Could not agree more about training being the most essential in preparedness. Military ingrained
that in me. In the military, although everyone is assigned a job/specialty, there are certain
scenarios we were all trained on consistently throughout the year. I am glad you mentioned
planned and unplanned drills, I think the unplanned one are the most effective. The unplanned
drill is the easiest way to identify the potential weaknesses in the preparedness of the department.
As you mentioned, there are certain States that need to prepare for certain types of emergencies
(Florida for hurricanes, etc.).
During COVID-19. Countries around the world have recognized that one of the weaknesses of
emergency response is institutional cooperation (Etienne and Benjamin, 2022). The epidemic
highlighted the importance of collaboration, not only among the nation’s agencies but
internationally, to increase the effectiveness (Etienne and Benjamin, 2022). The joint effort was
crucial, when it came down to equipment and resources, at some point some countries were
running low on protective supplies etc. (Etienne and Benjamin, 2022).
About community preparedness and information sharing through social media. It can be greatly
beneficial, or it can be the opposite. Social media is a “great place” for fast spread of information
but not necessarily an accurate one (Germani et. al, 2022). Back to the COVID-19 pandemic,
there was a lot of scientific misinformation and conspiracy shared, which consequently shaped
people’s behaviors and beliefs (Germani et. al, 2022).
References:
Etienne, C. F., M.D., M.P.H., & Benjamin, G. C., M.D. (2022). Emergency Preparedness: A
Shared Effort. American Journal of Public Health, 112, S574-S575.
https://go.openathens.net/redirector/liberty.edu?url=https://www.proquest.com/scholarly-
journals/emergency-preparedness-shared-effort/docview/2717341320/se-2
Germani, F., Pattison, A. B., & Reinfelde, M. (2022). WHO and digital agencies: how to
effectively tackle COVID-19 misinformation online. BMJ Global Health, 7(8).
https://doi.org/10.1136/bmjgh-2022-009483
As you mentioned, it is a big task to build an emergency management function with so many
factors to consider. The fact that different areas have different potential hazards affecting them, it
is important to first determine those hazards and do a risk assessment, which you explained
nicely in your post.
Mallick et.al (2022) conducted a study in Bangladesh, which showed that people’s perception of
natural disasters like drought, flood and/or earthquake can be skewed. Their lack of knowledge
on mitigation and preparedness makes their life worse in a sense that they do not do much to
protect their assets, thus lose a lot when those disasters do happen (Mallick et. al, 2022). Mallick
et. al (2022) emphasize the importance of knowledge and understanding of mitigation and
preparedness of everyone involved, especially people living in the geographically hazardous
areas.
Efficient dissemination of mitigation, preparedness, and response strategies are vital, so that
people can be proactive (Singh, 2020). For example, an area that is likely to be flooded should
already have in place warning systems, buildings should have strong foundations and built with
water resistant materials, dams build in the area, floodwalls, etc. (Singh, 2020).
For example, let’s look at hurricane Katrina. Knapp (2020) explains that inadequate preparation
and response to Hurricane Katrina was an important lesson for the agency. The warning about
the hurricane came through ahead of time and it was accurate, thus the proper mitigation was
crucial – U.S. Army Corps of Engineers built levees, but emergency shelters were incomplete,
system for needed supplies was deficient, etc. (Knapp, 2020).
Reference:
Knapp, H. (2020). Managing an Administrative Emergency: Establishing FEMA as an
Independent Agency. Colorado natural resources, energy & environmental law review.
https://doi.org/10.4135/9781412994064.n80
Mallick, J., Salam, R., Amin, R., Islam, A. R. M. T., Islam, A., Siddik, M. N. A., & Alam, G. M.
M. (2022, February 23). Assessing factors affecting drought, earthquake, and flood risk
perception: Empirical evidence from Bangladesh - natural hazards. SpringerLink.
