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Sat, 2010-02-27 09:54 — mdmcdonald

The mission of this working group is to following, understand, and improve the activities of disaster response networks around the world.

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This Working Group is focused on the disaster response networks around the world.
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Predicting Locations of Emergency & Damage During Disaster Using VGI Data

Wed, 2012-03-21 11:55 — Kathy Gilbeaux

submitted by Alister Wm Macintyre

                                                     (CLICK ON IMAGE BELOW - TO ENLARGE)

      

ushahidi.com - by Prateek Budhwar

The VGI data obtained from the Ushahidi-Haiti platform during the first 72 hours of Earthquake in Haiti can be used for predicting the locations of ‘Emergency and damaged areas’ using Ushahidi Reports in Port-au-Prince. Two rapid and very successful VGI deployments helped coordinate disaster response after a devastating magnitude 7 earthquake struck Haiti in January 2010.

OpenStreetMap (OSM) project volunteers working outside Haiti created a digital street map of Port-au-Prince and other places in Haiti very rapidly using fine-resolution imagery to trace vector maps of streets and other features.

(READ COMPLETE ARTICLE)

Country / Region Tags: 
Global
United States
General Topic Tags: 
Communication
Disaster Response
Technology
Problem, Solution, SitRep, or ?: 
Other

Mexico Quake Tweet Volume and Characteristics

Wed, 2012-03-21 10:59 — Kathy Gilbeaux

submitted by Samuel Bendett

Sender: crisismappers
Date: Tue, 20 Mar 2012 13:55:14 -0700
To: <crisismappers>
ReplyTo: crisismappers
Subject: [CrisisMappers] Mexico quake tweet volume and characteristics
Some relatively random data points...

We've saw about 10,000 English tweets in the first hour and 23,000 in the second. Third hour is down, will be about half the rate of the second hour if sustained.

Recurring themes include words like rattle, suffer, long slow roller, hard, saddened, worried, awful, hate, bad.

I'm seeing a fair bit of "help us report" tweets, which is coming from a tweet that said "earthquake preparedness helps us report none to minor damage and no victims so far," from Mexico City.

English-language tweets from Mexico are making up 8 percent of the total. 55 percent are from the U.S.

Spanish tweets - 488 in the first hour, 1,400 in the second and current rate will product about 1,000 in the third hour.

Most common words in the Spanish tweets are disfrutar and malo.

Spanish tweets are coming almost 50/50 from Mexico and the U.S.

Almost 75 percent of the Spanish tweets were from men, v. a close to 50/50 split for English.

Country / Region Tags: 
Global
United States
General Topic Tags: 
Communication
Disaster Response
Technology
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Other

Invisibility Cloak to Protect Buildings from Earthquakes

Sat, 2012-02-18 01:01 — Kathy Gilbeaux

submitted by Samuel Bendett and Linton Wells

Homeland Security News Wire - February 15, 2012

Scientists show that by cloaking components of structures with pressurized rubber, powerful waves such as those produced by an earthquake would not “see” the building — they would simply pass around the structure and thus prevent serious damage or destruction

University of Manchester mathematicians have developed the theory for a Harry Potter-style cloaking device which could protect buildings from earthquakes.

Dr. William Parnell’s team in the University’s School of Mathematics has been working on the theory of invisibility cloaks which, until recently, have been merely the subject of science fiction.

In recent times, however, scientists have been getting close to achieving cloaking in a variety of contexts. A University of Manchester release reports that the work from the team at Manchester focuses on the theory of cloaking devices which could eventually help to protect buildings and structures from vibrations and natural disasters such as earthquakes.

Country / Region Tags: 
United States
General Topic Tags: 
Disaster Risk Reduction
Earthquake
Problem, Solution, SitRep, or ?: 
Solutions
Problem

Subject: [DISASTR-OUTREACH-LIB ] Hospital Librarians Survey - Emergency/Disaster Involvement

Wed, 2012-02-15 16:31 — bevcorwin

----- Forwarded Message ----- From: Amy Donahue To: ***@***.*** Sent: Wednesday, February 15, 2012 3:10 PM Subject: [DISASTR-OUTREACH-LIB ] Hospital Librarians Survey - Emergency/Disaster Involvement Please forgive the cross-posting! But do feel free to forward this on to your hospital librarian colleagues through state or regional lists (I've got Wisconsin covered) - I would very much appreciate it as I'm trying to reach as many hospital librarians as humanly possible. The objective of this survey is to look at whether hospital librarians are actively involved in their organizations' emergency & disaster preparedness activities and, if so, how. Some demographics will also be captured. By exploring what roles currently exist and presenting these findings in a poster at the 2012 Annual Medical Libraries Association Conference in Seattle, WA, it is the author's hope that hospital librarians can continue their involvement in this vital area and learn from each other. Disclaimer: This survey has been exempted from Institutional Review Board oversight as the Aurora Health Care IRB has determined it does not constitute human subject research. Results will be kept confidential and presented only in aggregate.

Country / Region Tags: 
United States
General Topic Tags: 
Disaster Response
Resilience
Problem, Solution, SitRep, or ?: 
Other

Death Toll in Visayas Quake Continues to Rise

Tue, 2012-02-07 11:01 — Kathy Gilbeaux

A strong magnitude-6.9 quake hit Negros Oriental before noon today prompting authorities to raise tsunami alert level 2. (Image from Phivolcs)

By Jun Pasaylo and Dennis Carcamo The Philippine Star Updated February 06, 2012 12:35 PM

 

MANILA, Philippines - More than a dozen people have been reported killed in Negros Oriental province after it was hit by a strong quake before noon today.

National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council chief Benito Ramos reported at past 4 p.m. today that a total of seven have been confirmed killed by the agency.

Ramos disclosed that four of the fatalities were recorded in Guihulngan City, two in Tayasan town and one more in Jimalalud.

Country / Region Tags: 
Global
General Topic Tags: 
Disaster Response
Earthquake
Tsunami
Problem, Solution, SitRep, or ?: 
Problem

Slow Response to East Africa Famine 'Cost 'Lives'

Wed, 2012-01-18 13:00 — Kathy Gilbeaux

BBC News - January 18, 2012

       

The US government says 29,000 children under five years old died between May and July 2011

Thousands of needless deaths occurred from famine in East Africa last year because the international community failed to heed early warnings, say two leading British aid organisations.

Oxfam and Save the Children say it took more than six months for aid agencies to act on warnings of imminent famine.

Between 50,000 and 100,000 people have died in Kenya, Ethiopia and Somalia.

(READ COMPLETE ARTICLE)

Country / Region Tags: 
Global
General Topic Tags: 
Collapse
Disaster Response
Food
Health
Scarcity
Vulnerability
Problem, Solution, SitRep, or ?: 
Problem

Counting the Cost of Calamities

Wed, 2012-01-18 00:19 — Kathy Gilbeaux

submitted by Toan Phan

       

economist.com - January 14, 2012 - ROTTERDAM, NETHERLANDS AND WASHINGTON, DC

Death rates from natural disasters are falling; and fears that they have become more common are misplaced. But their economic cost is rising relentlessly

THE world’s industrial supply chains were only just recovering from Japan’s earthquake and tsunami in March when a natural disaster severed them again in October. An unusually heavy monsoon season swelled rivers and overwhelmed reservoirs in northern Thailand. The floodwaters eventually reached Bangkok, causing a political crisis as residents fought over whose neighbourhoods would flood.

(READ COMPLETE ARTICLE)

Country / Region Tags: 
Global
General Topic Tags: 
Disaster Response
Disaster Risk Reduction
Economics
Problem, Solution, SitRep, or ?: 
Solutions
Problem

Storm Leaves Huge Humanitarian Needs in Philippines, U.N. Says

Tue, 2011-12-20 21:00 — Kathy Gilbeaux

December 21, 2011

(CNN) -- The devastation in the southern Philippines left by Tropical Storm Washi has created "huge" humanitarian needs in the area, the United Nations said Wednesday, estimating that nearly a half-million people are in need of assistance.

"The first priority is to help those who are displaced as a result of the floods," Valerie Amos, the U.N. emergency relief coordinator, said in comments published on the organization's website. "People urgently need shelter and clean drinking water, as well as bedding, food and basic household items."

Amos called on other countries and international organizations to increase relief efforts for the stricken region. A number of U.N. agencies, including the World Food Program and the World Health Organization, have stepped up humanitarian measures in the past few days, she said.

The storm, known locally as Sendong, plowed across the southern Philippines over the weekend, leaving tens of thousands of people homeless and aid agencies struggling to deal with the aftermath.

The United Nations estimated that about 285,000 people had been displaced, with many of them are finding shelter with relatives or in makeshift structures.

Country / Region Tags: 
Global
General Topic Tags: 
Disaster Response
Extreme Weather
Flood
Housing / Shelter
Problem, Solution, SitRep, or ?: 
Problem

Philippines Flood Toll Rises Past 400

Sat, 2011-12-17 17:03 — Kathy Gilbeaux

CBS News - December 17, 2011

      

Rescuers paddle their rubber boat to search for survivors following a flash flood that inundated Cagayan de Oro city, Philippines, Saturday, Dec. 17, 2011. (AP Photo/Froilan Gallardo)

(AP) 

Last Updated 2:37 p.m. ET

MANILA, Philippines - Flash floods devastated a southern Philippines region unaccustomed to serious storms, killing more than 400 people while they slept, rousting hundreds of others to their rooftops and turning two coastal cities into muddy, debris-filled waterways that were strewn Saturday with overturned vehicles and toppled trees.

Most of the victims were asleep Friday night when raging floodwaters cascaded from the mountains after 12 hours of rain from a late-season tropical storm in the southern Mindanao region. The region is unaccustomed to the typhoons that are common elsewhere in the nation of islands.

(READ COMPLETE ARTICLE)

Country / Region Tags: 
Global
General Topic Tags: 
Extreme Weather
Flood
Problem, Solution, SitRep, or ?: 
Problem

Airboats Being Sent to Assist in Thailand Flood Recovery

Sun, 2011-11-06 17:17 — Kathy Gilbeaux

The Orange Leader - November 5, 2011

      

Several airboats are prepped and ready to be air-transported to Thailand to help in that country’s flood recovery efforts. Ten airboats, all made in Orange by American Airboats, are being shipped out and more could be ready to go soon.  Tommy Mann Jr.

ORANGE — A local business is flexing its international muscle once again.

American Airboats Inc. of Orange was a beehive of activity on Thursday as crews prepared 10 airboats for shipment to Thailand to assist in that country’s rescue efforts due to recent flooding.

Tractor trailers lined the road’s edge and parking lot waiting to be loaded Thursday afternoon as work crews partially dis-assembled the boat carriages to better accommodate air transport.

Faron Floyd, vice-president of American Airboats, recently met with top Thailand officials and demonstrated the Air Ranger, the signature airboat of American Airboat Corporation. Upon seeing how maneuverable and beneficial these watercraft could be, government officials quickly placed an order.

Country / Region Tags: 
United States
General Topic Tags: 
Disaster Response
Flood
Transportation
Problem, Solution, SitRep, or ?: 
Solutions

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