Basic Concepts Relating to Disaster and Disaster Management
Basic Concepts Relating to Disaster and Disaster Management
Hazard- process, phenomenon or human activity that may cause loss of life, injury or other health impacts, property damage, social and economic disruption or environmental degradation. Hazards may be natural, anthropogenic or socio-natural in origin. Natural hazards are predominantly associated with natural processes and phenomena. Anthropogenic or human-induced hazards are induced entirely or predominantly by human activities and choices.
Vulnerability- The conditions determined by physical, social, economic and environmental factors or processes which increase the susceptibility of an individual, a community, assets or systems to the impacts of hazards.
Capacity- The combination of all the strengths, attributes and resources available within an organization, community or society to manage and reduce disaster risks and strengthen resilience.
Risk- The potential loss of life, injury, or destroyed or damaged assets which could occur to a system, society or a community in a specific period of time, determined probabilistically as a function of hazard, exposure, vulnerability and capacity.
Disaster- A catastrophe, mishap, calamity or grave occurrence in any area, arising from natural or man made causes, or by accident or negligence which results in substantial loss of life or human suffering or damage to, and destruction of, property, or damage to, or degradation of, environment, and is of such a nature or magnitude as to be beyond the coping capacity of the community of the affected area.
Disaster Management- Disaster Management means a continuous and integrated process of planning, organising, coordinating and implementing measures which are necessary or expedient for-
- Prevention of danger or threat of any disaster.
- Mitigation or reduction of risk of any disaster or its severity or consequences.
- Capacity-building.
- Preparedness to deal with any disaster.
- Prompt response to any threatening disaster situation or disaster.
- Assessing the severity or magnitude of effects of any disaster.
- Evacuation, rescue and relief.
- Rehabilitation and reconstruction.
Disaster Preparedness- The knowledge and capacities developed by governments, response and recovery organizations, communities and individuals to effectively anticipate, respond to and recover from the impacts of likely, imminent or current disasters. preparedness action is carried out within the context of disaster risk management and aims to build the capacities needed to efficiently manage all types of emergencies and achieve orderly transitions from response to sustained recovery.
Disaster Mitigation- The lessening or limitation of the adverse impacts of hazards and related disasters.
Disaster Prevention- Disaster Prevention includes activities and measures to avoid existing and new disaster risks.
Relief and Response- Actions taken directly before, during or immediately after a disaster in order to save lives, reduce health impacts, ensure public safety and meet the basic subsistence needs of the people affected. Disaster response is predominantly focused on immediate and short-term needs and is sometimes called disaster relief. Effective, efficient and timely response relies on disaster risk-informed preparedness measures, including the development of the response capacities of individuals, communities, organizations, countries and the international community.
Rehabilitation- Rehabilitation means the restoration of basic services and facilities for the functioning of a community or a society affected by a disaster.
Reconstruction- Reconstruction is the medium- and long-term rebuilding and sustainable restoration of resilient critical infrastructures, services, housing, facilities and livelihoods required for the full functioning of a community or a society affected by a disaster, aligning with the principles of sustainable development and “build back better”, to avoid or reduce future disaster risk.
Disaster Risk Reduction- Disaster risk reduction is aimed at preventing new and reducing existing disaster risk and managing residual risk, all of which contribute to strengthening resilience and therefore to the achievement of sustainable development.