’s Biomedical Advanced Research and Development Authority.</p>
<p>In the mid-2000s, planners began to focus on the possibility that the highly virulent <a href="https://doi.org/10.1007/3-211-29981-5_10">H5N1 bird flu</a> would mutate to become easily transmissible among humans. They added <a href="https://webapps.cap.org/apps/docs/committees/microbiology/panflu_final3_13_(2).pdf">millions of doses</a> of antiviral drugs – effective for flu, but not the coronavirus – and influenza vaccine to the stockpile. </p>
<p>Much of the effort and money – an annual budget of around $600 million – involved in maintaining the Strategic National Stockpile is devoted to ensuring that these biomedical countermeasures are stored properly and kept up-to-date. </p>
<h2>Unknowns remain</h2>
<p>As a result of all those efforts, the Strategic National Stockpile built up over the last 20 years was well-prepared for a range of possible threats – just not for the event that actually occurred. </p>
<p>One lesson is that stockpiling is not just a matter of storing large quantities of supplies and equipment; it also requires considering the larger question of which dangers are most pressing to address. Exercises and simulations can tell security planners where vulnerabilities lie in the present, but they cannot reveal what will actually occur in the future. </p>
<p>Given the current emphasis on maintaining limited inventories and carefully calibrated supply chains designed to deliver things only when they are needed, it may seem antiquated to store large amounts of supplies to remain available over an indefinite time horizon. </p>
<p>In fact, this type of government stockpiling of essential supplies is rooted in the era of industrial <a href="https://www.nap.edu/read/12028/chapter/10">mobilization for total war</a>, when nations’ entire economies were converted to support a massive war effort.</p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/324650/original/file-20200401-23086-1wdxnhu.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/324650/original/file-20200401-23086-1wdxnhu.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/324650/original/file-20200401-23086-1wdxnhu.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=458&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/324650/original/file-20200401-23086-1wdxnhu.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=458&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/324650/original/file-20200401-23086-1wdxnhu.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=458&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/324650/original/file-20200401-23086-1wdxnhu.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=576&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/324650/original/file-20200401-23086-1wdxnhu.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=576&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/324650/original/file-20200401-23086-1wdxnhu.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=576&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">A stockpile of telecommunications equipment in Britain is ready for use after the invasion of Normandy in 1944.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="http://www.apimages.com/metadata/Index/Watchf-AP-I-XEN-GBR-APHS351190-WWII-British-Isles/8cdfc4fd641e412a85b19ff5b4df4a28/5/0">AP Photo</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<h2>Waging an uncertain war</h2>
<p>The term “stockpile” did not come into common use until the ramp-up to World War II.</p>
<p>As part of its industrial mobilization effort, the U.S. government began storing large quantities of “critical and <a href="https://www.nap.edu/read/12028/chapter/10#134">strategic materials</a>” – basic industrial ingredients like copper, tungsten and rubber – in anticipation of a cut-off of foreign supplies. After the war, government stockpiling expanded to include supplies necessary for the maintenance of civilian life, such as electrical generators, oil, food and medicine.</p>
<p>During the Cold War, the U.S. maintained an extensive medical stockpile designed for use in the aftermath of a nuclear attack. By 1955, the <a href="https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/13308833">civil defense medical stockpile contained</a> 9 million doses of penicillin, 33 million capsules of broad-spectrum antibiotics, 2 million sets for collecting and transfusing whole blood, 132,000 radiological monitoring instruments, and over 25 million doses of vaccines and antitoxins for controlling communicable diseases and defending against biological warfare.</p>
<p>These supplies were located in 32 storage sites around the country, in small communities located within four hours’ drive of major cities. </p>
<p>However, as weapons became more powerful, the public grew increasingly skeptical that nuclear war could be survived. As a result, congressional support for maintaining the stockpile diminished. </p>
<p>By the late 1960s, over $100 million in unused medical supplies were gradually deteriorating in storage facilities around the country. The federal government disposed of its entire medical stockpile and <a href="https://www.nytimes.com/1973/02/19/archives/us-to-dispose-of-huge-medical-supplies.html">closed down the program</a> in 1974. </p>
<p>It was not until the late 1990s, in the face of the newly perceived threat of bioterrorism, that the U.S. government returned to the technique of stockpiling medical supplies for a future calamity. </p>
<p>Today, the Strategic National Stockpile is designed to protect the population against a wide range of potential threats – but does not have enough of what is needed to fight the coronavirus pandemic. </p>
<p>This points to the limitations of stockpiling as a measure of security. Stockpiled supplies inevitably degrade or become obsolete; the maintenance of a stockpile is continually subject to budgetary struggles, in part because it is impossible to know whether its supplies will ever be needed. The stockpile is assembled in preparation for a particular imagined future, but the actual future rarely turns out as anticipated.</p>
<p>[<em>Get facts about coronavirus and the latest research.</em> <a href="https://theconversation.com/us/newsletters?utm_source=TCUS&utm_medium=inline-link&utm_campaign=newsletter-text&utm_content=upper-coronavirus-facts">Sign up for our newsletter.</a>]</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/135266/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Andrew Lakoff has received funding from the National Science Foundation, the Social Science Research Council, and other government and non-profit agencies.</span></em></p>The paradox of the stockpile is that it’s meant to protect against future threats, but is limited by today’s imagination about what those threats might be.Andrew Lakoff, Professor of Sociology, USC Dornsife College of Letters, Arts and SciencesLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1345012020-03-30T12:15:35Z2020-03-30T12:15:35ZNational Guard joins the coronavirus response – 3 questions answered<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/323702/original/file-20200327-146666-1hl1ah6.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=11%2C17%2C3982%2C2640&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">Members of the New York Army National Guard are setting up a 1,000-bed hospital at the Jacob Javits Convention Center in Manhattan.</span> <span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.gettyimages.com/detail/news-photo/members-of-the-army-national-guard-walk-through-the-jacob-k-news-photo/1208429104">Bryan R. Smith/AFP via Getty Images</a></span></figcaption></figure><p>As a military organization divided into 50 distinct parts that can be commanded by either the president or state governors, the National Guard is perhaps the least understood branch of the U.S. armed forces. </p>
<p>Despite its complexity – or perhaps because of it – the National Guard is taking the <a href="https://federalnewsnetwork.com/defense-main/2020/03/us-militarys-role-in-response-to-virus-outbreak-is-growing/">lead role</a> in the military’s response to the coronavirus outbreak crisis.</p>
<p>As many as <a href="https://www.defense.gov/Explore/News/Article/Article/2123860/nearly-10000-guardsmen-called-up-for-covid-19-response/">10,000</a> National Guard members have already been activated to <a href="https://www.ny1.com/nyc/all-boroughs/news/2020/03/13/national-guard-arrives-to-help-residents-in-new-rochelle-containment-zone">help communities around the country</a>, with many more expecting a call-up soon. People may know, from TV ads or other brief appearances in the media, that National Guard members are part-time citizen-soldiers, but not much else. </p>
<p>As a longtime <a href="https://centerforlaw.org/dwight-bio">National Guard attorney</a> and <a href="https://gould.usc.edu/faculty/?id=73455">military law professor</a>, I can explain a bit more about how the National Guard works.</p>
<figure>
<iframe width="440" height="260" src="https://www.youtube.com/embed/WvZCA2chtic?wmode=transparent&start=0" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen=""></iframe>
<figcaption><span class="caption">Ads like this supply much of what most people know about the National Guard.</span></figcaption>
</figure>
<h2>Who are they?</h2>
<p>There are <a href="https://www.statista.com/statistics/207392/national-guard-members-in-the-usa/">nearly 450,000 National Guard personnel</a> spread out throughout the 50 states and various territories. </p>
<p>The size of each state’s National Guard is roughly proportional to its population. A large state like California has about <a href="https://www.latimes.com/california/story/2020-03-20/california-national-guard-deployed-to-food-banks-during-coronavirus">22,000 members</a>, while smaller states such as Vermont have <a href="https://vtdigger.org/2020/03/15/vermont-national-guard-ready-to-assist-in-covid-19-pandemic/">about 3,000</a>.</p>
<p>So-called “<a href="https://www.politico.com/story/2010/05/uncertain-future-for-national-guard-036830">weekend warriors</a>,” in normal circumstances Guard members perform <a href="https://www.va.gov/VETSINWORKPLACE/docs/em_activeReserve.asp">two days of training</a> per month and two full weeks in the summer. Meeting at local armories, they brush up on their military skills while practicing how to respond to real-life calamities. The Guard’s motto captures the idea: “<a href="https://www.army.mil/article/192045/guard_bureau_vice_chief_touts_force_emphasizes_always_ready_always_there">Always Ready, Always There</a>.”</p>
<p>When not training, members of the Guard <a href="https://heinonline.org/HOL/LandingPage?handle=hein.journals/bupi25&div=17&id=&page=">are indistinguishable</a> from the general population. Many hold civilian jobs at places like Costco, Bank of America and the Los Angeles Police Department. A large number are <a href="https://www.military.com/education/money-for-school/national-guard-tuition-assistance.html">full-time students</a> looking for college money and vocational skills that they can get while serving. Still others are former <a href="https://www.nationalguard.com/eligibility/prior-service">active duty service members</a> who want to continue serving on a part-time basis. </p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/323703/original/file-20200327-146724-1xmfa84.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/323703/original/file-20200327-146724-1xmfa84.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/323703/original/file-20200327-146724-1xmfa84.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=395&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/323703/original/file-20200327-146724-1xmfa84.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=395&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/323703/original/file-20200327-146724-1xmfa84.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=395&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/323703/original/file-20200327-146724-1xmfa84.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=496&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/323703/original/file-20200327-146724-1xmfa84.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=496&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/323703/original/file-20200327-146724-1xmfa84.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=496&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">California National Guard members help distribute food at food banks that have seen volunteer numbers plummet amid the coronavirus outbreak.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.gettyimages.com/detail/news-photo/members-of-the-california-national-guard-115th-regional-news-photo/1214572277">Justin Sullivan/Getty Images</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<h2>Who issues the orders?</h2>
<p>National Guard members are most often called to service under the leadership of their state governments, as has already happened in New York and <a href="https://www.latimes.com/california/story/2020-03-20/california-national-guard-deployed-to-food-banks-during-coronavirus">California</a>, among other places.</p>
<p>Those National Guard troops answer to the governor of their state. Every state in the union has a National Guard organization, which legally operates “<a href="https://casetext.com/case/charles-v-rice-2">under state authority and control</a>.” The guard’s job is <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/world/2014/aug/18/what-is-national-guard-ferguson-missouri">to protect</a> the civilian population during large-scale emergencies, <a href="https://heinonline.org/HOL/LandingPage?handle=hein.journals/bupi25&div=17&id=&page=">serving as backup</a> for overwhelmed firefighters, police officers and other first responders.</p>
<p>State National Guard units are the modern-day descendants of state militias, the centuries-old <a href="https://heinonline.org/HOL/LandingPage?handle=hein.journals/wsulr43&div=4&id=&page=">military bodies</a> that pre-dated the signing of the Constitution. </p>
<p>Guard members embody the concept of a citizen army, <a href="https://caselaw.findlaw.com/us-supreme-court/381/41.html">tracing their lineage</a> dating directly to the Minutemen of Lexington and Concord. The very existence of a state-specific military force answering to the governor reflects the power of <a href="https://supreme.justia.com/cases/federal/us/496/334/">state sovereignty</a> as well as an enduring distrust of federal authority. </p>
<p>Controlled by governors and regulated by state legislatures, the legal status of National Guard personnel is unambiguous: “National Guard personnel who have not been called to active federal duty are considered employees of the state in which they serve,” explained a <a href="https://casetext.com/case/chester-v-state-of-california">California appellate court</a>.</p>
<p>When in a state status, Guard members have <a href="https://www.justsecurity.org/69215/the-coronavirus-emergency-powers-and-the-military-what-you-need-to-know/">virtually no limits</a> on the assistance they can provide civil authorities. They can build roads, airdrop food supplies and operate medical facilities. They can even perform <a href="https://www.vox.com/2020/3/17/21181115/coronavirus-military-response-national-guard">traditional police activities</a> if there is large-scale unrest.</p>
<p>In very rare instances, the National Guard can be what is called “<a href="https://science.howstuffworks.com/national-guard.htm">federalized</a>” and put under the command of the regular full-time military. This happened most recently in response to <a href="https://www.defense.gov/Explore/News/Article/Article/615143/northern-command-applies-lessons-katrina-taught/">Hurricane Katrina</a> in 2005. <a href="https://www.chicagotribune.com/news/ct-national-guard-deployments-timeline-htmlstory.html">Other examples</a> include the response to the Los Angeles riots in 1992 and enforcing the integration of Alabama schools in the early 1960s. </p>
<p>That’s unlikely to happen in the coronavirus response because it <a href="https://www.theatlantic.com/ideas/archive/2020/03/right-way-activate-national-guard/608524/">can be less effective than preserving state control</a> and imposes <a href="https://www.northcom.mil/Newsroom/Fact-Sheets/Article-View/Article/563993/the-posse-comitatus-act/">strict limits</a> on what guard members can do. </p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/323704/original/file-20200327-146695-jw55m9.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/323704/original/file-20200327-146695-jw55m9.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/323704/original/file-20200327-146695-jw55m9.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/323704/original/file-20200327-146695-jw55m9.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/323704/original/file-20200327-146695-jw55m9.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/323704/original/file-20200327-146695-jw55m9.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/323704/original/file-20200327-146695-jw55m9.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/323704/original/file-20200327-146695-jw55m9.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Members of the Maryland National Guard put up fencing around an area slated to become a screening site for potential coronavirus patients.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="https://www.gettyimages.com/detail/news-photo/members-of-the-maryland-national-guard-put-up-temporary-news-photo/1214298484">Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<h2>Who foots the bill?</h2>
<p>National Guard uniforms say “U.S. Army” or “U.S. Air Force,” but state guard members <a href="https://www.hsdl.org/?abstract&did=689608">do not fall</a> within the <a href="https://caselaw.findlaw.com/us-10th-circuit/1018093.html">president’s chain of command</a>.</p>
<p>In fact, as my own analysis shows, National Guard personnel may legally <a href="https://heinonline.org/HOL/LandingPage?handle=hein.journals/trlp22&div=8&id=&page=">disregard presidential instructions</a>; they answer only to their respective governor.</p>
<p>That said, the president <a href="https://www.worldcat.org/title/national-guard-and-reserve-a-reference-handbook/oclc/221153846&referer=brief_results">controls when federal money gets spent</a> on guard activities. While the Department of Defense pays for the Guard’s <a href="https://supreme.justia.com/cases/federal/us/381/41/">monthly training sessions</a>, it has no obligation to pay for <a href="http://giveanhour.org/wp-content/uploads/Guard-Status-9.27.18.pdf">gubernatorial call-ups</a>. Whether a president opens up federal spending has a large influence on whether, and when, governors activate their National Guard units in the face of an emergency. </p>
<p>That is why President Donald Trump’s recent decision to pay for 100% of the activation costs for <a href="https://www.whitehouse.gov/presidential-actions/memorandum-providing-federal-support-governors-use-national-guard-respond-covid-19/">three states’ National Guard units</a> is of particular significance. Without this action, governors would be forced to use <a href="http://giveanhour.org/wp-content/uploads/Guard-Status-9.27.18.pdf">state funds</a> to cover millions of dollars in extra expenses. </p>
<p>Trump’s claim to have “<a href="https://www.militarytimes.com/news/your-military/2020/03/23/trump-orders-national-guard-into-federalized-status-states-keep-control-federal-government-foots-bill/">activated</a>” the national guards of California, New York and Washington, however, is not true. Only the governors can do that, but his commitment to pick up the tab no doubt <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/trump-national-guard-to-california-new-york-and-washington-state-2020-3">makes the decision easier</a> for cash-strapped states that may be worried about how they would pay the costs. </p>
<p>Other states may well seek federal support for calling up their National Guard units as the crisis spreads.</p>
<p>[<em>You need to understand the coronavirus pandemic, and we can help.</em> <a href="https://theconversation.com/us/newsletters?utm_source=TCUS&utm_medium=inline-link&utm_campaign=newsletter-text&utm_content=upper-coronavirus-help">Read our newsletter</a>.]</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/134501/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Dr. Dwight Stirling is a reserve JAG officer in the California National Guard. The views expressed in this article are his own and do not necessarily reflect the official policy or position of any agency.</span></em></p>The National Guard may be the least understood branch of the US military. A National Guard attorney and military law professor explains how it works.Dwight Stirling, Lecturer in Law, University of Southern CaliforniaLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1329482020-03-04T11:57:57Z2020-03-04T11:57:57ZIf you want to help after the Nashville tornadoes, give cash, not clothing and other stuff<figure><img src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/318463/original/file-20200303-66060-1fmbpt7.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&rect=1269%2C696%2C4194%2C2162&q=45&auto=format&w=496&fit=clip" /><figcaption><span class="caption">The wreckage in Nashville was extreme.</span> <span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="http://www.apimages.com/metadata/Index/APTOPIX-Severe-Weather-Tennessee/cd8aecf401bf4e69a12207e8cdbeec1c/1/0">AP Photo/Wade Payne</a></span></figcaption></figure><p>Powerful <a href="https://apnews.com/795688aab981d4e8220042c20e095b55">storms and tornadoes</a> left a trail of devastation as they ripped through Nashville on March 3, killing 25 people, injuring dozens more and leaving hundreds homeless. As first responders and residents of the Tennessee city searched for the missing, assessed the damage and began to pick up the pieces, <a href="https://www.wsmv.com/how-to-help-in-the-stir-of-tennessee-tornado-disaster/article_5c3ba50c-5d68-11ea-bcc3-3f108d0bcc62.html">relief efforts started taking shape right away</a>. </p>
<p>In the aftermath of such tragedies, the urge to help is laudable. Some organizations and community groups don’t want to wait before organizing donation drives. Yet, as someone who has studied how professionals and local communities <a href="https://scholar.google.com/citations?user=zJlFCUQAAAAJ&hl=en">respond to emergencies</a>, I’ve seen time and again how well-intentioned efforts to donate goods to distant disasters can go wrong.</p>
<p>Donations of food, clothing, toiletries and diapers are often the last thing that is needed in disaster-affected areas. </p>
<p>Delivering things that people need on the ground simply doesn’t help disaster-struck communities as much as giving them <a href="https://www.cnbc.com/2017/09/30/puerto-rico-donations-may-create-a-second-disaster-so-just-send-cash.html">money to buy what they need</a>. What’s more, truckloads of blue jeans and cases of Lunchables can actually <a href="https://www.vox.com/the-goods/2018/11/15/18096792/donating-disasters-cash-vs-canned-goods">interfere with official relief efforts</a>.</p>
<p>If you want to do the greatest good, send money.</p>
<h2>Transportation trouble</h2>
<p>Disaster relief efforts repeatedly provide lessons in good intentions gone wrong.</p>
<p>At best, donating bottled water, blankets and other stuff can augment official efforts and provide the locals with some additional comfort, especially when those donations come from nearby. When <a href="https://www.congress.gov/congressional-report/109th-congress/senate-report/322/1">various levels of government failed</a> to meet the needs of Hurricane Katrina victims, for example, <a href="https://www.gao.gov/products/GAO-06-297T">community, faith-based and private sector organizations</a> stepped in to <a href="https://dx.doi.org/10.1177%2F003335490712200319">fill many of the gaps</a>.</p>
<p>How can these donations cause more harm than good? By <a href="https://www.devex.com/news/thanks-but-no-thanks-unwanted-goods-flood-disaster-struck-developing-countries-89458">raising the cost</a> of the response cycle. Everything from collecting, sorting, packaging and shipping bulky items across long distances to sorting, warehousing and distributing them upon arrival costs a lot of money.
Delivering this aid is tough in disaster areas since <a href="https://www.npr.org/sections/thetwo-way/2017/09/28/554297787/puerto-rico-relief-goods-sit-undistributed-at-ports">transportation infrastructure</a>, such as airports, roads and bridges, are likely to be damaged by the disaster or busy with the surge of incoming first responders, relief shipments and equipment.</p>
<p>This is true in Nashville, where the storms and tornadoes caused massive power outages, filled roads with debris and <a href="https://www.ainonline.com/aviation-news/business-aviation/2020-03-03/nashville-airport-hammered-tornado">severely damaged Tennessee’s biggest airport</a>.</p>
<figure class="align-center zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/318465/original/file-20200303-66106-15ye0l4.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/318465/original/file-20200303-66106-15ye0l4.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/318465/original/file-20200303-66106-15ye0l4.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/318465/original/file-20200303-66106-15ye0l4.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/318465/original/file-20200303-66106-15ye0l4.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=400&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/318465/original/file-20200303-66106-15ye0l4.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/318465/original/file-20200303-66106-15ye0l4.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/318465/original/file-20200303-66106-15ye0l4.jpg?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=503&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">Tennessee Gov. Bill Lee, right and Tennessee Commerce and Insurance Commissioner Hodgen Mainda surveyed the damage.</span>
<span class="attribution"><a class="source" href="http://www.apimages.com/metadata/Index/Severe-Weather-Tennessee/48f5426862dd4d94b904dcc61e687d4d/7/0">AP Photo/Travis Loller</a></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<h2>Dumping grounds</h2>
<p>At worst, disaster zones become <a href="https://www.cbsnews.com/news/when-disaster-relief-brings-anything-but-relief/">dumping grounds</a> for <a href="http://www.slate.com/articles/news_and_politics/foreigners/2013/11/how_to_help_typhoon_haiyan_survivors_in_the_philippines_the_only_donation.html">a lot of junk</a> that can delay actual relief efforts and harm local economies.</p>
<p>After the 2004 South Asian tsunami, shipping containers full of <a href="http://www.slate.com/articles/news_and_politics/foreigners/2013/11/how_to_help_typhoon_haiyan_survivors_in_the_philippines_the_only_donation.html">ill-suited items</a> such as used high-heeled shoes, ski gear and expired medications poured into the affected countries. This junk clogged ports and roads, polluting already ravaged areas and <a href="https://hbr.org/2006/11/disaster-relief-inc">diverting personnel</a>, trucks and storage facilities from actual relief efforts.</p>
<p>After the 2010 earthquake in Haiti, many untrained and uninvited American volunteers bringing unnecessary goods ended up <a href="http://www.nbcnews.com/id/34958965/ns/world_news-haiti/t/disaster-do-gooders-can-actually-hinder-help/#.Waq6YdOGPeQ">needing assistance themselves</a>.</p>
<p>One study led by <a href="https://ascelibrary.org/doi/abs/10.1061/(ASCE)NH.1527-6996.0000113">José Holguín-Veras</a>, a Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute expert on humanitarian logistics, found that 50% to 70% of the goods that arrive during these emergencies should never have been sent and interfere with recovery efforts. After the 2011 Joplin, Missouri, tornado and the Tōhoku, Japan, earthquake, for example, excessive donations of <a href="http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.jom.2012.08.003">clothing and blankets</a> tied up relief personnel.</p>
<p>Relief workers consider these well-meaning but inconvenient donations as a “<a href="http://www.newsweek.com/75-million-stuff-148091">second-tier disaster</a>” due to the disruption they cause.</p>
<h2>What else can you do?</h2>
<p>Instead of shipping your hand-me-downs, donate money to trusted and established organizations with extensive experience and expertise and local ties.</p>
<p><a href="https://theconversation.com/how-to-select-a-disaster-relief-charity-83928">Give to groups</a> that make it clear where the money will go. Choose relief efforts that will procure supplies near the disaster area, which will help the local economy recover. You can also consult organizations like <a href="https://www.charitynavigator.org/">Charity Navigator</a> that evaluate charities’ financial performance.</p>
<p>Many humanitarian aid organizations themselves have increasingly adopted cash-based approaches in recent years, though money remains a <a href="https://www.theguardian.com/global-development-professionals-network/2016/jan/22/cash-transfers-only-6-of-humanitarian-spending-whats-the-hold-up">small share</a> of overall humanitarian aid worldwide.</p>
<p>Evaluations of the effectiveness of <a href="http://www.cashlearning.org/resources/library/1106-cash-based-approaches-in-humanitarian-emergencies-a-systematic-review-april-2016">such programs vary</a> and are <a href="http://pubs.iied.org/10759IIED/">context-dependent</a>. Nonetheless, <a href="https://www.odi.org/publications/9454-state-evidence-humanitarian-cash-transfers">emerging evidence suggests</a> that disbursing cash is often the best way to help people in disaster zones get the food and shelter they need.</p>
<p>What’s more, the World Food Program and the U.N. High Commissioner for Refugees say that <a href="https://reliefweb.int/report/world/examining-protection-and-gender-cash-and-voucher-transfers-case-studies-world-food">people affected by disasters tend to prefer</a> cash over in-kind aid due to the <a href="https://www.odi.org/publications/7406-cash-transfers-social-protection-community-participatory-development">dignity, control and flexibility</a> it gives them. </p>
<p><div data-react-class="Tweet" data-react-props="{"tweetId":"1234911344064856064"}"></div></p>
<h2>Some exceptions</h2>
<p>There are a few notable exceptions to this advice on avoiding in-kind donations. </p>
<p>If you live in or near the affected area, it is helpful to consider dropping the specific items victims are requesting at local food banks, shelters and other community organizations. Just make sure that nothing you’re giving away will spoil quickly.</p>
<p>For instance, the <a href="https://twitter.com/NashvilleResist/status/1234937233716776968">Community Resource Center Nashville</a> has said it is accepting donations of personal hygiene items, bleach, trash bags, gloves and box cutters. The Community Foundation of Middle Tennessee has activated the <a href="https://midtnemergency.kimbia.com/midtnemergency2020">Middle Tennessee Emergency Response Fund</a> to support the affected communities, and is accepting donations. So is the local <a href="https://www.wkrn.com/news/nashville-tornado/how-to-help-donation-volunteers-needed-following-nashville-tornado/">United Way</a>. Other organizations, including <a href="https://www.hon.org/opportunity/a0C1H00001asG2t?">Hands On Nashville</a>, are seeking volunteers.</p>
<p>When disaster strikes, the urge to help is admirable. Yet this impulse should be channeled to do the greatest good. So please, if you would like to help from afar, let the professionals procure goods and services. Instead, donate money and listen to what people on the ground say they need.</p>
<p>And don’t stop giving after the disaster stops making headlines. A full recovery will take time and support long after the emergency responders and camera crews have moved on.</p>
<p><em>This is an updated version of an article published on <a href="https://theconversation.com/want-to-help-after-hurricanes-give-cash-not-diapers-103069">Sept. 13, 2018</a>.</em></p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/132948/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Julia Brooks does not work for, consult, own shares in or receive funding from any company or organization that would benefit from this article, and has disclosed no relevant affiliations beyond their academic appointment.</span></em></p>Donated goods often not only fail to help those in actual need but cause congestion, tie up resources and further hurt local economies.Julia Brooks, Furman Public Policy Scholar, New York UniversityLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.tag:theconversation.com,2011:article/1294452020-01-07T06:53:45Z2020-01-07T06:53:45ZHow to donate to Australian bushfire relief: give money, watch for scams and think long term<p>The devastation of the Australian bushfires has generated an <a href="https://www.news.com.au/technology/environment/bushfire-relief-how-you-can-help-those-in-need/news-story/a0476ac3538b8c373f281ea6be204421">outpouring of generosity</a> amongst Australians. </p>
<p>We have been giving directly to charities such as the Red Cross, the Salvation Army and others working on the ground to support survivors. Many of us have contributed to appeals such as <a href="https://www.news.com.au/entertainment/celebrity-life/aussies-rally-around-celeste-barbers-staggering-fire-fundraiser/news-story/b7481dce04dade93f3719bc0acac9e59">Celeste Barber’s</a>, which, at the time of writing, has raised A$42 million for the NSW Rural Fire Service.</p>
<figure class="align-right zoomable">
<a href="https://images.theconversation.com/files/308730/original/file-20200107-123373-1x8mj6e.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=1000&fit=clip"><img alt="" src="https://images.theconversation.com/files/308730/original/file-20200107-123373-1x8mj6e.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=237&fit=clip" srcset="https://images.theconversation.com/files/308730/original/file-20200107-123373-1x8mj6e.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=600&h=521&fit=crop&dpr=1 600w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/308730/original/file-20200107-123373-1x8mj6e.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=600&h=521&fit=crop&dpr=2 1200w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/308730/original/file-20200107-123373-1x8mj6e.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=600&h=521&fit=crop&dpr=3 1800w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/308730/original/file-20200107-123373-1x8mj6e.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=45&auto=format&w=754&h=655&fit=crop&dpr=1 754w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/308730/original/file-20200107-123373-1x8mj6e.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=30&auto=format&w=754&h=655&fit=crop&dpr=2 1508w, https://images.theconversation.com/files/308730/original/file-20200107-123373-1x8mj6e.png?ixlib=rb-1.1.0&q=15&auto=format&w=754&h=655&fit=crop&dpr=3 2262w" sizes="(min-width: 1466px) 754px, (max-width: 599px) 100vw, (min-width: 600px) 600px, 237px"></a>
<figcaption>
<span class="caption">At the time of writing, celebrity Celeste Barber had raised $42 million.</span>
<span class="attribution"><span class="source">Facebook</span></span>
</figcaption>
</figure>
<p>Wealthy Australians, like the <a href="https://www.theage.com.au/national/victoria/packers-crown-donate-extra-4-million-for-bushfire-relief-efforts-20200106-p53pcm.html">Packer</a>, <a href="https://www.smh.com.au/national/billionaire-philanthropists-donate-1m-to-bushfire-emergency-response-20191227-p53n4b.html">Gandel</a> and <a href="https://www.smh.com.au/national/heartbreaking-kylie-minogue-s-family-donates-500-000-to-bushfire-appeal-20200107-p53pdc.html">Minogue</a> families, have also made large commitments, as have many businesses.</p>
<p>The fact that so many of us have been reaching into our pockets during this difficult time is not surprising. Australia is the fourth most generous nation in the world, according to the most recent edition of the <a href="https://www.cafonline.org/about-us/publications/2019-publications/caf-world-giving-index-10th-edition">World Giving Index</a> and emergency relief is a <a href="https://www.communitybusinesspartnership.gov.au/about/research-projects/giving-australia-2016/">common cause</a> to which we give.</p>
<p>But it’s worth thinking carefully about how to give, to ensure you’re not wasting your contribution or inadvertently making things worse. </p>
<h2>Watch out for scammers</h2>
<p>One thing to be mindful of during times like these, is that unfortunately some people may seek to prey on the generosity of others. The Australian Competition and Consumer Commission has <a href="https://www.accc.gov.au/update/bushfires-and-scams">issued a warning </a>about fundraising scams associated with the bushfires. </p>
<p>If you aren’t sure about an organisation that you’ve been approached by, you can always check whether they’re a registered charity using the Australian Charities and Not-for-profits Commission’s online <a href="https://www.acnc.gov.au/charity">register</a>. </p>
<p>It lists all charities registered in Australia, and details their operations, finance and governance.</p>
<h2>Money usually trumps everything else</h2>
<p>Generally, it’s best to give money. The organisations you give it to can then decide how to use it best.</p>
<p>We may be tempted to give goods like blankets or clothes, but organisations often get overwhelmed by donations of goods. </p>
<p>The idea of donating while also clearing out unused items at home may seem tempting but many organisations don’t have the resources to sort through donations. Often, the goods donated just aren’t fit for use.</p>
<p><div data-react-class="Tweet" data-react-props="{"tweetId":"1213703278699016193"}"></div></p>
<p><a href="https://dhs.sa.gov.au/__data/assets/pdf_file/0003/1893/management-of-donated-goods.pdf">Research</a> by the federal and South Australian governments examined this problem, saying of the 2009 Victorian bushfires:</p>
<blockquote>
<p>The Victorian Bushfires resulted in the donation of in excess of 40,000 pallets of goods from across Australia that took up more than 50,000 square metres of storage space. The costs for managing these donations i.e. three central warehouses, five regional distribution points, approximately 35 paid staff, material handling equipment and transport costs to distribute the material aid, has amounted to over 8 million dollars.</p>
<p>In addition, volunteer numbers reached 1,500 during the first three months provided through over 40 store fronts. Resources in the fire affected areas immediately after the event were severely stretched as a result of material aid arriving without warning and without adequate resources to sort, store, handle
and distribute.</p>
</blockquote>
<p>The report highlighted how this is a consistent problem during disasters, leading to the development of the <a href="https://dhs.sa.gov.au/__data/assets/pdf_file/0004/1894/national-guidelines-for-managing-donated-goods.pdf">National Guidelines for Managing Donated Goods</a>. These guidelines reinforce the point that donating money is the preferred way to help out during a disaster.</p>
<p>If specific requests are made for <a href="https://www.abc.net.au/radio/northcoast/programs/breakfast/koalas-need-you-to-help-make-them-mittens-and-give-them-blankets/11714410">certain goods</a>, however, then you can respond by donating accordingly. The charity <a href="http://www.givit.org.au/disasters">Givit</a> acts as a broker that facilitates the donations of goods that meet the needs of charities and those they are seeking to help.</p>
<p>Always make sure that what you donate is of reasonable quality. It’s important not to use donation appeals an excuse to clean out items that probably should go in the rubbish or recycling bin.</p>
<h2>Donations after the bushfires are also important</h2>
<p>We’re facing a long and hot summer, with the prospect of ongoing bushfires. At some stage, they will subside and with them the appeals for donations will also end.</p>
<p>But it’s important to remember that even once the immediate crisis has passed, rebuilding after a disaster takes a long time and requires considerable resources. </p>
<p>Governments play an important part but there is also a role for philanthropy both large and small. For example, the Foundation for Rural and Regional Renewal has a <a href="https://www.frrr.org.au/cb_pages/supporting_bushfire-affected_communities.php">Disaster Resilience and Recovery Fund</a> which makes grants to local not-for-profit groups for community-led projects that address the most pressing needs that emerge 12-18 months after a disaster.</p>
<h2>The bigger picture</h2>
<p>Supporting the immediate response and rebuilding efforts is vital, but it’s also important to consider how as a nation we collectively address the factors which are increasing bushfire risk. </p>
<p>Climate change is <a href="https://theconversation.com/climate-change-is-bringing-a-new-world-of-bushfires-123261">increasing the risk</a> that we will see more frequent and intense bushfires.</p>
<p>Charities provide vital support to those in need during times of crisis. But they also have an <a href="https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/abs/10.1177/1037969X1504000312">important advocacy role</a> putting pressure on governments and businesses to change policies and practices.</p>
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Read more:
<a href="https://theconversation.com/explainer-what-are-the-limits-to-charities-advancing-political-causes-71466">Explainer: what are the limits to charities advancing political causes?</a>
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<p>There are many environmental charities doing exactly this, to push Australia toward a more comprehensive response to climate change. </p>
<p>So it’s also worth thinking about how your donation can help support the policy change needed to address climate change and to mitigate the risks associated with it – including more bushfires.</p><img src="https://counter.theconversation.com/content/129445/count.gif" alt="The Conversation" width="1" height="1" />
<p class="fine-print"><em><span>Krystian Seibert is a member of the Australian Conservation Foundation.</span></em></p>It’s worth thinking carefully about how to give, to ensure you’re not wasting your contribution or inadvertently making things worse.Krystian Seibert, Industry Fellow, Centre for Social Impact, Swinburne University of TechnologyLicensed as Creative Commons – attribution, no derivatives.