Finzi, Y.; Ganz, N.; Limon, Y.; Langer, S. Improving Community Resilience and Emergency Plans by Mapping Risk and Preparedness at the Neighborhood Scale. GeoHazards2021, 2, 120-136.
Finzi, Y.; Ganz, N.; Limon, Y.; Langer, S. Improving Community Resilience and Emergency Plans by Mapping Risk and Preparedness at the Neighborhood Scale. GeoHazards 2021, 2, 120-136.
Finzi, Y.; Ganz, N.; Limon, Y.; Langer, S. Improving Community Resilience and Emergency Plans by Mapping Risk and Preparedness at the Neighborhood Scale. GeoHazards2021, 2, 120-136.
Finzi, Y.; Ganz, N.; Limon, Y.; Langer, S. Improving Community Resilience and Emergency Plans by Mapping Risk and Preparedness at the Neighborhood Scale. GeoHazards 2021, 2, 120-136.
Abstract
People living in areas of significant seismic risk seldom undertake sufficient preparations to safeguard their family. This is most problematic in remote communities such as those along the Dead Sea Fault, Israel, where self-reliance is a key factor in coping with disasters. To facilitate individual and familial involvement in earthquake preparedness in remote areas, we designed a tool for self-assessment of risk and preparedness. The personalized risk assessment is based on national hazard and building standards, and on personal input regarding structure characteristics. The risk and preparedness evaluations enhance awareness and provide immediate feedback to help users improve familial preparedness. Spatial analysis of the data collected is used to form high-resolution maps that expose specific challenges for emergency response. A study conducted in the town of Mitzpe Ramon exposed neighborhoods with relatively high risk of damage and low preparedness. Integrating these results with seasonal stress-factors such as peak tourism and extreme weather, provides new and important insights on the ability of the local community and emergency forces to cope with multi-hazard situations. Analysis of the heterogeneous distribution of expected hardship within a community should be implemented world-wide to improve risk mitigation.
Keywords
Community resilience; risk reduction; disaster response; preparedness; seasonality in emergency
Subject
Environmental and Earth Sciences, Atmospheric Science and Meteorology
Copyright:
This is an open access article distributed under the Creative Commons Attribution License which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and reproduction in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited.
