Disasters catastrophic events

In Delaware, the Regulation for the Management of Extremely Ha2ardous Substances Act, developed in response to the Bhopal disaster and several chemical-release incidents in Delaware, became effective in 1989 (27,28). The regulations Hst 88 toxic substances, 32 flammable substances, and 50 explosive substances. A sufficient quantity is specified for each of these materials, based on potential for a catastrophic event at a distance of 100 m from a potential source of a 1-h release. 

Weather data for a number of years should be assembled for each community being studied. Particular attention should be given to such natural disasters as hurricanes, earthquakes, and floods, which often can be predicted from meteorological data. In certain locations these catastrophic events must be assumed to be probable and this increases construction costs. E.xtremely cold weather often hampers process plant operation and requires special construction features to protect equipment from freezing. Predominantly warm weather permits cheaper construction but may also reduce the efllcicncy of the labor force. 

Paralytic disasters or catastrophic events will severely limit the emergency health services systems ability to respond. 

Servers should be located in secure locations subject to appropriate environmental controls and protected against risks of flooding, fire, etc. Business Continuity Plans and Disaster Recovery Plans should be in place to manage catastrophic events. Such plans should be periodically tested. 

In several ways, family physicians are particnlarly well suited to respond to terrorism. First, family physicians are widely dispersed, in rural and urban areas, making them accessible for patients wherever manmade or natural catastrophic events might occnr. Second, family physicians provide continuity care, essential for the appropriate care of patients and families with ongoing physical and emotional outcomes from violent events. Third, family physicians provide comprehensive care, and can take care of most of the health problems, including emotional issues, facing victims of terrorism. Fonrth, family physicians understand how to coordinate care for patients, and can refer victims of mass disasters to other appropriate services as necessary. Most importantly, family physicians understand how to provide care in the context of family and community (22). As the events of September/October 2001 demonstrated, terrorism affects entire communities, whether or not individuals directly experience physical outcomes from the attacks. Family physicians, who nnderstand how their patients and families interact with their community, can help identify and treat problems at the community level. Although horrible, past terrorist events illustrate the pivotal role that family physicians play, working in partnership with public health officials to protect and promote the health of families and commnnities. 

A catastrophic event in general (or catastrophe) is an event that has severe losses, injury, or property damage affects large population of exposures and is caused by natural or handmade events. Examples of catastrophic events include natural disasters (hurricanes, earthquakes, floods) and terrorist attacks. The last 20 years, natural catastrophes have been happening with increasing intensity. 

Next, the team should make a determination of the potential for injuries or deaths that could possibly occur from an all-hazards approach to any catastrophic event at the school. The all-hazards planning approach focuses on developing capacities and capabilities that are critical to preparedness for a full spectrum of emergencies or disasters. This process can begin by addressing the following issues ... 

Tsunami waves represent extreme, often catastrophic events, which significantly and adversely impact coastal areas. In spite of the lower frequency of occurrence comparing to storms and storm-induced singes, tsunami-induced coastal flooding often leads to massive casualties and tremendous economic losses. Hence, tsunamis are rare events, high-impact natural disasters. 

Infrequent losses do not necessarily mean low or controlled risk, as evidenced by catastrophic events such as the space shuttle losses, the 2010 BP Gulf Deep Water Horizon oil spill (Deep Water, The Gulf Oil Disaster and the Future of Offshore Drilling, 2011), refinery explosions, and (Blast at BP Texas Refinery, 2005) and even disasters such as the sinking of the Titanic (Haverin, 2012). 

For example, accidents such as the Piper Alpha disaster [1] clearly illustrate that a highly complex sociotechnological system performance is dependent upon the interaction of human, technical, organizational, social, environmental, and managerial elements. More clearly, all these factors or elements can be very important cocontributors to incidents that could result in catastrophic events. Thus, this chapter presents various important aspects of human factors contribution to accidents in the oil and gas industry and fatalities in the industry. 

First, there is substantiated evidence that the frequency of catastrophic events such as natural hazards is increasing (Coleman 2006). Elkins et al. (2005) state that there has been an increase both, in the potential for dismptions and in their magnitude. And according to Munich Re s (2007) annual report on natural hazards, the comparison of the last 10 years with the 1960s reveals a significant increase in the number of natural hazards. The series of memorable crises and catastrophes that occurred in the past years imderscores this development. Natural disasters such as hurricane Katrina devastating New Orleans in 2005, terrorist acts such as the World Trade Center attack from September 11, 2001, and epidemics like SARS in South-East Asia in 2003 are violent reminders that we live in an unpredictable and increasingly unstable world. 

The second catastrophe that influenced the development of medicines regulation far more than any event in history was the thalidomide disaster. Thalidomide was a sedative and hypnotic that first went on sale in Western Germany in 1956. Between 1958 and 1960 it was introduced in 46 different countries worldwide resulting in an estimated 10,000 babies being born with phocomelia and other... 

Given terrorists focus on the news media as a conduit of their psychological warfare, the crisis response community competes with the perpetrators of violence for media and public attention. In this respect, a terrorist event is very different from other disasters—whether an explosion in a chemical or nuclear plant, hurricanes, floods, or other natural catastrophes. 

The possibiiity exists that in the event of a catastrophic disaster, the standard of care in the hospitai setting may have to be aitered. Advance pianning for such a situation can serve to save the most iives. 

Certain events are blatantly catastrophic, and it is immediately clear that a mass casualty incident has occurred. Activation of the disaster plan occurs and a structured response is mobilized. Other events, such as an apartment building fire may not immediately declare themselves as disasters as casualties accumulate and local resources are dispensed, it will be decided if part of the entire disaster plan must be activated. The on-scene incident commander may be a firefighter or other first responder, depending on the nature of the incident. Please see chapter 8, Disaster Management, for information regarding the structure and function of the Incident Command System. 

---