Disaster Management

Disaster Management

Name

Institution

Disaster management is a key area of study today. It has been observed that disasters occur when people are not prepared to tackle them. It should be noted that disasters can occur at any time and place. For this reason, it is important for individuals and organizations to prepare in advance so as to counter any disaster that might occur. This paper will explore the four steps that will be applied in case of a disaster.

The first step is disaster mitigation. Activities involved in this stage aims art eliminating or reducing the probability of occurrence of the disaster (Warfield). The activities involved in this stage include zoning, educating masses about the disaster establishing safety codes among others. Mitigation phase will include shaping plans and policies to modify disaster causes and mitigate the effects of disasters on property, infrastructure and people (Warfield).

The second phase is the preparedness phase. In this stage, there is a need to establish readiness so as to respond to a disaster situation in case it arises. At this stage, the main goal is to strengthen the capacity of the organizations and communities. The measures in this stage can as well be referred as logistical measures. The measures may include, establishing early warning systems, public education among others. Establishing reserves of medicine, food and others is also important (Warfield).

Response presents the third phase in disaster response. At this stage, a disaster has occurred. The activities at this stage may include assisting the affected population by evacuating them. Providing necessary assistance to save lives (Warfield). The affected persons can also be provided with temporally shelters.

The recovery is the fourth stage in disaster preparedness. At this stage, the main goal is to restore the situation back to normal. It may include repairing of damaged infrastructure, offering counseling programs to the affected people (Warfield).