Disaster management involves preparing for, responding to, and recovering from disasters. It includes emergency response and relief, rehabilitation and reconstruction, mitigation, and preparedness. Mitigation refers to efforts to reduce disaster risks and impacts, and can include both structural measures like building flood defenses, and non-structural measures like educating the public. Different hazards require different mitigation strategies tailored to the specific risks. Floods, cyclones, earthquakes, landslides, and droughts are some of the major hazards addressed, along with examples of both structural and non-structural mitigation approaches for each.

1. Disaster Management
Shubhranshu Upadhyay
Architect Urban Planner

2. Key Words
Hazard
Disaster
Vulnerability
Risk
Disaster Management
Response & Relief
Rehabilitation & Reconstruction
Mitigation
Preparedness

3. Hazard
Dangerous event induced naturally or by human intervention that could
cause injury, loss of life, or damage to property or livelihoods.
Nature of hazard Examples
Natural Earthquake, tsunami
Natural & Human Drought, flooding
Human Accidents, War, terrorist attacks
Think about your native areas and identify the different
hazards that your area is prone to and list them as per
above mentioned categories of hazard.

4. Disaster
Disaster whether natural or human induced is an event which results
in widespread human loss. It is accompanied by loss of livelihood
and property causing suffering and loss in a definite area.
Disruption of normal life
Large scale loss
Big blow to country’s economy

5. Disaster Types
Slow onset disaster
Prevails for many days, months or even years.
Eg. Draught, pest infection, famine, environmental degradation.
Rapid onset disaster
Triggered by instantaneous shock.
Impact may be short lived or long term
E.g.. Earthquake, cyclone, flash flood, volcanic eruptions.
Speed

6. Disaster Types
Natural disaster
Caused by natural hazard
Leads to human, material, economic and environmental losses.
Examples 20004 Indian ocean Tsunami,
2008 earthquake in China
2007 cyclone in Myanmar
Human Induced disaster
Caused by human induced activities
Leads to human, material, economic and environmental losses.
Examples 1984 Bhopal gas tragedy,
1997 Uphaar cinema fire in N Delhi
2008 Jaipur serial blasts
Cause/ Origin

7. When does a Hazard lead to a Disaster
A Disaster occurs when the impact of a hazard on a section of
society is such that the people are unable to cope with the
event, causing loss of life, property and livelihoods.
If an earthquake strikes a desert it
would not be termed as disaster.
However if the similar earthquake or
even lesser in magnitude strikes a
densely populated area, it definitely be
counted as disaster.

8. Vulnerability
It is a condition determined by physical, social, economic and
environmental factors or processes, which increases the
susceptibility of a community to the impact of hazards.
Vulnerable Groups
Socially under privileged
Poor & indigent
People living in low lying areas
People living in slums and core areas
Fisherman living in costal areas

9. Risk
Probability of harmful consequences, or expected losses comprising
Deaths
Loss of property
Loss of livelihood
Disruption of economic activity
Environmental degradation
After 2004 Tsunami, Village Samiyarpettai in Tamilnadu reported fewer deaths
in comparison to neighboring districts .
Community members were trained in search and rescue, evacuation and first
aid. This helped them to respond effectively during disaster thereby saving a
large number of precious lives.

10. Disaster Management
Disaster management covers the range of activities designed to maintain
control over disasters/ emergency situations and to provide a framework
for helping people to avoid, reduce the effects, or recover from impact of a
disaster.
Relief & Recovery
Preparedness
Mitigation
Emergency Response

11. Disaster Management
Relief & Recovery
Rehabilitation & Reconstruction
Mitigation
Preparedness
Disaster Strikes
Emergency Response & Relief

12. Response & Relief
Immediate measures taken up before, during and after a
disaster.
Rehabilitation & Reconstruction
Operations and decisions taken after with a view to restore
affected community to its former living conditions.
Mitigation
Any action taken to minimize extent of disaster. Actions could
take place before, during and after the event.
However the term is used in context of potential disasters.
Preparedness
Measures taken before hazard event to ensure effective
response.
Disaster Management

13. Specific Hazards & Mitigation
Awareness & Preparedness go a long way in minimizing the
impact of a hazard.
Different hazards have different mitigation strategies.
This presentation outlines different types of hazards and
mitigation strategies adopted in each hazard.
Disaster Management
Mitigation refers to “ Any measure taken to minimize the impact of a
disaster or potential disaster. Mitigation can take place before, during
or after a disaster. However the term is used most often to refer to
actions taken against potential disasters.

14. Significance of Mitigation
Mitigation efforts help people by creating safer communities
and reducing loss of life and property. Some measures are
as follows.
Enforcement of building codes, flood proofing requirements,
seismic design standards and wind bracing requirements for
new construction
Construction of houses away from hazardous areas.
Retro fitting public buildings to withstand strong winds.
Building community shelters to help protect people in areas
prone to various hazards.
Disaster Management

15. Mitigation’s Value to Society
Disaster Management
It lessens the financial impact of disasters on government
and communities.
Enables individuals and communities to recover more
rapidly from disasters.
Mitigation creates safer communities by reducing losses of
life and property.

16. Mitigation efforts can be categorized as structural and non structural
Disaster Management
Non Structural
Training in Disaster Management, Public Education
Regulating Land use
Structural
Construction of river embankments, Strengthening existing
buildings

17. Disaster Management
Mitigation measures vary with each hazard.
While there are several common components in
forming basic mitigation strategy for various
disasters, there is need to know about the area
and its cultural, social, physical and economic
requirements

18. Disaster Management
Floods
Temporary inundation of large regions as a result of
increase in reservoir, or of rivers flooding their banks
because of heavy rains, high winds, cyclones, storm
surge along coastal areas, tsunami, melting of snow or
dam burst.
In India more
than 12%
land area is
prone to
Floods
Various agencies involved in tracking, monitoring and
issuing warning are:
i. Central water commission
ii. Irrigation and flood control department
iii. Water resources department
Except for
flash floods
there is a
reasonable
warning
period.
Occurs
gradually or
suddenly due
to breach of
water control
structures

19. Disaster Management
Floods
Structural Mitigation
Water shed management, making reservoirs,
Building on elevated areas
Natural water retention basins implementing flood control
measures, dam burst.
Non structural Mitigation
Mapping of flood plains
Land use control
Flood forecasting and warning

20. Disaster Management
Cyclone
Violent storms often of vast extent, characterized by high
winds rotating about a calm center of low atmospheric
pressure. This center moves onwards, often with velocity
of 50 km an hour.
E.g.. Cyclone
hit coastal
Orissa on 29th
October 1999
Various agencies involved in tracking, monitoring and
issuing warning are:
i. Department of relief and rehabilitation
ii. Indian meteorological department
Usually a
warning
period of 8 to
24 Hrs.
Occurs
suddenly
leaving very
little time to
evacuate

21. Disaster Management
Cyclone
Structural Mitigation
Multipurpose Cyclone structures
Engineered structures
Protection against winds
Coastal belt plantation
Construction of roads
Non structural Mitigation
Hazard Mapping
Land use control
Forecasting and warning

22. Disaster Management
Earthquakes
Sudden release of energy accumulated in deformed
rocks causing the ground to tremble or shake.
E.g.. 26th
January 2001
Bhuj District
of Gujarat
Various agencies involved in tracking, monitoring and
issuing warning are:
i. Department of Housing & Urban Development
ii. Department of Environment & Forest.
No Warning
Occurs
suddenly

23. Disaster Management
Earthquake Structural Mitigation
Preparing Engineered structures
Retrofitting of existing buildings
Non structural Mitigation
i. Enforcing Building codes
ii. Public awareness
iii. Reduce possible damage by
secondary effects like fire, floods.

24. Disaster Management
Land Slides
Slippery masses of rock earth or debris which move by
force of their own weight down mountain slopes or river
banks
E.g.
Uttarakhand
2013
Normally happen gradually
however sudden failure without
warning may happen

25. Disaster Management
Landslide
Structural Mitigation
i. Drainage corrections
ii. Engineered structures
Non structural Mitigation
i. Hazard mapping
ii. land use regulations
iii. awareness.

26. Disaster Management
Slow onset disaster and it is
difficult to demarcate time of its
onset and end.
Overall rain deficiency more than
10% of long period average and
more than 20 % area of country is
draught effected.
Drought
A climatic anomaly characterized by deficient supply of
moisture resulting either from sub normal rainfall,
erratic rainfall distribution, higher water need or a
combination of all the factors.

27. Disaster Management
Non Structural Mitigation
i. Drought monitoring
ii. Awareness
iii. Livelihood planning
Collection of non timber products
from community forests
iv. Land use planning
v. Crop insurance
Drought
Structural Mitigation
Rainwater harvesting

28. T h a n k Y o u