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| Summery of the “Commonality Emergency Affairs Disposal and Management from Developing Countries” |
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| Tuesday,June 12,2007 Posted: 15:00 BJT(0700 GMT) |
TABLE OF CONTENTS
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
1. INTRODUCTION
2. DISASTERS IN PRC
2.1 EARTHQUAKE
2.2 EARTHQUAKE MONITORING AND PREDICTION
2.3 EARTHQUAKE DISASTER PREVENTION
2.4 EARTHQUAKE EMERGENCY MANAGEMENT AND RESCUE
2.5 EMERGENCY RESPONSE PLAN
3. TSUNAMI
4. TYPHOON, FLOODS AND LANDSLIDE/MUDSLIDE
5. HAIDIAN PUBLIC SAFETY MUSEUM
6. OLYMPIC STADIUM
7. BADALIN GREAT WALL
8. CHINA INFECTIOUS DISEASES AND PUBLIC HEALTH EMERGENCY PREVENTION AND CONTROL
9. ENVIRONMENTAL DEGRADATION EMERGENCY
10. CHINA’S 110 EMERGENT POLICE CALL
11. CONCLUSION
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
Having been granted an opportunity to explore outside world on disaster management matters I find it exceedingly imperative to express my utmost gratitude to the government of Lesotho through Disaster Management Authority for the support that I got; The government of People’s Republic of China through Chinese Embassy, Ministry of Foreign affairs, Ministry of Commerce, Ministry of Civil Affairs and the State Council which were directly involved in the process that lead to a successful hosting of the Seminar for “Commonality Emergency Affairs Disposal and Management from Developing Countries” represented by fifty two participants from Africa, Europe and Asia. Last but not least, my gratitude to the Director of the Promotion Center for Emergency Assistance (PCEA) and the team that she lead in implementing the seminar so magnanimously.
1. INTRODUCTION
Owing to the global interrelationships in many different aspects, the government of People’s Republic of China (PRC) utilized the opportunity to share the disaster management experiences with developing counterparts. Although the PRC is hit by multi various disasters her economical growth is increasing significantly. Certain factors such as willingness to have warm relationships with the entire globe for harmonious collaboration and curiosity to learn from others could be attached to this exuberant economical growth. Every developmental activity to my observation in PRC has explicit disaster management elements in abundance. Even though PRC is one of the biggest countries in the world, about 9 000 000 km2 she is able to handle her own disasters and to participate in emergency operations in other countries hit by the disasters. Science and Technology are utilized to the fullest with extensive research work on disaster management in progress. It could be correctly deduced from this point of view that the PRC has well functional Emergency Assistance System which is being reviewed and revised for improvement almost at all times. Training in PRC is greatly utilized and viewed as one of the most imperative tools in the development, the presence and functioning of the Center for Emergency Assistance dedicated for disaster and emergency training, bears practical evidence to this observation.
2. DISASTERS IN PRC
Since the PRC is big in magnitude and constituted by islands and oceans, it implies complicated weather conditions contributing immensely to the fraternal natural calamities such as technological disasters, floods, snowstorm, drought, windstorm, hail-storm, dust-storm, typhoon, low-temperature and freeze, earthquake, landslide, and debris flow. However, the PRC is vulnerable to five major disasters namely: earthquake, typhoon, drought, flood and landslide/mudslide. In general the disasters in this country have high frequency of occurrence in different regions and seasons, resulting in great economical losses about 80-90 % of total losses.
2.1 EARTHQUAKE
Seismicity in China is high because of the pushing from the Pacific and Indian plates. It is in this process that skyscrapers and of course flat ordinary buildings in general including bridges collapse to the ground and interruption of railways as well as the destruction of roads occur. All these calamities inflict adverse destruction consequences and untimely loss of lives. The table that follows summarizes briefly the PRC’s proportions to the world versus earthquake:
The PRC has set emergency management goal in earthquake disasters towards 2020, i.e. by 2020, the disaster management structures should be able to resist the earthquake significantly nationwide and be in possession of higher resistance standard for mega cities. The successful achievement of this goal is based on the system of laws and statutes on protecting against and mitigating the hazards of earthquakes in China. The diagrams that follow depict:
(I) The management system of earthquake disaster prevention and reduction
(II) China earthquake Administration
(I) The management system of earthquake disaster prevention and reduction
(II) China Earthquake Administration
2.2 EARTHQUAKE MONITORING AND PREDICTION
For the effective monitoring and prediction of the earthquake seismic and observational stations have been distributed at strategic points across the entire country. Seismic data is transmitted from the stations to the disaster management departments responsible for its analysis. The results enable earthquake prediction on long-term, medium-term, short-term and imminent basis. Long-term basis is when the earthquake is predicted to occur within several years to ten years; medium-term within one year to several years; short-term usually within several months and imminent within days to ten days.
2.3 EARTHQUAKE DISASTER PREVENTION
Continuous research and practice on the standards for earthquake-resistant fortification together with research on structural anti-seismic technology play crucial role in mitigating earthquake disasters. These two research works are further enhanced by the research on earthquake damage assessment as well as organization and dissemination of knowledge about earthquake and its disasters.
2.4 EARTHQUAKE EMERGENCY MANAGEMENT AND RESCUE
Strategy in this regard has to do with drawing emergency preplans for destructive earthquake and organizing earthquake emergency response drilling. The execution of these preplans is handled by the constructed emergency command system which also handles administration of the state Search and Rescue (SAR) team well trained for working in earthquake disaster field
3. TSUNAMI
This phenomenon gets propagated when earthquake occurs in seas or oceans. A very strong and high velocity (200 m/s) wave traverses the land destroying whatever comes on its way i.e. killing people and livestock, destroying properties and infrastructure. Since its consequences are congruent to those of earthquake the management is also congruent
4. TYPHOON, FLOODS AND LANDSLIDE/MUDSLIDE
Similarly, calamities caused by these agents are more or less the same as those inflicted by the earthquake; it is just that they differ in formation and magnitude whereby Typhoon is a destructive cyclone formed in Pacific Ocean. Floods occur following a heavy rainfall normally experienced in rainy seasons. In 2005, 105 students at Shan Lan elementary school in Heilongjiang province were killed by the flood. Landslide/mudslide is just a falling of soil or rocks down mountainside. They all possess destructive potential to the property and infrastructure, human and livestock.
5. HAIDIAN PIBLIC SAFETY MUSEUM
Steps to acclimatize people to the disasters in an effort to reduce casualties, have been taken by constructing disasters simulating Museum in Beijing. Disasters of different types are simulated so that when they occur, the people are not scared but rather well prepared to escape
6. BADALING GREAT WALL
Prevention of disasters constitutes yet another crucial element in disaster management. It was for this element that the great wall was constructed. Chinese enemy nations were obstructed in History by this wall from executing their invasion through Juyongguan Pass lodging their attack which normally possesses disastrous consequences. In dimension it is 3, 741 meters long, 8 meters high at average and 15 meters high being the highest point.
7. BEIJING NATIONAL STADIUM
The Beijing National Stadium, also known as the bird's nest is nearing the completion the construction of which was initiated in 2003 with the purpose of hosting 2008 Olympic Games. The construction takes disaster elements into consideration a great deal, should any disastrous event occur the stadium will resist. If the vigor exceeds the resistance rescue combined with escape will be easier.
5. CHINA INFECTIOUS DISEASES AND PUBLIC HEALTH EMERGENCY PREVENTION AND CONTROL
Infectious diseases in PRC such as AIDS, Hepatitis, Cholera, SARS, etc have posed a serious health hazard claiming thousands of both human and livestock lives. As a result, the government had to take emergency measures seriously to prevent and control them. These measures include expansion of active laboratory surveillance involving early discovery of virus aberrance, analyzing virus aberrance trend and delivery of early-warning earlier, selection of vaccine strain, mass antibody inoculation and guidance of clinical use of drugs and drugs use for epidemic prevention.
Enhancement of emergency measures is supported by taking public health measures earlier in two categories namely: (i) three simultaneously which involve reaching the event simultaneously, making the investigation simultaneously and disposing of epidemic situation simultaneously.
(ii) five-early, implying early discovery, early reporting, early diagnose, early disposal and early treatment.
6. ENVIRONMENTAL DEGRADATION EMERGENCY
The laws have been legislated to discourage contamination of air, water and land by factories companies and others whose activities might lead to the environmental hazard. There are reported cases whereby detrimental chemicals leaked into the rivers from the tankers. Those responsible have been brought to the courts of law and faced prosecution. PRC is considering taking part actively in reducing global warming by resorting to usage of alternative forms of energy as opposed to the forms that liberate green gases.
7. CHINA’S 110 EMERGENT POLICE CALL
Free 110 China’s emergent police call number has been adapted countrywide after having gone through developmental stages for the utilization by both citizens and foreigners or tourists when emergency situation occurs. The establishment of 110 police service call is a new measure of China’s public security organs to maintain public security and serve the public according to the social and economic development.
2.5 EMERGENCY RESPONSE PLAN
Different sectors coordinated by command headquarter, draw different emergency plans. Also included in the plan are mechanisms for information transfer, supplementary energy, Telecommunication, water, food, Hospital, emergency shelter, transportation and earthquake emergency response lessons delivered at schools. Above all PRC also possesses a plan for international emergency response called China International Search and Rescue (CISAR) Team launched on the 27th April, 2001. Some of the countries which have already benefited from this team are Indonesia and Pakistan which were hit by Tsunami and earthquake respectively.
8. DISASTER IMPACTS
Adverse consequences inflicted by disasters subject people to psychosocial, socioeconomic and sociodemographic impacts to mention but a few.
Research reviews conducted over a period of 25 years have concluded that disasters can cause a wide range of negative psychosocial responses (Perry and Lindell, 1978; Bolin, 1985; Houts et al, 1988; Gerrity and Flynn, 1997!). These include effects such as fatigue, gastrointestinal upset, and tics, as well as cognitive signs such as confusion, impaired concentration, and attention deficits. Psychosocial impacts include emotional signs such as anxiety, depression, and grief, as well as behavioral effects such as sleep and appetite changes, ritualistic behavior, and substance abuse. In most cases, the effects that are observed are mild and transitory— the result of ‘‘normal people, responding normally, to a very abnormal situation’’ (Gerrity and Flynn, 1997, p. 108).
Socioeconomic impacts are traced on property damage that can be measured by the cost of repair or replacement known as recovery in disaster management cycle. Always when property devastating calamity occurs, affected people face an obligation to reestablish conditions just as they were before the disaster thus halting pertinent family activities. On the other side some members of the community envision the disaster as ‘‘instant area renewal’’ that provides an opportunity to achieve a radically different community. (Rubin, 1991; Dash et al 1997)
Sociodemographic impacts are felt by the time the affected people have to acquire emergency shelter consisting of unplanned and spontaneously sought location intended only to provide protection. Next is the temporary shelter including food preparation and sleeping facilities usually sought from relatives or neighbors with schools and churches acceptable as final resort. When passing through all these recovery stages, the affected people are subjected to the psychological torture for they have to reestablish themselves quickly and unprepared. The completion of reestablishment process differs according to the social classes. Others have to get donations whereas others conduct it on their own.
CONCLUSION
Although the People’s Republic of China is prone to multi various disasters, her economical growth is rapid and formidable. Chinese people are identical to one another when it comes to among others, the culture of hardworking blended with discipline, hospitality and tolerance. All these qualities in any country are essential in triumphant and briskly economical growth for they act as lubricants to the developmental system. Moreover, the citizens in this country are greatly competent; they are continuously conducting research work to come up with new strategies aiming at conquering disaster challenges. High fidelity disaster management network is in harmony; everybody knows and is up to his/her own task with the aim of executing it to the highest degree of perfection. Science and Technology are fully utilized in disaster management environment since natural disasters are predominant over other types of disasters. A lot of money is spent on education and training both outside and inside the country to step up skilled labour. When realising that she is making developmental progress PRC considered and exercised generosity to her developing colleagues by inviting representation by senior governmental officers to come and share experiences so that they could as well if possible adopt disaster management strategies for their own countries. Furthermore, some of these countries have received assistance from Chinese expert team when hit by the disasters. For all these facts and others I am convinced that Chinese success is the success of the entire globe and I would recommend warm relationship and collaboration with PRC in many respects.
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Bilateral Visits