electronic disaster management-research paper

7/30/2019 Electronic Disaster Management-Research paper

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EDMA/S-Electronic Disaster Management

Architecture/System

The EDMA project aims to build a reference platform for disaster management in the domains ofnatural as well as man-made disasters with a specific focus on needs of Organizations. In this

context organizations might be public bodies as well as private sector which share obligations

and duties for risk prevention and response.

EDMA strives to employ the accruing information of an incident in combination with existing

technology in order to provide disaster assessment and communication services in particular withthe citizens before, during and after it occurs. With EDMA, organizations will be assisted in the

creation and efficient management of issues inherent to their respective responsibilities.

Background

Over the last two decades, the rise of information technologies has affected virtually all segments

of society, and successfully met with that of disaster management, warning systems and decisionsupport for emergency situations. This could be witnessed in the development of risk-related

projects developed world wide.

In particular, Automation in risk management has been an opportunity for IT specialists and risk

management (RM) experts to explore IT-based solutions for risk management services. Among

these solution, Software Oriented Architectures (SOA) has demonstrated a capability to hostseveral risk-related applications, based on function-specific modules..The EDMA project lead to

the successful development of a SOA platform addressing organizations User Group

requirements for disaster and emergency management.

While developing this system, EDMA members could benefit from a wealth of resources data,

information, hard/software solutions, good practices already existing in the field of IT-based

applications for RM purposes.

EDMA partners could also witness similarities in frequently asked questions (FAQs) and

difficulties users were confronted with when relying on IT applications for RM purposes. Thisincludes:

1. Availability of and access to data

2. Privacy issues

3. Reliability of telecom networks and other utilities4. Liability issues change management issues in client organizations

5. Similarities in problem-solving approaches, and solutions, could also be identified.

These are the considerations that have lead EDMA members to recognize the need for support to

be provided to IT users engaged in risk and emergency decisions, tasks or activities.

The EDMA User Group aims at addressing this need.


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EDMA User group: a definition

Activity description:

Rationale: Promote IT applications as tools for improved disaster management at locallevel.

Strategy: Dissemination of the EDMA approach, technology and solutions.

Audience: The EDMA User Group is open

o To every designer, user or administrator of IT-based applications, tools or

services for risk and emergency management

o To every stakeholder in disaster management, emergency planning and disaster

mitigation.

EDMA User group: format and contents

The EDMA User Group is supported by a web-based platform for exchange of information andgood practice.

Participants of the User Group will access:

Information

All public material from EDMA project and other participating projects

Selection of existing IT applications for risk management

Literature resources, including relevant websites

Contact details of members

Call for partners page (e.g.: for project development or business opportunity)

Services Description of EDMA technological solutions

Description of EDMA approach to management of IT/RM interfaces

On-line form to submit needs assessment request

Additional services likely to be provided by the EDMA User Group include: expert review of

technical documents or papers, labelling of IT/RM projects etc. Such services may however

require payment of fees.

Governance of the EDMA user group

Governance of the EDMA User Group shall cover the following issues:

Executive duties

Overall strategy of the User Group: scientific, technical and business issues

Daily administration of the EDMA User Group Website (webmaster)

o Monitoring of posted contents

o Moderation of online forum or chats

Admission of new members or partners, including business partners


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Objectives

EDMA strives to support the needs of organizations in order to assist them in the creation and

efficient management of the individual crisis management tasks they are in charge of. In detail,EDMA will assist organizations to:

Access monitored sensor data related to various natural and industrial risks to enable

proper risk assessment.

Define and employ process guidelines for risk management procedures.

Deploy and manage enhanced emergency telecommunications systems to support

appropriate dissemination and warning procedures.

To provide a collaboration platform for the exchange of information among differentstakeholders.

To prepare the elements for the implementation of a risk management network at a local

scale.

EDMA will build an innovative prototype that targets the requirements of small and medium-sized communities. EDMA will link with existing risk management initiatives and pursue

information exchange, discussion, and reuse of research results and components with a particular

focus in mind: migrate these results to small and medium-sized communities. Of specificimportance is the fact that the consortium includes several small to medium-sized companies

with innovative product portfolios. The EDMA project will develop a comprehensive risk

management platform which is based on the orchestration of relevant systems thanks to the

application of service-oriented architectures, and interfaces to other systems will augment theEDMA service portfolio where needed.

Scientific and Technical Authorities

EDMA will assist local authorities to:

Access monitored data related to various industrial risks existing within their district,

Deploy and manage their adapted emergency telecommunications systems,

Implement a public communication system devoted to the information of their fellow-citizens.

EDMA will focus on the management of minor accidents and hazard as well as daily monitoring

of limited risks, with relative limited potential impacts and consequences on the integrity ofcitizens, their health and goods. In case of major crisis, the responsibility of informing, warning

and/or evacuation of citizens mostly remains within the police or other blue-light organizations.

In such situation, the EDMA objective can assist on ensuring that all information about theidentified crisis is being continuously transferred and updated to the appropriate authority in

charge. The EDMA system could in case of major disasters still act as the main information

channel towards the Citizens.


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In the purpose to answer to organization needs, priority is given in EDMA to the building of a

package of cost-effective, agile, interoperable, easy of use, standardized and secure IT solutions,allowing a wide and easy integration in many various municipalities, regions and districts.

Thanks to the use of the innovative EDMA SOA prototype, European small and medium-sized

local authorities, local safety and security organization, companies as well as residing individualswill have the possibility to efficiently exchange information. Such an approach can lead to the

merging of all local but separated risk management systems - including communication and alert

ones - in a unique system, as a way to improve the security of small and medium-sizedcommunities.

Project Goal

Project EDMA(Electronic Disaster Management Architecture) aims to build a reference platformfor risk management in the domains of natural as well as man-made disasters with a specific

focus on the needs of organizations. These organizations might be public as well as private,

sharing obligations and duties for risk prevention and response. Hence, specific attention will be

devoted to a customizable platform, which can be tailored to the needs of individual risk at handas well as local equipment and requirement.

The current state of risk management can be characterized by the availability of many

heterogeneous information sources. The question arises how to draw conclusions from existing

sources for the purpose of task planning i.e.

How to assess the current and future risk level for a specific type of event.

How to govern the work flow processes in a collaborative way.

How to reach and advise effected people, be they professional rescue forces for citizens.

EDMA seeks to employ this information in combination with existing technology in order to

provide risk assessment and communication services in particular with the citizens before ,during and after incidents.

EDMA will build an innovative prototype that targets the requirements of organizations. EDMA

will link with existing risk management initiatives and pursue information exchange, discussionand reuse of research results and components with a particular focus in mind: migrate these

results to organizations.

The EDMA project will develop a comprehensive risk management platform which is based on

the orchestration of relevant systems thanks to the application of service oriented architectures:

interfaces to other systems will augment EDMA service portfolio where needed.


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Scientific and Technological Challenges

Research on a generic SOA for risk management systems with a holistic approach to

flexibly integrate standards and components.

Research on risk management for organizations: decision making patterns, informationneeds, assets, and vulnerabilities.

Application of workflow and decision systems to risk management tasks for

organizations requirements; decision system based on key indicators with map based

visualization tools.

Design and implementation of a risk monitoring system configurable to a multitude ofcontexts, and centralization of risk measure data in local authorities system.

Mapping of basic best practices of risk management to process and workflow engines

with online support in risks at present.

Citizen Relationship Management(CiRM): applying commercial oriented CiRM systems

to the task of communication with citizens in the risk management context plus

instantaneous warning of citizens in affected regions via multi channel means.


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METHODOLOGY-The Diagnosis

The methodology of risk diagnosis is intended to make overall assessment of risks inherent to

common space for people living there. Such spatial risks are considered to change over time.

Therefore diagnosis starts with assessing the current status of common spatial risks, and then

continuously monitors their changes over time.By definition this methodology includes what is called the method of seismic

diagnosis of houses, buildings and facilities. However it is important to note that the

methodology is used to make an overall assessment of the collection of houses, buildings andfacilities located on common space, instead of independently assessing each of them.

1. It should produce information with policy-linkage label: Where policy means abundle of diagnosis and prescriptions (countermeasures) to collectively achieve the goal

of a safer and secured life under disaster risks.

2. Diagnosis underlines identification of the status, instead of immediately startingplanning.

3. PDCA cycle should be reinterpreted to emphasize the phase of to check as a startingpoint of the cycle, rather than to highlight the phase of to plan as commonly

interpreted to be appropriate.

4. Cities and regions as common space entailing diverse types of inherent spatial risks tendto change over time. Diagnosis requires continuous monitoring and continuous updating.

5. To put it otherwise, this methodology can also support risk communication amongdifferent stakeholders whose views, perceptions and information are limited and not so

much mutually compatible.

6. Diagnostic methodology can be utilized for vertically integrating multiple strata of

region viewed as vital common spatial/temporal system.


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Regional Level Community Level

Tool and system

development

-Damage Simulator-Social/Economic impact

evaluation model

-Diagnosis on wooden houses.- Community disaster impact

assessment modelAction Planning -Predictions and Policies for

local Governments-Reinforcement of Guidelines

Research team and Human

network Dvelopment

-Researchers, Government

Officials, Engineers etc.-Technicians, Residents,

Volunteers etc.

Methods Used

The purpose of research is to discover or change laws and theory while the purpose orevaluations is to affix a value to the process or outcome. Research is used to define a cause :

effect relationship between independent and dependent variable(s). Currently, such experimental

studies either are impossible to conduct in the setting of a disaster or are considered unethical.Until recently, reports of disaster responses primarily have been anecdotal and descriptive with

little or no structure. They have had little value in the elimination of hazards, reduction of risks,

improvement in the absorbing and/or buffering capacities, reduction in vulnerability, and or

enhancement of disaster preparedness. They have served to shape our perceptions of the medicaland public-health needs associated with certain events. During the last two decades,

methodologies used in the social sciences gradually have been adapted to the study of disasters.

Such studies have contributed greatly to our understanding of the patho-physiology of disastersand the effects of specific interventions on the affected populations or populations at risk for an

event. Not all aspects of such interventions can be measured, but most can be assessed using

qualitative methodologies. The importance of using both qualitative and quantitative assessments

of effects is discussed.

RESEARCH IS defined as: studious inquiry or examination; to investigate thoroughly;investigation orexperimentation aimed at the discovery and interpretation of facts, revisions of

accepted theories or laws in the light of new facts, or the practical application of such new or

revised theories or laws.

1 To evaluate is a verb and is defined as: to determine or fix a value to; to determine thesignificance or worth of, usually by careful appraisal or study.

2 These two terms vary in their purpose: research is to discover or change laws and theory;

evaluation is to affix value to the process or outcome. Evaluation research, therefore, isinvestigation for the purpose of affixing a value to what is being studied.

The use of experimental research methodologies forms the basis for much of our medicalknowledge. Randomized, controlled, experimental studies long have been used as the goldstandard. The purpose of such studies has been to prove that a cause:effect relationship can be

established between independent and dependent variables. To many, studies that have not used

these methodologies do not constitute true scientific studies.


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Another approach for research into the aspects of disasters has been the use of

Epidemiological methodologies. Such studies have been used primarily for the purposesof investigating risk factors. This particular methodology, while scientific, is limited in terms ofits scope and cannot be used readily as a tool for judging or evaluating the effectiveness and

adequacy of procedures provided during disaster response. Nevertheless, disaster

epidemiological techniques are very useful to answer specific research questions as part of theoverall design of an evaluative study.

Quasi-experimental designs such as longitudinal (before-and-after) studies, also havesome application in the study of disasters. Although fraught with the danger of inclusion of

confounding variables that may occur concurrently with what is being studied, before-after

studies may form the basis for assessing the damage caused by an event. Assessment of damageis not possible without knowledge of the pre-event status of the affected society. Furthermore,

the goal of disaster responses and relief is the return of the affected society to its pre-event status.

Thus, damage assessments are a form of longitudinal studies.

It is important to recognize that not all of the effects of an event on the population or of theeffects of specific interventions can be measured.. Measurements require the use of quantitative

data techniques to collect such data.

Some aspects of the study of disasters can be quantified, while others cannot be measured

directly. However, many aspects of the study of disasters and the responses to them can beassessed using qualitative data collection techniques. Others can be scaled and analyzed using

inferential statistical methods. Combining the different methods may provide a whole spectrum

of data collection techniques that can be applied to the study of disasters. The selection of thebest technique(s) depends upon the question(s) being posed. Often, combinations of techniques

may provide the best answers. Detailed descriptions of all of the available techniques that can be

used for the study of disasters are provided within these Guidelines using Templates to assistinvestigators in the identification of the problems to be studied, framing the question, selectingthe techniques to answer the questions, implementing studies, and analyzing and applying the

results.

Conceptual ModelThe ultimate objective of disaster management is to bring the probability that damage will occur

from an event as close to zero as is possible. A conceptual model is proposed that uses a generic,non-quantitative, mathematical expression (formula) for relating the probability that damage will

occur with specific hazards and with the risk posed by the hazard and vulnerabilities. Actions are

subdivided into those that are implemented before a hazard becomes an event and those provided

as a response to an event that is occurring or has occurred. In the former category are thoseactions that either augment or mitigate vulnerability by increasing or decreasing the absorbing

capacity and/or buffering capacity of the population/environment at risk for an event. Responsesto an event either may be productive or counterproductive. Use of this formula in disaster

planning and analysis should assist in identification of the essential elements that contribute to a

disaster.


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Elements that contributing to a disaster are:-

1. Hazards and risks dictated by nature

2. Hazards and risks introduced by humans in order to achieve another objective3. Actions of humans that result in augmentation of the negative effects of an event

4. Acceptance of a calculated risk.

A model may help to further the understanding of the mechanisms and pathophysiology of adisaster. The model is not intended to be quantitative, but highlights the conceptual framework

upon which this work is based.

An absolute prerequisite for the development of a disaster is the presence of a hazard. A hazardmay be caused by nature, by human actions, or by a combination of both. Manmade hazards may

be deliberate (war, terrorism), a calculated risk, an unexpected side effect, and in some

situations, even may not be recognized as human-caused. For example, building a hydroelectricdam is a part of a process to provide clean, reproducible power; but the price paid is the creation

of a hazard with potential for the dam to burst or to have a negative ecological influence

upstream and/or downstream from the dam. In other cases, the risk posed by the hazard may

exceed the calculated gain, not necessarily because it is likely to happen, but because the damagethat could result would be immense. The tragedy of Chernobyl is an example of the latter

situation. In both examples provided above, both the gain and the probability of sustaining

damage may affect the same group of people. In the case of Chernobyl, it also affectedpopulations who never gained from its operations.

Sometimes, the increased risk that the hazard will become an event is not recognisedi or isunderestimated. In other cases, the hazard is recognized, but the real gain occurs elsewhere than

in the area in which the hazard is constructed. The Bhopal tragedy was an extreme example of

this situation: weak regulations governing such production allowed the implementation ofsimpler protective measures and enabled the production of a pesticide at a

much cheaper cost than would have been possible in a country with stricter legislation.15 Thus,the manufacturer secured greater savings in the costs of production than if the manufacturing

plant had been constructed in a country with stricter regulations, and the country in which theplant was constructed benefited from the additional jobs for its citizens and from the taxes

collected. The provision of more jobs is a strong incentive in developing countries, and, if the

security needs are not known by the population at risk, the export of such a hazard may be calleddevelopment, even though it carries with it not only exposure to a new hazard, but a substantial

risk that an event may occur. Thus, it is necessary to separate Hazards (H) into two main classes:

(1) Hazards dictated by nature; and (2) Hazards produced by human activities. Therefore:

H = Hnat + Hman

Where H = total hazards

Hnat = hazards dictated by nature; and

Hman = hazards that result from human actions.


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Hazards are everywhere. However, there is a considerable difference in the likelihood that the

same type of hazard will evolve into an event in different parts of the world. Furthermore, the

actualization of a hazard of the same magnitude may create a disaster in some areas, whereas itsoccurrence may be absorbed with little damage in another part of the world. Some of the factors

causing damage may be the same regardless of the types of hazards involved. Therefore,

analyses that predict a potential for damage reduction or prevention, or that a hazard will becomean event, should use more generic methods than one just associated with one specific hazard.

Strictly speaking, there are two risks or probabilities associated with the presence of a hazard:

(1) the risk that a hazard will become an event; and

(2) the risk that damage will occur.The termDamage Probability (PD) will be used to describe the latter, andRisk(RH) will be

used to describe the probability that a hazard will turn into an event. A disaster, then, is a

possible result of a hazard that becomes an event and produces damage beyond the copingmechanisms of the population impacted. Therefore, identification of the elements that may

define the probability that an actuated hazard will create damage will be helpful for decision-

making as how to obtain maximum benefit from investment of limited resources (prospective),

and in identifying the reasons that damage did result from the impact of an event (retrospective).The event, in itself, may or may not produce enough damage to create a disaster. This is

dependent heavily upon the extent to which a society is vulnerable to the occurrence of a specific

event. Both the features of nature and the influence of actions by man determine thisvulnerability. These vulnerability factors are designated as Vnat and Vman respectively for the

probability (PD) of being damaged by a specific event. Thus, combining all of the above, the

damage probability (PD) can be expressed as:

PD = f(RH)(Hnat+ Hman)(Vnat+ Vman)

Where: PD is theprobability that damage will result from a specific event;

fdenotes the function of:RH is the probability that the hazard will become an event;

H is the hazard;

Vnat is the vulnerability provided by natural phenomena; and

Vman is the vulnerability created by human actions.

Thus, human activities may alter the vulnerability of a given society in either direction (increase

or decrease). Such alterations that occur before an event happens (a) and result in increasing thevulnerability for damage, are defined as vulnerability augmentation, and are indicated by the

term,a1

. Alterations that are achieved before an event occurs that decrease vulnerability for

damage are called vulnerability mitigation and are indicated by the term, a2.After an event hasoccurred, emergency aid/actions constituting the response, are annotated by the letter b. Such

response actions are meant to be productive (b2), but also could be counter-productive (b1). An

example of the latter was the medically inappropriate provision of glucose-laden infusion fluidsto treat a cholera epidemic in Somalia more than a decade ago.6 Unsolicited aid frequently turns

out to be counter-productive (b1), even if it, in itself, is not harmful: it consumes resources even

if its contribution seems insignificant. The provision of aid that no longer is needed also may be


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counter-productive. The latter includes the continuation of supplying commodities or assistance

after the real needs have been satisfied. An important objective for these Guidelines is to avoid

this kind of mismanagement in the future. Thus, the human influence on vulnerability comprisesall four elements

Vman = a1 + a2 + b1 + b2

Given this concept, the bracketed elements in the equation (Vnat +

a1+a2 + b1 + b2) represent the total vulnerability of the society for a specifictype of event. Thus,Vnat is the natural vulnerability of the environment and

(a1 + a2 + b1 + b2) define all human actions influencing vulnerability (in

either direction) including level and type of preparedness.And, the formula for damage probability becomes:

PD = f (Hnat + Hman) (RH)(Vnat + a1 + a2 + b1 + b2)

Where: PD is the probability that an event will inflict damage on the

society and/or the environment at risk;fis a function of the relationship between all of the variables

contained within and between the brackets;

H is a hazard;

RH is the probability (risk) that this hazard will be converted into

an event;

Hman is the human component responsible for the hazard;

Hnat is the hazard dictated by nature;

Vnat represents the resultant vulnerability to the event asdetermined by nature.

a is the sum of the actions taken before an event occurs

a1 is the vulnerability augmentation,

a2 is the vulnerability mitigation;

b is the sum of the actions taken during or after an event occurs

b1 is the counter-productive disaster response; and

b2 is the productive disaster response.

Currently, it is not known how the factors in the formula influence the outcome: Are they

additive, multiplicative, logarithmic, exponential, etc.? Thus, the termffor function, must beconsidered ageneric mathematical entity, and it is not meant as a quantitative statement.

Use of the Formula

This formula represents an attempt to identify each of the essential elements contributing to adisaster, and how each influences the probability that damage will occur from an event. Today,

emphasis tends to be placed on productive response (b2), since it is this aspect of disasters upon

which the media tend to focus. Properly implemented, the approach using this formula may

encourage the conduct of more balanced evaluations of all of the elements affected in a disaster.In a generic way, its use also should facilitate the analysis of any incidents or accidents. In this

form, it may become a long-term instrument to guide people as to how to best address their

efforts to minimize the problems inherent in a disaster. The results of such research effortsshould be analyzed in the context of the formula.

electronic disaster management-research paper

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