Abstract
Mitigation emphases on decreasing damages of life and property while the recovery empowers the community to regain its normalcy and cope with the situation to continue with their lives. From that avowal, it is without a doubt that they are both central and fundamental phases in the management of adversities that might arise. The two play an essential role in helping the society members to respond and bounce back despite the loss of life and damage to properties. An attempt will be made to expound the mitigation and recovery disciplines of the disaster management plan as well as the resources that empower a community to respond and recover following a diversity.
Introduction
Mitigation and recovery phases contribute crucial aspects in the management of disasters. The former focuses on reducing the loss of life and property whereas the later empowers the community to regain its normalcy and cope with the situation to continue with their lives. The two play an essential role in helping the society members to respond and bounce back despite the loss of life and damage to properties. It is imperative for the rescue teams to engage the relevant stakeholders when designing the interventions that aim at facilitating the mitigation and recovery phases. An effective response plan should mobilize the required resources and volunteers who are trained to handle disasters and help the populations to manage it. This paper will be endeavoring to elucidate the mitigation and recovery disciplines of the disaster management plan. The paper will equally expound on the associated resources that empower a community to respond and recover following a catastrophe.
Mitigation
The Pre-Disaster Mitigation
As advocated by McCarthy (2011), it is fundamental to design a pre-disaster relief plan to enhance the ability of the community to prevent loss of life and properties pending a looming emergency. A society should access the critical information regarding the approaching catastrophe to give them enough time to reduce the impact of an imminent disaster. The government should be at the forefront of helping the communities to come up with the mitigation plan prior to the occurrence of a catastrophe. Correspondingly, it ought to mobilize and allocate adequate financial resources that will help the society to run the prevention programs. The federal government should collaborate with the relevant stakeholders and the international humanitarian agencies such as the Red Crescent to develop the evacuation plans that will mitigate a disaster.
Evacuation plan offers guidelines regarding the actions to be taken in cases of emergencies. The community should focus on coordinating and organizing its activities to avoid further confusion that results in increased injuries, deaths, and lose of properties (Berke, Smith & Lyles, 2012). It also provides conditions under which a rescue team should conduct its exercises to ensure that it is not endangering both the life of its members or that of the victims. It is of the essence to ensure that a significant section of the community is conversant with the procedures to evacuating the affected people from the scene. It increases the chances of survival particularly that of the patients with a delicate situation. The government should provide the necessary tools and equipment to enhance the ability of the community to mitigate disasters (Berke, Smith & Lyles, 2012). For instance, it is critical to have fire fighting vehicle and the basic life support equipment should there be a fire outbreak.
The provision of First Aid and other medical services during an emergency significantly reduces the death toll by increasing the survival chances of the victims (Karashima, Ohgai & Tadamura, 2015). It is imperative to develop learning materials such as brochures and flyers that will empower the community members with the crucial information concerning the basic life support. Humanitarian agencies such as Red Crescent and St. John Ambulance offer emergency care to people befallen by a disaster. The federal government should fund such programs that aim at enhancing the knowledge of the public in matters safety and management of the minor injuries. It also plays a major role in helping individual to assess the situation to seek advanced care thus enhancing the safety of the other people suffering from the catastrophe.
Evacuations during a Disaster
It is core to have an effective plan that will facilitate the evacuation exercises to enhance the safety of the victims and that of the rescuing team. Yamazaki and Zavala (2013) argued that a disaster contributes enormously to the increased confusion in the people, a situation that increases the number of fatalities, injuries, and further damage to properties. However, the adoption of the appropriate procedures and guidance can help a community save more lives and avoid unnecessary injuries. For example, such plans should provide guidelines for evacuating the affected population from the scene. The provision of the First Aid care should follow. It is equally vital to create temporary structures such as camps to centralize the delivery of advanced care to those whose lives are in jeopardy. The medical camps should meet the minimum medical standards to ensure that the life of both the providers and the victims is not in danger. Also, there should be the arrangement for providing tents to the displaced persons. The plan should ensure that it stipulates the areas and regulations to govern the running of the camps for people befallen by natural disasters such as floods (Berke, Smith & Lyles, 2012).
It is domineering to have a rescue team comprising of people from multiple professionals to enhance safety and a significant reduction of the destruction of the properties (Karashima, Ohgai & Tadamura, 2015). The community members should volunteers to offer services and aid during emergencies. This includes both trained and untrained First Aid providers to save the life of the affected populations. The medical team comprising of specialists is crucial in providing specialized care to the victims. The non-governmental organizations and other humanitarian agencies should collaborate to ensure a successful evacuation and provision of the emergency services during and after disaster strikes.
Benefits of Mitigation Programs
The intervention programs that aim at mitigating a disaster play a crucial role in enhancing safety and wellbeing of the community. It enables the rescue team to reduce life loss and damage of properties. The humanitarian agencies should collaborate with other relief organizations to design programs that will prevent further loss of lives in cases of emergencies such as flooding. Natural disasters such as tornadoes, hurricanes, wildfires, and earthquakes claim many lives. Tsunamis have also led to the massive destruction of residential and commercial structures rendering people displaced and homeless (Imamura, Muhari, Mas, Pradono, Post & Sugimoto, 2012). Many people have lost cars and cargoes following disasters despite the mitigation efforts. However, the immediate interventions by rescue teams play critical roles in reducing death tolls and the destruction of property to enhance recovery.
The mitigation plan contributes immensely to the reduced financial impact and burden to the victims of a disaster. The communities that have adopted and implemented the proposed plan of action following an emergency have significantly lessened the financial constraints that characterize the recovery phase. No doubt, the effective planning of the mitigation programs reduces the costs that would have been incurred if the actions were not in place. It is imperative for a community to collaborate with the disaster relief agencies to formulate a mitigation program that would help them to respond to an emergency such as a disease outbreak and earthquakes (Imamura et al. 2012). This will promote the utilization of the scarce resources needed to assist the community to respond and recover from a catastrophe.
The active mitigation plan is keen to enhance the recovery of the community within the shortest time possible. Inadequate resources and equipment for rescue exercise have remained a significant challenge when mitigating a calamity. However, designing a good response plan speeds up the recovery phase. It also empowers the society to take the relevant actions in accordance with the guidelines stipulated in the scheme. It provides critical information regarding the looming disaster, a situation that ensures that the community is well prepared to respond to the catastrophe regardless of its magnitude (Yamazaki & Zavala, 2013).
Recovery
The recovery discipline plays a critical role in ensuring that people are regaining normalcy and continuing with their lives after disaster strikes. It is imperative to organize essential services to help a community to recover fully despite the devastating effects of a natural or manmade disaster. There should be a policy statement governing the recovery phase to ensure that all victims are catered for and assisted to cope with life as an aftermath of a disaster (Aldrich, Oum & Sawada, 2014). It entails prevention of further injuries and loss of life to enable the affected group is bouncing back and continuing with the routine activities such as schooling and commerce. It focuses on three critical aspects namely the preventive, detective, and corrective measures to enhance management of a disaster in the future.
Provision of Healthcare Services
The provision of the fundamental services after an emergency contributes immensely to the recovery of the affected populations. The federal government should collaborate with the relevant organizations to ensure that the victims are accessing the necessary services and resources that will enhance their recovery. For instance, it is imperative to offer specialized medical care to manage injuries and other health complications. The government should invest in life support machines and equip the health facilities to empower them to manage cases of emergencies during and after disaster strikes. The management of injuries is crucial in the recovery phase of a catastrophe. It reduces the pain and suffering of the patients, a situation that leads to recovery (Aldrich, Oum & Sawada, 2014). Consequently, the national government should allocate adequate resources and finance to promote the provision of quality healthcare to help a community recover fully from the aftermath of a disaster.
Relief Services and Support
The relief programs play crucial roles in the recovery phase that helps the community to bounce back and lead healthy lives following an emergency (Gustin, 2007). The humanitarian organizations have been at the forefront of helping the affected groups to recover from a catastrophe such as disease outbreaks and earthquakes. For instance, the Red Crescent Society offer material support to the victims to assist them after an emergency. That includes but not limited to the provision of clothing, tents, and food to help the community to cope with the unprecedented situation that has rendered its members homeless and desperate. The Red Crescent team is always in time to provide the necessary support needed to assist the adversely affected society to cope with the devastating effects of a disaster. The guiding and counseling of the victims contribute tremendously to their recovery (Aldrich, Oum & Sawada, 2014). It supports them to come to terms with what has already happened and cope with the loss of the loved ones and properties. The management of traumatized individuals is of the essence to prevent further health complications such as depression and mental disorders. Therefore, it is crucial to provide an enabling environment for the victims to recover fully after a disaster.
Developing Recovery Strategies
The recovery strategies play crucial roles in recovering the disrupted systems to help the affected population to regain normalcy. It is imperative to organize the renovation and repair of the essential structures that were destroyed during the emergency. For instance, the federal government should repair the social amenities and structures that offer the basic services in the community. An earthquake could lead to the collapse of healthcare facilities, a situation that could result in a health crisis. The restoration of vital services in the community after a disaster is crucial in promoting the recovery phase that strengthens the members despite massive losses (Gustin, 2007). It likewise entails the provision of financial aid to the victims to empower them to start afresh. The compensation of the victims of disasters contributes enormously to them getting back on their feet to be self-reliant. The government should ensure that those who incurred immense loss are being compensated for them to continue contributing to the economic growth of the nation.
Components of a Recovery Plan
An effective recovery plan should address the critical areas to help a community regain its normalcy. It should have the guidelines to provide directions for its successful implementation. It ought to be communicated to all the community members to empower them with crucial information regarding disaster preparedness, response, mitigation, and recovery. Conferring to Smith (2012) it is imperative to test and evaluate the recovery plan at least twice a year to ensure that it is effective. That guarantees that the deficiencies are addressed thus strengthening it to yield better outcomes. The plan should identify the critical personnel and recovery teams to implement the mitigation and recovery plans. It is of the essence to develop an incident management plan to enhance the mitigation and restoration of the affected populations should an emergency strike. That warrants that the society is ready to combat a disaster and save more lives and properties.
Conclusion
As illustrated in the discussion, mitigation and recovery are essential aspects of disaster management that reduce life loss and destruction of properties. The proper coordination of the mitigation and recovery activities is crucial in helping a community to bounce back after a devastating catastrophe. The pre-disaster measures are critical to preventing the adverse impact of an emergency. It contributes immensely to a reduction of death toll and damage to properties. The effective planning and implementation of the evacuations play vital roles in helping a community to respond and cope with the horrible situation. The benefits of a mitigation program cannot be underestimated particularly in enhancing the safety of both the victims and the rescue teams. It likewise decreases the financial impact felt after emergency strikes. As it can be deduced, the mitigation programs enhance the recovery of the societal members following a devastating disaster that claims massive lives and rendering many injured. The recovery discipline is crucial in helping a community to regain normalcy and continue with its routine activities after an emergency. It certifies that the affected population is accessing advanced healthcare and relief support to recover fully. It is critical to develop recovery strategies to facilitate the recovery phase and assist the affected communities to bounce back despite a disaster. A good recovery plan should address the essential components to enhance the safety and reduce the destruction of properties.
References
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Imamura, F., Muhari, A., Mas, E., Pradono, M. H., Post, J., & Sugimoto, M. (2012). Tsunami disaster mitigation by integrating comprehensive countermeasures in Padang City, Indonesia. J Disaster Res, 7(1), 48-64.
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Smith, G. (2012). Planning for Post-Disaster Recovery: A Review of the United States Disaster Assistance Framework. Fairfax, VA: Island Press.
Yamazaki, F., & Zavala, C. (2013). SATREPS project on enhancement of earthquake and tsunami disaster mitigation technology in Peru. Journal of Disaster Research, 8(2), 224-234.
