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Dr. Eve Gruntfest of the University of Colorado-Colorado Springs and I
are studying how the Internet may be influencing emergency management.
We need specific feedback on the nature and extent of usage by
professionals in the field. Please take a few moments to visit our
survey page on the World Wide Web:
http://www.uccs.edu/~ecg/haz-sur.htm.
If you do not have easy access to the Web and would like to take the
survey, please e-mail me.
Thanks for your help; we look forward to hearing from you.
Marc Weber
mweber@mail.uccs.edu
I am working on designing spatial decision support systems for evacuation planning from nuclear and other technological disasters. I would like to get in touch with people doing similar research. Additionally, does anyone know of a list similar to Disaster Research that concentrates more on technological disasters? Any information is most welcome.
Nisha de Silva
Department of Management Science
The Management School
Lancaster University
Lancaster LA1 4YX
United Kingdom
Tel: +44 - (0)1524 - 65201 ext. 4839
fax: ++ 44 - (0)1524 - 844885
E-mail: nisha@lancaster.ac.uk
The Leadership Coalition for Global Business Protection is a worldwide task force founded in 1996 to secure public- and private-sector commitment and assistance regarding the preparation for, prevention of, and recovery from human, economic, and physical losses associated with natural and human-caused disasters worldwide. The coalition's mission is to persuade public, private, and community leaders individually and collectively to better prepare for and respond to disasters. Its objectives are not only to promote this sense of urgency, but also to develop global guidelines, standards, and best practices for disaster recovery, as well as to encourage public- and private-sector cooperation and strengthened partnerships in disaster management.
The coalition's immediate plan of action is to establish standards for risk management, response, and recovery initiatives; disseminate business protection guides; develop and implement a communications strategy; and leverage members and partners to create formal disaster networks.
The coalition currently comprises 15 organizations from around the world, including:
For more information about the Leadership Coalition for Global Business Protection, contact: Randy Johnson, IBM Global Services, 611 12th Avenue, Union Grove, WI 53182; (414) 878-9342; e-mail: rhjohns@us.ibm.com.
The DisastMH e-mail discussion forum serves as on ongoing conference for disaster mental health professionals. Through DisastMH, colleagues can discuss mental health issues in disaster preparedness, disaster response, and disaster recovery. (However, individuals needing professional assistance are asked to seek mental health professionals in their own geographic area.)
Relevant topics may include but are not limited to:
If you are a mental health professional or invited associate in
disaster psychology, you are welcome to this forum. To subscribe, send
the following message to listserv@maelstrom.stjohns.edu:
subscribe DisastMH [firstname] [lastname]
For example: subscribe DisastMH B.F. Skinner
For additional information, contact the list owner/moderator: Denruth Lougeay, Ph.D.; e-mail: deneelou@znet.com.
[Adapted from "Disasters-Preparedness and Mitigation in the Americas," the excellent newsletter of the Pan American Health Organization]
For several years, the Pan American Health Organization (PAHO) Regional Disaster Documentation Center in San Jose, Costa Rica, has served as one of the western hemisphere's principal repositories of information, in both Spanish and English, on hazard and disaster management. In addition, in recent years, the center has doubled as a regional center for the United Nation's International Decade for Natural Disaster Reduction (IDNDR).
Now the center is expanding even further. Plans are underway to make the center a multiagency project. Several donor agencies and international organizations recently agreed to establish a partnership to transform the center into a multidisciplinary Regional Disaster Information Center (CRID). Already participating in this project are PAHO, the U.N. Department of Humanitarian Affairs/IDNDR, the International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies, Doctors without Borders, the Center for the Prevention of Natural Disasters in Central America, the National Emergency Commission of Costa Rica, and La Red - the Network of Disaster Prevention Social Studies.
Under the plan, the member organizations will create a cooperative regional disaster information system with CRID serving as the coordinating center.
To learn more about this project, contact the PAHO Regional Disaster Information Center, Apartado 3745-1000, San Jose, Costa Rica; fax: (506) 231-5973; e-mail: cddcor@nx.netsalud.sa.cr - or - the Editor, "Disasters-Preparedness and Mitigation in the Americas," PAHO, 525 Twenty-third Street, N.W., Washington, DC 20037-2895; e-mail: disaster@paho.org.
[Also adapted from "Disasters-Preparedness and Mitigation in the Americas"]
If you are concerned about disasters in Latin America, take a look at
the redesigned Web site on "Natural Disasters in Nicaragua":
http://www.ops.org.ni/desas-ni
This PAHO country office has served as the administrator for
desastres-ca@ops.org.ni, a predominantly Spanish-language discussion
group on general topics of interest to the disaster community. A new
search engine on the above Web site now allows anyone to search out
names, organizations, and e-mail addresses of all discussion group
members. The site also offers information on disasters in Nicaragua
and may serve as a model for countries interested in developing
similar sites. For more information, or to subscribe to the discussion
list, contact Denis Rodriguez; e-mail: desastre@ops.org.ni.
[Yet another article adapted from "Disasters-Preparedness and Mitigation in the Americas"]
Recognizing that e-mail discussion groups represent one of the most efficient ways to link professional colleagues (see the article above), PAHO is establishing another discussion group for South America. Anyone (not only South Americans) interested in joining this predominantly Spanish-speaking group should send an e-mail message to pedecu@ecnet.ec, giving their name, organization, mailing address, and a brief description of their disaster-related responsibilities. Subscribers will receive e-mail communications from the group with instructions on how to circulate messages and participate in discussions.
[These are some of the more interesting Web sites we've encountered lately. An extensive list of recommended hazard/disaster sites is included on the Hazards Center site: http://www.colorado.edu/hazards.]
http://www.fema.gov/fema/trop.html
The Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) will launch its
Tropical Storm Watch page on the World Wide Web on Friday, May 30.
Usage of the site has increased greatly since its inception three
years ago, with a record 400,000 hits on one day - September 5, 1996 -
the evening Hurricane Fran made landfall in North Carolina. The
Tropical Storm Watch page offers hurricane preparedness information,
fact sheets, maps, and links to other key sites with weather satellite
images and forecasts. During the hurricane season, the site is updated
daily - sometimes hourly - with news releases, situation reports,
tracking maps, and graphics. As a hurricane approaches landfall, users
can see its projected path and learn how FEMA is coordinating the
federal government's efforts to assist state and local governments in
coping with the impending disaster.
http://www.fema.gov/fema/whatsnew.htm
A new draft of the FEMA Strategic Plan has been posted on the
What's New Page of the FEMA Web site. All interested persons are
encouraged to take a look at the plan and send comments to FEMA. A
convenient comment form is available and linked from the bottom of
each section of the plan. Comments will be accepted until June 6,
1997.
http://www.disasters.org/emgold
The "Emergency Management Gold" Web site was created by a
Certified Emergency Manager for emergency managers. David Crews, the
author, intends this site to serve other front-line emergency
management professionals in all aspects of their work. The site
contains a "Virtual Library" with numerous links to other resources on
the Net; a "What's New" section to help users easily locate new
information; several papers on emergency management by Crews; a
section of frequently asked questions (FAQs) about emergency
management, the site, the Internet, etc.; links to other sites dealing
with natural and technological risks; and lists of additional
resources state emergency management agencies, and other useful URLs.
http://www.virginia.edu/~brmrg/sar_contacts
This "SAR [Search and Rescue] Contacts Page" lists over 118
search and rescue organizations in approximately 40 U.S. states and
numerous other countries. The site managers note that SAR teams can be
an excellent resource in times of disaster, especially if they are
incorporated into plans ahead of time. These teams are often very
familiar with their community, have access to communications gear, are
trained for medical aid, and want to be of assistance during an
emergency. The principal purpose of this site is to put volunteers in
contact with a local team, but it can definitely help emergency
coordinators learn about the unique services offered in their area.
The site includes a map of the U.S. and U.S. territories, and a person
can click on any location to determine the local SAR teams active in
that area.
http://www.district.north-van.bc.ca/admin/depart/fire/ffsearch/mainmenu.cfm
This "Emergency Services Registry and Search Site" provides an
index of emergency service resources and personnel. The owner's invite
all interested emergency services personnel to browse the site and
register so that it can become a comprehensive data base for
identifying colleagues and resources worldwide. For more information
about this service, contact: Lt. Ray Rogers, District of North
Vancouver Fire/Rescue, North Vancouver, BC Canada; e-mail:
rrogers@direct.ca
The Seventh World Conference on Disaster Management will be held June
22-25, 1997, in Hamilton, Ontario, Canada. Internet subscribers to
Disaster Research will receive a $ 100 discount off the registration
fee if they register online at
http://www.netaccess.on.ca/~ccep/wcdm/
The three-day conference is complemented with a full pre-conference
and conference social activities program, an international exhibition
and trade show, plus a very comprehensive series of post-conference
courses in disaster management and business continuity. From within
North America, full conference information can be obtained from
1-800-965-4608 or by e-mail to ccep@netaccess.on.ca.
Below are the latest conference announcements received by the Natural
Hazards Center. Most previous issues of DR contain additional notices.
For a comprehensive list of upcoming disaster-related meetings and
training, see our World Wide Web page:
http://www.colorado.edu/hazards/conf.html
First World Meeting on Integral City Protection Against Fire and Other Hazards. Toledo, Spain: June 2-6, 1997. Contact the Conference Organizing Secretariat; fax: (34-1) 541-9405.
The Practice of Watershed Protection: A Seminar Outlining the Need, Techniques, and Economic Benefits of Protecting and Restoring Growing Watersheds. Sponsors: National Association of Counties and the Center for Watershed Protection. Silver Spring, Maryland: June 16-17, 1997. Contact: Center for Watershed Protection, 8737 Colesville Road, Suite L-105, Silver Spring, MD 20910; WWW: www.pipeline.com/~mrrunoff/
- or -
National Association of Counties, Watershed Seminar, P.O. Box 79007,
Baltimore, MD 21279-0007; tel: Abby Friedman, (202) 942-4225; fax:
(202) 737-0480, attn: watershed seminar; WWW: http://www.naco.org.
1997 Congress of the Insurance Institute for Property Loss Reduction (IIPLR). Co-sponsors: Federal Emergency Management Agency and American Red Cross. Irvine, California: June 18-20, 1997. Contact: IIPLR, 73 Tremont Street, Suite 510, Boston, MA 02108-3910; (617) 722-0200: fax: (617) 722-0202; WWW: http://www.iiplr.org.
Workshop on Climate Variability and Water Resource Management in the Southeastern United States. Sponsors: National Aeronautics and Space Administration, U.S. Geological Survey, and the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. Nashville, Tennessee: June 25-27, 1997. Contact: Kathleen Keller, Jorge Scientific Corporation, 7500 Greenway Center Drive, Suite 1130, Greenbelt, MD 20770; (301) 220-1701, ext. 18; fax: (301) 220-1704; e-mail: kkeller@pop200.gsfc.nasa.gov; WWW: http://www.hq.nasa.gov/office/mtpe/southeast/.
Third European Conference on Applications of Meteorology. Lindau, Germany: September 23-26, 1997. Contact: Conference Organizing Committee, ECAM-97, Deutscher Wetterdienst, Franfurter Str 135, 63067 Offenbach, Germany; fax: +49 69 8062 2488.
1997 Association of Contingency Planners (ACP) Business Recovery Symposium. Salt Lake City, Utah: October 6-8, 1997. Contact: Milt Maughan, Registrar, 1997 ACP Business Recovery Symposium; 1-800-753- 7813; e-mail: maughma@tc.thiokol.com.
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