Disaster Mitigation
in Asia

31 March 2007
Issue No. 45

The Program for Hydro-meteorological Disaster Mitigation in Secondary Cities in Asia (PROMISE), funded by USAID/OFDA, commenced from October 2005. Through consultations with a number of ADPC partners, five project countries have been selected – Bangladesh, Pakistan, the Philippines, Sri Lanka and Vietnam – for implementing demonstration projects in each country in a highly vulnerable city with recent history of hydro-meteorological disasters. Other components of the program consist of capacity building, risk management advocacy, networking and dissemination initiatives in the selected countries. The objective of the program is to contribute towards reduction of vulnerability of urban communities through enhanced preparedness and mitigation of hydro-meteorological disasters in South and Southeast Asia. The main focus from April to June 2007 are: local-level skills training, planning for the conduct of national courses, and implementing the small-scale mitigation projects for each city.

 

PROMISE Activities for March and April 2007:

• BANGLADESH – BDPC conducted a training of trainors on Community Based Disaster Risk Management (CBDRM).  The training was held on March 14 to 16, and was attended by 30 change agents from the 10 Wards of Chittagong City Corporation that are included in PROMISE Bangladesh.  The sessions were on concepts of hydro-meteorological disasters, CBDRM, risk reduction, the roles of the change agents in CBDRM, and field work where participants tried out the participatory risk assessment techniques.  The training session ended with the commitment from the participants to conduct the CBDRM course at their respective wards.
  The project staffs visited a good number of schools in the project intervention area. They met with the members of school management committees and tried to sensitize them about the importance of school disaster management program. They also informed the school authorities about the different initiatives going to be taken under the school safety program.  The members of the school management committees in three schools in three different wards gave their consent to carry out the program in their respective schools.

• PAKISTAN – AKPBS(P) is updating the hazard and vulnerability study has been updated, and shared the assessment with the Taluka Nazim and other officials of Local Government System.  A detailed technical survey has been completed at two sites of the project: Hindu Ghera Busti in Union Council 13 and Maheshwari Colony in Union Council 14 of Latifabad Tehsil, Hyderabad. The consultation process with the community is ongoing to finalize demo projects.
  The project team organized two health and hygiene workshops in Hindu Ghera Basti and Ali Abad, where 29 and 40 women participated, respectively. The women were given an orientation on Personal Hygiene, Domestic Hygiene, Food Hygiene, and Environmental Hygiene.  The resource person imparted the concepts through pictorial messages and role plays. At the end of the activity the participants received hygiene kits that included: toilet soap, towel, nail clipper, hand gloves, etc.

• PHILIPPINES – CDP hosted a mission from ADPC for reviewing the progress made under PROMISE Philippines, and reviewing the plans for the coming year.  CDP also hosted a USAID mission for learning about disaster risk management in the Philippines.
  CDP and Dagupan City’s Technical Working Group (TWG) are preparing for a Medical First Response training to be facilitated by the Philippine Red Cross.  The training will be conducted on March 28-30 for 30 expected participants, three participants from each of the 8 pilot barangays and six participants from the city government. The sessions will be on Emergency Health and First Aid.
  The TWG participated in the book launching of Integrating Disaster Risk Management and Local Governance sponsored by UNDP South-South Cooperation in partnership with the Philippine Department of Interior And Local Government (DILG) and with CDP.  The launching was held on March 19.  Emma Molina, focal person of the TWG in Dagupan shared the PROMISE experience to the audience.  It was attended by 110 participants from 41 organizations from NGOs, local authorities, religious organizations, the media, and other institutions.  The Disaster Preparedness Calendars made under PROMISE Philippines were given out during the event.
  Activities for next month are preparation for upcoming drills, sharing what PROMISE Philippines has learned about Disaster Risk Management with the Baguio City Disaster Coordinating Council, and holding consultative meetings with the pilot barangays, other 23 barangays, neighboring municipalities, BANTAY-Dagupan and the local Media.

• SRI-LANKA – Sarvodaya continued organizing communities towards establishing a networking meeting of collaborating volunteers of the Early Warning System from communities upstream and downstream of Kaluganga River in the cities of Kalutara and Rathnapura.
  VIETNAM – CECI continued to do follow up on the housing program in support for the affected community by Xangsane typhoon in the project area, focusing on houses completed but not built in accordance with the design and requesting them to add some reinforced columns.  CECI continued developing the guidelines on safe construction techniques.  Final preparations for a CBDRM training were finished this month.  The CBDRM training would be done at six wards of the project area, but the investment for the disaster preparedness plan (DPP), the outcome of the training, will be focused at the most vulnerable wards.  Finally, CECI hosted the visit of the Ambassador of Canada HE Gabriel-M. Lessard to the rebuilt and repaired houses of the program on March 12.

A. FROM THE REGION

(1) Haze disaster zone to be set in Thailand

(based on reports from The Bangkok Post and The Nation)

On March 28, Interior permanent secretary Pongpayome Vasaputi ordered the governors of Chiang Mai, Chiang Rai and Mae Hong Son to again declare their provinces disaster zones, for the sake of residents' health.  As of March 28, haze continues to hang over the region, with levels of particulate dust smaller than 10 microns remaining above healthy levels: 127-132 micrograms per cubic metre (µg/cu m) in Chiang Mai, 157 in Chiang Rai and 165 in Mae Hong Son. The maximum acceptable safety standard is 120 µg/cu m.  The situation has persisted for about a month. 

Mae Hong Son Disaster Prevention and Mitigation chief Khom Jittariyapong said winds were blowing haze from fires in Myanmar into Mae Hong Son.  On May 16, The Nation reported that as many as 2,059 people in Chiang Mai and 1,000 people in Chiang Rai were seeking treatment at local hospitals every day – complaining of coughing, sore throats and eye irritation.  Earlier in March, rain and artificial rainmaking eased problems in Chiang Mai and Chiang Rai (rain helps dampen the airborne dust).  However, present artificial-rainmaking efforts have been foiled because conditions necessary for cloud seeding were unavailable in Thai airspace. 

(2) Two earthquakes hit Vanuatu and one hits Japan

(based on reports from USGS)

Three strong earthquakes hit within half an hour.  The first was at magnitude 7.1 and happened on March 25 at 00:40:02 (UTC) off Vanuatu.  The epicenter was located 125 km south of Isangel, Tanna, Vanuatu, at a depth 35 km.  There were no reports of damage.  The second earthquake had a magnitude of 6.7, occurred on 00:41:57 (UTC), and located 80 km north of Kanazawa, Honshu, Japan. 

(3)  ADPC participates at the World Water Day, 22 March 2007, Bangkok

ADPC participated in the commemoration of the World Water Day (WWD) in a special event on last March 22 at the United Nations Conference Centre (UNCC), Bangkok.  ADPC's exhibit at the World Water Day 2007 showcased Capacity Building at the National, Provincial and District Levels through its Flood Emergency Management Strengthening (FEMS): the component 4 of Mekong River Commission's Flood Management and Mitigation Program (FMMP), and ADB TA Community Self-Reliance and Flood Risk Reduction. Excerpts from ADPC publication, developed through the platform of the WMO/GWP Associated Programme on Flood Management (APFM) covering Social Aspects and Stakeholder Involvement in Integrated Flood Management was also featured in the exhibit through a slide show.  ADPC’s presentations and some photos can be

found here: http://203.159.16.18/adpc/ADPC%20NEWS%20&%20EVENTS/March/World%20Water%20Day%202007.asp . 

(4) Indonesian earthquake kills 72

(based on reports from Reuters and USGS)

A strong earthquake and a powerful aftershock hit Indonesia's Sumatra Island on March 6, 0349 GMT.  Seventy-two people died and hundreds lost their homes.  The earthquake measured 6.4 in magnitude, and the aftershock measured 6.3.  The epicenter was located at 50 km NNE of Padang, Sumatra, at a depth of 19 km.

B. CALLS FOR SUBMISSION

(5) Call for Applications: Second International Summer School on Information Systems for Crisis Response and Management

Applications are invited from students in PhD programs in Information Systems, Computer Science, Organization Research, Management Science, and Operations Research, or in other fields with research interests related to crisis management.  This year's summer school, which takes place June 20-27, 2007, at Tilburg University in the Netherlands, has a theme of "Information Systems for Global Disaster Risks and Humanitarian Assistance."  The deadline for applications is Monday, April 9, 2007.  More information about the program, including application instructions, can be viewed here, http://iscram.org.

C.   CONFERENCES AND COURSES

(6) Disaster Management Course Bangkok, Thailand: May 14-June 1, 2007

Organizer: Asian Disaster Preparedness Center (ADPC). The purpose of this course is to provide comprehensive disaster management knowledge and skills to effectively integrate disaster management into development programs and policies.  To learn more, visit http://www.adpc.net/trg06/trg_home.htm.

D.  USEFUL RESOURCES

(7) “Let disaster come, we are prepared to face it”

This is an online news article from India News about a small community and how they prepared themselves for disaster using community level disaster management techniques. 

The article can be found here: http://www.indiaenews.com/india/20070225/40865.htm. 

(8) Worldmapper

Worldmapper is a collection of world maps, where territories are re-sized on each map according to different subject of interest.  There are 366 maps, also available for download as PDF posters.  The data used for the maps can also be downloaded.  Of particular interest are the disaster maps, which show the prevalence of disasters, the number of people affected or killed by disasters, and more. 

The disaster map list can be found here: http://www.worldmapper.org/textindex/text_disaster.html. 

(9) “Tools for Mainstreaming Disaster Risk Reduction: Guidance Notes for Development Organisations”

This publication supports this process, providing a series of 14 guidance notes for use by development organisations in adapting programming, project appraisal and evaluation tools to mainstream disaster risk reduction into development work in hazard-prone countries. 

The series can be found here: http://www.proventionconsortium.org/?pageid=37&publicationid=132#132 .

 (10) “Let Our Children Teach Us!” by Wisner

This publication is a review of the role of education and knowledge in disaster risk reduction.  It examines good practices to reduce disaster risk through education, knowledge and innovation. 

The review is found here: http://www.proventionconsortium.org/?pageid=37&publicationid=129#129.