More often than not individuals suffer the harsh effects of natural disasters. Lives get lost while properties worth millions of dollars endure utter destruction. Reconstruction is mostly costly; it occurs gradually, and thus, it takes time before victims are restored to their normal lives. In truth, there is no normality even after the rebuilding and repair of houses and institutions; the loss that individuals in the society suffer is too great to guarantee that things will be the same as before. Owing to this, the best way to deal with such events is to look forward and move on, but with a more confident approach towards dealing with some of the disasters that may occur. The United States, for instance, has been a victim of some natural disasters such as earthquakes, hurricanes, tsunamis, floods, among others. The country's susceptibility to these natural occurrences has demanded innovation in the field of technology; following extreme pressure, scientists have developed ways in which some of these natural disasters can be monitored and hence their occurrence predicted. Central to this paper will be three critical natural disasters: floods, earthquakes and cyclones.
Floods
Geography
According to Klemas (2014) systems that, “… provide much of the required information for delineating the flood-affected areas, assessing the damage, and feeding models that can predict the vulnerability to flooding of inland and coastal areas". Thus, accurate determination of a region’s vulnerability to flooding is important when it comes to habitat conservation, coastal protection planning and definition of littoral boundary. Thus, flood vulnerability prediction methods can help in the mitigation of a number of flood-induced hazards. Coastal regions have been found vulnerable to storm-induced flooding, which brings about other damages; this causes problems for the coastal population, which has continued to increase rapidly while the sea level keeps rising (Klemas, 2014). Geographically, various countries and cities around the globe have been found to be at a high risk of flooding. These countries are such as: the United States of America, Indonesia, China, Japan, Ivory Coast, Vietnam, Ecuador, India, and Thailand.
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Resources
Various resources are used to monitor the likelihood of flooding. For instance, optical and radar remote sensing systems on aircrafts and satellites have been used to provide required information for observation and delineation of flood-affected regions, damage assessment and other models, which can be used to evaluate a regions vulnerability to flooding; the focus is on both inland as well as coastal regions (Klemas, 2014). An example of a web resource is the Environment Agency flood-monitoring Application Program Interface (API). It provides individuals with real-time data about: flood alerts and warnings, flood areas that the warnings and alerts apply, a forecast of risks associated with the potential floods, measurement of levels and flows of water and lastly, information on the monitoring stations that provide the measurements. APIs are the most commonly used web resources when monitoring floods.
Disaster preparedness systems
Before floods begin, individuals in flood prone areas are advised to evacuate themselves as well as their families. In such areas, local officials follow advice from the government to help in the evacuation process. In some cases, individuals are shifted to new far-away locations, while in some; they are advised to move to higher ground. Other than that, there are measures developed to protect properties from the risk of damage (Klemas, 2014). For instance, individuals can elevate critical utilities such as sockets, appliances, wiring, switches, heating systems, as well as waterproofing basements (Klemas, 2014). Thus, the disaster preparedness model for floods emphasizes both on personal as well as property protection.
Earthquakes
Geography
According toLall and Diechmann (2012), “… 370 million people live in cities in earthquake prone areas and 310 million in cities with a high probability of tropical cyclones". A look at the list of the world’s 20 cities, which are considered as most vulnerable to earthquake, contains only three key locations, which are all Japanese. Sharp (2009) identified that based on epidemiological studies, the poorest sections of city populations are the ones most vulnerable to earthquake. According to a report under the United Nations, in the last 25 years, one billion people were included in the population of cities in developing countries. An important thing to note is that a disproportionate number of the cities were found to be prone to earthquakes (Sharp, 2009). Countries, which have been found to be susceptible to earthquakes, are such as: Turkey, Nepal, India, Ecuador, Philippines, Pakistan, El Salvador, Mexico, Indonesia, and Japan. In some of the countries mentioned, there are multiple cities, which are categorized under the most earthquake-vulnerable regions around the globe.
Resources
Unlike floods, earthquakes are monitored through a technology referred to as a seismograph. It is used to record events, which are located using the time of arrival of seismic waves at a seismograph station (Braile, 2009). The routine of monitoring through global, regional, as well as local seismograph networks is automated with the aim of allowing event locations and magnitude determinations to be made available for distribution in online platforms immediately an earthquake occurs (Braile, 2009). This allows real-time online displays of both global and regional earthquake activity, which can be viewed via the Incorporated Research Institutions for Seismology’s (IRIS) monitor for seismic incidences. Information technology experts, in conjunction with scientists, have also developed smartphone applications, which allow users to monitor seismic activities as they occur (Sharp, 2009).
Disaster preparedness systems
When it comes to earthquakes, individuals are advised to attend training sessions, whereby they are exposed to first aid exercise. They are warned that those whose houses are mobile are at an increased risk of earthquake. For this reason, the most likely choice to make is to evacuate before an earthquake occurs. In various cities, there are disaster preparedness hubs, which provide further information on what individuals should do. Thus, communities, especially those in developed countries are at an advantage as they have access to facilities that safeguard them from the effects caused by earthquakes.
Cyclones
Geography
Apart from earthquakes and floods, cyclones are identified as the worst natural disasters due to the death toll associated with their occurrence. Although cyclones can be experienced in many areas around the globe, about 75% of all tropical cyclones occur in the Northern Hemisphere. The western part of the North Pacific Ocean is considered to have the greatest number of storms in a yearly basis. According to Keote, Kumar and Singh (2015) the east coast and upper regions of the west coast of India are largely vulnerable to severe cyclones. Regionally, Asia is considered to have the five most exposed countries, which are India, Bangladesh, Philippines, China, and Japan. According to Ahmed, Rahman and Faisal (2012), “Bangladesh is one of the most cyclone prone countries in the world. The geographical location and climatic condition of the country are responsible for cyclone and other natural Disasters".
Resources
Currently, there are no systems used to analyze and predict cyclones. However, meteorologists have approved the use of Google Maps API, which allows visitors to access a web-based system that was developed to assess the prediction and analysis of cyclones (Leung, et al., 2012). Mainly the system is used for knowledge dissemination to the general public, but researchers and professionals use it as a base for their studies and analysis. However, satellite technology is considered as the main instrument that is used to help meteorologists monitor cyclones. After that, they disseminate the information on websites for the general public to access.
Disaster preparedness systems
In cyclone prone areas, communities are provided with information such as signals and warning alerts in order to mitigate the challenges of catastrophic cyclones. In Bangladesh, for instance, there is a government program that provides an early warning system for the populations leaving in the coastal region of the country’s 13 districts. The Cyclone Preparedness Program (CPP) takes the role of providing shelter, rescue missions and immediate medical attention (Sharp, 2009). Other countries around the globe have a similar approach towards cyclone preparedness. In general, the system is based on limiting the effects of cyclones on individuals, before assessing whether property can be saved or not.
Political impact
Natural disasters also have a political impact, apart from socio-economic influence on the lives of individuals in the communities and societies affected. Notably, there is a gap when it comes to technological advancement between developed and less-developed nations. Comparatively, more developed nations are at an advantage when it comes to disaster preparedness systems as opposed to less-developed or developing countries. In this regard, and with an attempt to safeguard the well-being of their citizens, less developed countries have resorted to forming political relationships with more developed countries.
On the other hand, developed countries perceive this call to aid as an opportunity to advance their interests, whether diplomatic or economic. Thus, the relationship created becomes more of political in nature rather than being one based on one country providing aid to another with an aim to save lives. Saintz-Santamaria and Anderson (2014) noted that some individuals in the government manipulate their positions when calling for funds to enhance disaster preparedness plans; they use this opportunity to achieve their electoral goals rather than promote public safety. The relationship between developed and less developed countries can thus be described in a similar manner.
A similar case can be said about relationships between less developed countries. In the event that one country is able to adopt such kind of disaster preparedness technology, a bordering country may develop the need to have access to that particular technology as well. This can enhance trade relations between developing countries thereby creating a system of interconnections between and among countries.
Economic impact
Disasters have been found to have major economic effects on communities and societies where they are experienced. Apart from loss of lives, natural disasters bring about destruction of property thus leading to costs of reconstruction, repair as well as maintenance. While that is the case, it is important to note that the death of individuals leads to a deficit in availability of labor thereby prompting a country to outsource jobs to other countries, which is mostly costly. Therefore, the economic effects of natural disasters are varied and are spread out in the society. In fact, they are associated with social impacts, for instance the loss of lives as has been mentioned. Thus, when talking about the economic impact of natural disasters, it is fundamental to consider the social effects as well.
In truth, disaster monitoring technologies have been of major positive impact especially on the economies of already developed countries compared to those that do not. Notably, disaster preparedness systems are created based on information obtained from monitoring natural phenomenon; for instance, scientists are able to detect the likelihood of floods and with this information, they deliver warnings and alerts to at risk populations. In such a case, these countries are able to avoid economic calamities such as destruction of property as they are able to create plans, prior to natural disasters, with an attempt to mitigate effects. Izadkhah and Hosseini (2004) noted that communication of information is integral when it comes to disaster awareness, management as well as preparedness. Through the internet, information is spread to the general public who are briefed on what to do whenever a disaster is about to occur. In turn, this helps a country secure its economy through protecting the lives of individuals who form part of the labor force and hence lead to revenue generation.
Unfortunately, that is not the case when it comes to less developed nations. They tend to suffer huge economic losses when disasters strike. Part of the reason is because they do not have access to disaster monitoring technology as it is the case with more developed nations. This has led to increased levels of low standards of living. In support of this, Knowles and Bergey (2013) noted that natural disasters lead to environmental degradation, and destruction of both lives and property, have reinforced poverty.
Summary
Floods, earthquakes and cyclones are considerably among the worst natural disasters in the history of mankind. However, over time, there have been major developments in the field of technology, some of which are focused on monitoring natural phenomena such as floods, earthquakes, cyclones, drought, tsunamis, among others. Of the three natural disasters discussed above, there is no web-based technology as yet that has been able to provide up-to-date information on cyclones. However, in order to keep the public aware of what is going on, scientists analyze and asses data gathered from satellite technology and in turn put the information online; through this approach, individuals are able to identify themselves with information regarding weather patterns, climate and the likelihood of a natural disaster occurring. As a result, it becomes easy for communities to develop disaster preparedness systems in the event that they are struck by a natural catastrophe such as the ones mentioned above.
Disaster preparedness technology has been found to have some level of influence both political and economic. For instance, the relationship between developed and less-developed countries is likely to improve if there is sharing of technology and ideas of how to integrate disaster monitoring systems for less-developed nations. However, in some cases, the political side of it may have more weight as in the end; it is about what both sets of countries can offer each other. On one hand, developed nations may, for instance, develop interest in trade relations, while on the other hand; less-developed nations are forced to agree since they need help with installation of disaster monitoring technologies.
References
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Braile, L.W., (2009). Seismic monitoring, in Young, R., and Norby, L., Geological Monitoring: Boulder, Colorado, Geological Society of America , p. 229–244, doi: 10.1130/2009.monitoring(10).
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Keote, A. S., Kumar, D. & Singh, R. (2015).Construction of Low Rise Buildings in Cyclone Prone Areas and Modification of Cyclone. Journal of Energy Power Sources , 2(7): 247-252. Retrieved from http://www.ethanpublishing.com/uploadfile/2015/0813/20150813112547790.pdf
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