How do lack of proper planning and inadequate training hamper our ability to cope with a disaster?
Answers
Disasters, including man-made ones, are an ever-present threat and are occurring at an increasing rate worldwide. Continuing terrorist attacks worldwide are likely to sustain attention to disaster planning, particularly in Middle Eastern countries. Since 2003, Iraq has been experiencing an unprecedented series of damaging events. Increased attention has been given to the country's arrangements for disaster management by policymakers. Disaster response is one of the critical phases in the Disaster Management System life cycle. Disaster response is defined as actions taken in anticipation of, during, and immediately after an emergency to ensure that its effects are minimised, and that people affected are given immediate relief and support. The research intends to evaluate the disaster response management phase based on the four management functions: planning, organising, directing and controlling. This paper focuses on the planning stage of disaster response management with the events caused by war operations and terrorism activities in Iraq. The disaster planning process, which is a sequence of steps by which an emergency plan is prepared or reviewed, is the most effective phase of disaster response management as it helps to develop the coordination that response teams will need during an actual emergency. This article aims to present the partial findings of an evaluation conducted on disaster response planning process resulting from war operations and terrorism in Iraq. As such the challenges faced at the planning stage of disaster response management are presented in this paper. The findings are based on intensive interviews and questionnaire surveys with executives responsible for disaster response in Iraqi General Directorate of Civil Defence and based on a documentary review that took into consideration all major documents related to disaster response planning in this directorate in addition to the comprehensive literature review. The major challenges associated with disaster response planning are the failure in strictly applying the law, the lack of public and staff education about disaster risks, poor urban planning, unstable security situation, citizen intervention, endowment of equipment, tools and infrastructure and lack of financial resources.