Category: Disaster

Introduction

There are a few natural processes that can be as scary as an earthquake. A human can brace for typhoons by staying indoors. A well-constructed house can withstand normal typhoons. Flooding can be defeated by planning and create mechanisms that will limit the rapid collection of water in cities and other populated areas. Forest fires can be overcome with a well-trained crew of firefighters. But the best system in the world and the best organization on the planet could never defeat an earthquake.

This is because earthquakes can come suddenly and without warning come with such destructive force, it can easily level a city. A high magnitude earthquake shook Central Italy and the worst hit was the city of Aquila. In the aftermath the pain and sorrow were palpable but it did not take long before the people decided to move on. They continued to grieve for dead loved ones but at the same time, they demanded that the government make a serious attempt to increase earthquake safety in Italy.

Terrible Quake

There is one phrase that is used to express trepidation and the one expressing it will say that he is quaking in fear. This phrase goes to show the terrifying prospect of being caught in the middle of an earthshaking calamity. The same fear was felt by the residents of Aquila, Italy when a 6.3 magnitude earthquake did not only shatter the peace of dawn but also laid many Italians to rest in eternity. Moreover, the tremor destroyed old buildings the damage that resulted from the violent shaking of the earth could not only be measured by financial ruin alone for this is a historic city in the middle of a very important country.

The fear generated by an earthquake is linked to its sudden occurrence. There are no warning signs. The best and the brightest, together with their numerous college degrees as well as their slick instruments are no match for the invisible force of an earthquake. For centuries many had tried to develop a way to predict earthquakes but so far no one had succeeded to come close with even a basic early warning device. This could be due to the sheer size of the earths tectonic plates. It could also be because no one can track down all the moving objects beneath the earths surface. No instrument can measure magma and account for the planets tectonic plates.

A forest fire though it is destructive can be tamed and even prevented. A knowledgeable team of professionals can reduce the risk of a forest fire by performing the necessary task of removing highly combustible materials in the forest. Even if there are a few qualified people with the high level of expertise needed to prevent forest fires, a well-equipped fire fighting force can be called upon to put down minor fires before they can escalate into catastrophic levels. Forest fires still occur regardless of prevention efforts but still one can argue that they can be prevented. It is not too often that forest fires figure in news headlines. This can be the proof that it can be managed or at least it is possible to mitigate the risk.

Typhoons are also as deadly as forest fires and as destructive as an earthquake. Winds moving at high velocity can easily destroy huge structures, damage vehicles, and at the same time bring in heavy volumes of rainwater that can even cause more devastation even if the winds had already died down. After a city has been battered with cyclonic winds the water brought in by a superstorm will remain for days or even weeks and the health problems brought upon by flooded streets can easily raise the casualty rate.

While cyclones are very destructive and while floodwater can easily upset the normal routine of individuals the aforementioned natural phenomenon can be detected far in advance. It is very possible to know the movement of strong winds days before landfall. There is enough time to warn residents and if needed there is time to evacuate the people and move them into a much safer place. An ordinary typhoon may carry strong winds but modern houses and well-constructed buildings can easily handle the impact of howling winds.

While there is ample time to prepare and counter the effect of typhoons and forest fires, there is still no equipment or method of analysis that can help predict earthquakes. If there was then the casualties of the Aquila quake would still be living right now and able to enjoy the company of loved ones. But the bitter truth is that the best scientists can do is to engage in scientific guesswork but no one can claim with certainty that they can predict the next big seismic activity. The family of the victims of the Aquila quake knew this for a fact but it was still hard to accept that someones daughter, son, father, or mother was buried under thick rubble.

Another major problem when it comes to increasing the level of preparedness against earthquakes is that there seems to be no logical defense against them. Going back to the analogy of typhoons and other natural disasters one will realize that to survive natural calamities the defenses that are put up are anchored on the earth. For instance, buildings that are used as shelters, man-made structures that people will use for protection from a heavy downpour, or even a tornado are constructed using the ground as a foundation. But what will happen if the ground moves? This is the dilemma when it comes to figuring out how to defeat an earthquake.

Gravity pulls every organic and inorganic thing towards the earth. Unless man figures out a way to fly there is no escaping the earths grasp. Man will forever be a terrestrial being and it has to come to terms with earthquakes. If it cannot be predicted then technology must be improved to make houses and public buildings earthquake-proof. There must be a way to minimize damage and there must be strategies that can be used to increase the level of safety in homes. Former victims of earthquakes must not forever cower in fear in anxious anticipation for the next big one.

Social Impact

The death toll rose to as high as 235 (Donadio & Povoledo, par. 1). The quake did not discriminate between young, old, and very young. It did not discriminate between father, mother, and child. Some students were buried under collapsed buildings, there were old women crushed under broken homes. There were at least 17,000 people who were left homeless (Donadio & Povoledo, par. 12). Countless people will remain emotionally scarred for the rest of their lives.

Property damage is difficult to assess. One is not merely talking about subsidized government housing or new buildings that were constructed a few years ago. This is the region where history books as well as countless novels use for their setting. This is a place where one can find buildings that were constructed hundreds of years before the creation of the United States of America. That goes to show how priceless are building that was damaged by the tremor a few weeks ago.

In a normal earthquake tragedy, there are only three things that are of primary concern:

1. the number of casualties and injured;
2. the magnitude of the earthquake that registered on the Richter scale and
3. property damage.

In the case of the Aquila quake, there are other aspects of the tragedy that requires in-depth analysis forcing the reader to ask for more than the usual statistical information. First of all the epicenter of the earthquake is relatively close to the Vatican, a sacred place for close to a billion people all over the world. Secondly, Central Italy is full of historical landmarks, old buildings and played a significant part in the shaping of European history (Donadio & Povoledo, par. 1). Finally, the magnitude of the quake is a mere 6.3; still strong but it should not have leveled a city belonging to one of the richest nations in the world.

When an earthquake hits the first question is location. Where did it occur? The urgency of the question is due to concern that one may know someone living at ground zero. If the quake happened far away one can offer prayers for the victims but after a brief pause, the tragedy is quickly forgotten, especially if no known relative or friend lives or work in the said area. This time around strangers have every reason to be a concern because the epicenter of the tremor was very close to the Vatican, the official residence of the Pope, the most revered man in the whole of Christendom.

Aside from the safety of the Pope, his cardinals, the numerous priests living in Rome there is also great fear that the most treasured architecture and artifacts as far as Roman Catholics are concerned will be buried from the recent seismic activity. This is the reason why the earthquake last April of 2009 was felt and heard all over the world. This is also the reason why there was an overwhelming outpouring of support. Even the newly elected President Obama offered to help preserve the regions cultural and artistic heritage (Donadio & Povoledo, par. 9).

The spotlight was focused on the faith of the people not only because of the location of the earthquake but also because the tragedy happened days before Easter, one of the most important days for Christians all over the world. For this reason, The Vatican granted a special dispensation to hold a Mass on Good Friday, the only day on the Roman Catholic Calendar on which Mass is not normally celebrated (Gera & David, par. 5). If there is any consolation it is the realization that they have the Pope to urge them not to give up hope (Gera & David, par. 1).

There is no price tag for human life and the more than 200 people who died will be missed terribly by family and friends alike. But there is also the issue of the homeless. If the money that was supposed to be invested in ensuring that buildings pass seismic standards the cost of housing and taking care of thousands of homeless people would have been much less. Still, this is not the time to count the monetary cost of helping the victims. There is a need to help especially the kind that will give the victims and the survivors the ability to cope. Italy will never experience rest from significant seismic activity. It is located in two major fault lines and this is the reason why from time to time Italy will experience deadly tremors. This is now the time to look into the future and do everything that they can to prevent this tragedy from occurring again.

Safety First

In the aftermath of the tragedy, many were still dazed and numb with fear. Occasional but powerful aftershocks will deny the residents of Aquila the rest that they so needed. While many are still grieving the whole nation is asking the question as to why a 6.3 quake can do so much damage. It was already mentioned before that this type of intensity can cause serious damage but not this kind of damage. There is also the complaint that this is one of the richest nations on this planet so there should be an explanation why even modern buildings were not spared from the quake while other structures remained unscathed.

Some are upset because this is not the first time that a high magnitude quake devastated Italy. In 1980 2,500 people were killed after a massive tremor hit the southern town of Irpinia and in 2002 an earthquake measuring a mere 5.5 on the Richter scale brought down an elementary school in the southern Molise region (Israel, par. 7). This means that the government is not investing in technology that could easily prevent buildings from caving in. Some pointed out the irony that Italy is a member of the G8, the association of highly industrialized nations in the planet to which the U.S. and UK belong (Israeli, par. 7).

It is easy to understand if there will be a lot of finger-pointing. But the main reason why this problem was not taken care of a long time ago was summarized by one resident who said, There is a chronic incapacity of Italian leaders to think in the long term, or even beyond the next election. To invest in proper seismic standards doesnt get you votes (Israeli, par. 9). The observation cuts to the bone of Italian politics but as mentioned earlier other factors made it difficult or even practical to pour huge sums of money over a project that will not guarantee solid results. Still, the number of dead Italians, as well as the 17,000 homeless people, will now force Italian leaders to do much more than offer their condolences.

Conclusion

Indeed there is nothing as destructive as an earthquake. It comes suddenly and sometimes it comes in the middle of the night when children are fast asleep. On other occasions, it comes when parents are away and helpless to rush in to save their children or pluck them out from the debris that engulfed them. Earthquakes are unpredictable, providing no warning but when it arrives it comes with a fury that can knock huge man-made structures. Everyone can prepare for floods, storms, and even fires but there is no way that one can be one hundred percent prepared for an earthquake.

The best that could be done is to develop structures that can withstand the impact of a high-intensity quake. This realization came too late for many Italians who died last April. Many are blaming the government for its failure to prepare for this day of reckoning. Many agree with them because Italy is a G8 country, one of the richest nations in the world and it is a shame that they could not prepare for an earthquake the measured just 6.3 on the Richter scale. Truly a 6.3 seismic activity can readily do damage but not the kind of devastation experienced in Aquila and not in the 21st century.

Works Cited

Donadio, Rachel & Elisabetta Povoledo. Rescuers Scramble in Search for Quake Survivors. Web.

Gera, Vanessa & Ariel David. Pope Urges Quake Survivors to Keep Up Hope. 2009. Time Magazine Archives. Web.

Israely, Jeff. Italy Buries Its Dead and Questions Earthquake Safety.

TimeMagazines Archive. Web.

Natural disasters traditionally have been reasoned to be an effect of environmental conditions like volcanoes, cyclones, earthquakes, droughts, etc. They have considered human contribution in the disasters as passive agents. However in the early 1980s there had been radical critique from social geographers on environmental lines, who argued that humans are also, largely, are responsible in the advent of disorders. They argue, Sociologists&are concerned almost exclusively with the structures, functions and activities of formal organizations and the impact of disasters upon them and generally accord the environment a minor role. (Bankoff, p. 50) According to them disaster is defined as something framed by human behavior at a specific moment.

Another definition of disaster, which has become widespread, is the view that disaster is an integral part of the environment and the human system. Here they emphasize on town, community, region, etc. and such other developments which make them vulnerable to the eminent natural disasters. Thus, the argument rests on the belief that disasters are embedded in the daily human conditions, which establishes a link between society, culture and environment.

So far, the definitions of disaster as provided by the geographers, anthropologists and other social scientists is that related to the environment. However, Anthony Oliver-Smith has associated with another belief of disaster where it is associated with a wide array of contemporary problems (Oliver-Smith). His contention is that disaster so far has been treated by different fields by concentrating on their own area as in case of organizational behavior (sociology), place (geography), and policy assessment (political science). Therefore, it would be wrong while theorizing disaster to consider only on particular aspect as it removes the multidimensionality out of the process.

It is believed that disasters are caused due to the vulnerability in human society, which results in disasters. They are natural, physical, economic, social, political, technological, ideological, cultural, educational, ecological, and institutional vulnerability. These have been embedded in a value chain where the ideologies of political and economic systems affect the allocation and distribution of resources, and believe that these ideologies being the root cause of disasters. Thus, the vulnerability theorists believe that disasters are caused due to society and not of nature.

The Green Revolutionists have argued that the western world has relentlessly furthered the limits of the environment in order to gain economic profit. This according them has disturbed the natural balance of the ecology resulting in disasters. Therefore, it can be said that the main cause for disaster is not natural; often man made causes bring disaster.

One of the first goals of authorities after any disaster is to deny its predictability.

Authorities ideas are mainly rooted in the traditional view of disaster where they blindly give the reason for the disaster to natural causes unforeseen or unpredictable by them. It is similar to the guilty feeling of the survivors of a disaster where they are unable to associate with a world where his/her neighbor died and he survived. (Erikson, In the Wake of Flood)He blames it to the hand of God. Similar is the situation with the authorities.

For instance consider the case of Grassy Narrow in 1979 (Erikson, A New Species of Trouble: Explorations in Disaster, Trauma, and Community). The plant emitted waste methyl mercury into the river. This infected the fishes and those who consumed the water. As this mercury could not be traced in the human tissue and affects the most vulnerable parts of human body, it caused a danger to the health of the residents in the area. When the blood and hair samples were tested pathologically, there were no specific instance of poisoning could be found, thus making the result inconclusive. This clearly indicates that the authorities were fast enough to blame the reason on some other reason other than human caused reason of the disaster that had affected the region and for which it was not in a position to predict it earlier. Though the mercury was initially emitted by the paper mill, when it reached Grassy Narrow it was absorbed in the environment and so the blame obviously fell on nature.

As most disasters are reason to be caused by natural causes, it becomes easy for authorities to put the blame on nature, which off course, cannot be predicted. For instance, the case of a typhoon, when a typhoon occurs, it is difficult to understand what the real cause of it was. However, the authorities invariably blame it on natural cycle, which is above its control.

This avoidance of the reason of a disaster on the part of the authorities is related to the political aspects of risk. In the pre-industrial society, the causes of natural disasters were invariably assigned to supernatural forces. In the industrial era, the blame shifted to the wider societal forces.

Now if we consider the case of Bangladesh, a country situated in the Asian subcontinent, which is open to repeated natural disasters like flood (Bankoff). Now the people living in the area are accustomed to the situation and set their crop cycles in tune with the timing of the floods. This reduces the vulnerability of the area. However, the authorities fail to make a dam or reservoir to prevent the flood in the first place. The reason is again blamed on natural causes. However, this is preventive disaster as its advent is moreover cyclic and can be predicted.

Clearly, the authorities have a tendency of blaming the reason for a disaster on unpredictable reasons even if they are refutable.

Works Cited

Bankoff, G. Cultures of Disaster: Society and Natural Hazard in the Philippines.

Erikson, K. A New Species of Trouble: Explorations in Disaster, Trauma, and Community.

Erikson, K. In the Wake of Flood.

Oliver-Smith, A. Theorizing Disaster: Nature, Culture, and Power.

There are various approaches to organizational change; among them, we can mark out hierarchical and network models, both of them can be used effectively under certain circumstances. In this paper, we need to discuss their advantages and disadvantages in connection with emergency management. In particular, we may focus on such disasters as Hurricane Katrina, because it demonstrates that the functioning of NIMS (National Incident Management System) still leaves much to be desired.

On the whole, we should say that command or hierarchy is more appropriate when swift actions must be taken; such cases include military conflicts, technological catastrophes, or natural disasters. The major benefit of this method is that it enables governmental agencies to reorganize themselves quickly and act according to the situation (Anderson et al, 2004, p 5). Another positive aspect of this technique is the ability to coordinate the actions of the participants and most importantly, the opportunity to obtain the most up-to-date and relevant information. But there are significant drawbacks especially in comparison with the network model; first, non-governmental agencies cannot fully participate (Waugh et al, 2006, p 133).

As it has been noted before, all institutions are subordinate to the higher authority, and this significantly hinders the decision-making process, especially if they are isolated from the central leadership. In sharp contrast, the network approach helps to establish effective cooperation among public and private organizations. Probably, it is more prudent to combine these techniques to curb the effects of a calamity like Hurricane Katrina.

To prevent scenarios similar to the events, which occurred in New Orleans, it is of crucial importance to utilize adaptive management. It is based on a constant assessment of the situation and simultaneous decision-making. This method is very helpful for handling and preventing natural disasters. In this case, the officials should first analyze possible threats or risks of living in a certain area, such as earthquakes, floods, hurricanes, forest fires, and forth. Secondly, the government has to predict peoples behavior in an emergency situation. How exactly can they behave? Are there any alternatives variants?

The action plan is developed only after; the management has explored all possible outcomes (Waugh et al, 2006, 138). Furthermore, in accordance with this approach, the data must be always updated. Provided that adaptive management had been used in New Orleans, many deaths could have been averted. At that moment, rescuers could not efficiently help the victims, because they did not take into account peoples responses. Subsequently, this lack of knowledge led to discord and even a waste of invaluable time. Overall, adaptive management helps to raise the level of readiness.

It is very difficult to determine which management approach will be most applicable for handling a situation similar to Hurricane Katrina. As we have pointed out earlier each of them has positive and negative sides. Perhaps, we need to create an amalgam of these techniques.

For example, no one can deny that a higher authority is needed, and this is a characteristic feature of the hierarchical model. Moreover, the governmental and non-governmental agencies have to establish flow and exchange of information, they also have to develop similar strategies, and this is a peculiarity of the network approach (Senior et al, 2006, p 78). Finally, to diminish adverse consequences of natural disasters, the government must evaluate dangers and formulate a plan which could consider peoples reactions and behavior. Unless it is done, such tragedy may occur again.

Bibliography

Anderson, A., Compton, D., Mason, T. (2004). Managing in a Dangerous World  The National Incident Management System. Engineering Management Journal, 16(4). Web.

Barbara Senior, Jocelyne Fleming (2006). Organizational change. Pearson Education.

Waugh, W., Streib, G. (2006). Collaboration and Leadership for Effective Emergency Management. Public Administration Review, 66(p. 131). Web.

Introduction

That racial discrimination has been a significant mark in the history of America has never been in doubt. Undoubtedly throughout the history of the American south, racial discrimination has played a significant part. There is the existence of sharp and deep differences between the predominantly white and affluent North and the poorer south particularly New Orleans which acted as Hurricane Katrinas epicenter. Here descendants of African slaves and immigrants are the dominant groups. Indeed several events have confirmed that the south is indeed treated as a different part of the expansive country. Although life in the south has improved significantly since segregation was outlawed, the south still endures more challenges than the north. The differences between the south and the rest of the nation have been best manifested in the preparedness, and response to disasters, and their impact on the people of the south. This paper focuses on how the media portrayed Hurricane Katrina in relation to the north-south historical differences. The paper will assess to what extent the response from the government, and from the wider society of how the south still attracts a special view from the rest of the USA.

Hurricane Katrina

Beginning August 28, 2005, a vicious Hurricane Katrina hit the Mississippi Gulf Coast, ravaging an area of approximately 90, 000 square miles and marking one of the greatest natural catastrophes in the history of the United States (Forgette et al 671). In its wake, the monster storm destroyed parts of Alabama, Florida, Louisiana, and Mississippi, leading to approximately 1,836 human deaths and losses amounting to an estimated $81.2 billion. The economic cost was nearly twice as high as the cost of Hurricane Andrew, which was the most costly recorded natural disaster before Katrina (Forgette et al 671).

Thousands of people lost their homes, jobs, property and vehicles. However, the most memorable part of Hurricane Katrina was defined by the hundreds of victims who, for one reason or the other, had not evacuated by the time the storm hit. In search of the highest points to escape from the raging waters, the victims scaled to their rooftops from where they signaled for help, or just waited for days to be rescued.

Thanks to the media, the world watched as thousands of helpless Americans underwent harrowing experiences through the effects of the hurricane. While part of the world attributed the slow rescue operations to the US governments inability, many still feel that the US government was unwilling to rescue the victims because they were predominantly poor African-Americans. The then first lady believed the government was not delaying rescue operations and described suggestions that President Bushs administration was partisan as disgusting (Roberts).Those who attributed government unwillingness to rescue the victims have observed that the US government has also been reluctant to help rebuild the black-dominated neighborhoods which were destroyed by Hurricane Katrina and which are still reeling under the impact of the storm (Robertson 393). Not even New Orleanss historically black colleges of Dillard and Xavier, which were damaged badly by the storm, received reconstruction aid to reconstruct, meaning that their students had to either transfer to other colleges, or to terminate their education (Robertson 393).

Media Coverage and Peoples Response to Katrina

Though many other hurricanes and disasters have hit the US in the past, none had attracted more media attention than Hurricane Katrina during which TV cameras rolled 24 hours a day, updating the whole world as the events happened real-time (Gilman). As the disaster unfolded, the media carried reports which were to awaken the world to the reality in the USA attracting the attention of millions of people from all corners of the world.

Hurricane Katrina was an uninvited reminder to all African-Americans of the day gone by; the days of slavery. One scholar noted that, youd have to go back to slavery or the burning of black towns, to find a comparable event that has affected black people this way (Roberts).

In the article the world witnessed to the fact that although legally-sanctioned discrimination had been abolished, African Americans were still miles behind their white counterparts and were in fact, regarded as inferiors to the whites. As was evident in the aftermath of the storm, race and class &explained the social vulnerability in the South (Cutter).

The mainstream media had made attempts to tone down the depth of the racial dimension of the coverage of the aftermath of the storm, but it was too prominent to escape anyones notice. US rapper Kanye West sparked off an uproar while on a fundraising drive for the victims of Hurricane Katrina when he said on live TV that, George Bush doesnt care about black people. West had confirmed what the African American population of the south thought all along, and attracted loud and vehement denials from part of the white population (Gilman). Questions still arise as to whether the government reaction would have been the same had many white Americans been patched on rooftops struggling to stay alive and waiting desperately for help (Molotch).

On the other hand the question of unpreparedness also arose, the United States administration was accused of not only not putting in place proper flood control infrastructure, but had also been too slow, or unwilling, to deploy rescue teams and resources when the hurricane hit the Gulf Coast (Molotch). Long before Katrina hit, environmental justice campaigners had voiced their discomfort with the countrys environmental policies which exposed poor African-American populated localities to higher risks of natural disasters in the form of hurricanes, heat waves and flooding as had been evident in the 1995 heat wave which swept over Chicago killing 700 people most of whom were poor blacks (Kaiser et al 192).

It is through the media that people are able to frame and make sense of events happening in locations away from their stations. How the media portrays an event plays a crucial role in shaping the wider societys view of the same occurrence.

Hurricane Katrina provided a classic case of convergence of the media, race and the world. New Orleans was hit hardest by the deadly hurricane. As accusations and counter-accusations flew in all directions over the delays and inefficiency of rescue operations, it was noted that as is wont to happen after such disasters, crime increased, as the victims were more vulnerable than ever and could not manage to protect their property as they normally would.

The media recorded the looting and carried the photos in their news reports. Both black and white Americans took part in what could be described as looting. A glaring difference on two photo captions was that while a black man was recorded looting, the white couple was finding food. According to one caption, the Black male was walking through chest deep flood water after looting a grocery store while the two whites were wading through chest-deep water after finding bread and soda from a local grocery store (Sommers et al 40). Given that the people depicted in the photos were involved in the same activity, and in more or less the same circumstances, it would baffle anyone as to why one would be committing a crime while the other was not. Views differ over whether this prejudice played a role in the delayed response to the hurricane.

As more and more pictures of black victims calling for help from rooftops where they had no access to food, water or connection to the outside world were televised there was more uproar. Racialized explanations took hold and to African- Americans, this was a particularly tragic moment where the traditionally white leadership was exercising its power to decide whether the victims died or lived (Kaiser et al 194). Nationwide surveys confirmed sharp differences between the views of black and white Americans on the efficiency of government response to the hurricane. Surveys conducted by CNN and The Pew Research Center weeks after the disaster showed that between 60 and 70 percent of black Americans believed that race had contributed to the delayed response, and the response would have been faster faster if most victims had been white. Only a small minority of whites shared the view (Forgette et al 672).

It was not surprising therefore that black Americans responded differently to the disaster. The African-American population felt neglected and insignificant in the eyes of their rest of the nation. The feeling among black Americans was explained by Roberts, who posed, We are a population in this country of black people, but do we feel like a community?(Roberts). To the African-Americans, the disaster was being mishandled and only quick action on their part could save the victims and help the survivors get their lives running again. As Roberts asserted African-Americans rallied to the cause with an unprecedented outpouring of activism and generosity (Roberts).Thousands of African- Americans donated money, food and supplies, and made time to head south to the New Orleans and the neighboring areas which had been devastated by the storm. Churches and business organizations collected donations, sponsored volunteers to deliver the aid and help the victims, and offered such services as transport to ferry the donations and the volunteers to the disaster-devastated south. Famous African-American sports, arts and media personalities including Oprah Winfrey, Jay-Z, Kanye West, Tavis Smiley, Timbaland and P. Diddy spearheaded the efforts (Roberts).

Conclusion

In conclusion, Hurricane Katrina once again brought to the fore the difference in the way the United States regards the relatively poor and predominantly black south in comparison to the way it regards the rest of the country and rest of Americans. Denials by government officials and administrators were not enough to convince the African-Americans otherwise. It is evident that Washington had been warned of the increased number and gravity of risks to which the residents of the south were exposed to, but took no interest or measure to mitigate the risk. Thus, while the hurricane was natural, the destruction it caused was largely the result of the USAs disregard of the south and its people. Though views may vary as to what extent the rest of the USA treats the south differently, it is evident that the region is indeed treated differently from the rest of the country as Katrina proved.

Works Cited

Cutter, S.: The Geography of Social Vulnerability: Race, Class, and Catastrophe. SSRC, 2006. Web.

Forgette, R., King, M. & Dettrey, B. Race, Hurricane Katrina, and Government Satisfaction: Examining the Role of Race in Assessing Blame. Publius; Fall (2008); 38(4): pp 671-691.

Gilman, N.: What Katrina Teaches About the Meaning of Racism. SSRC, 2006. Web.

Kaiser, C., Eccleston, C. & Hagiwara, N. Post-Hurricane Katrina Racialized Explanations as a System Threat: Implications for Whites and Blacks Racial Attitudes.Soc Jus Res (2008) 21: pp 192-203.

Molotch, H : Death on the Roof: Race and Bureaucratic Failure. SSRC, 2006. Web.

Nolan, B. Remembering Katrina. The Times-Picayune, 2006. Web.

Roberts, J. Hurricane Inspires Record Outpouring of Aid in Black America. CBS News, 2005. Web.

Robertson, C. Hurricane Katrina through the Eyes of African American College Students: The Making of a Documentary. The Journal of African American History; Summer 2008; 93(3): pp 392-402.

Sommers,S. et al.: Race and Media Coverage of Hurricane Katrina: Analysis, Implications, and Future Research Questions. Analyses of Social Issues and Public Policy, Vol. 6, No. 1: pp 39-55.

Sze, J. Toxic Soup Redux: Why Environmental Racism and Environmental Justice Matter after Katrina. SSRC, 2006. Web.

Hurricane Katrina can be regarded as one of the worst catastrophes ever recorded as a national disaster by the government of the United States of America. This disaster occurred in the New Orleans levees, which were destroyed beyond recognition. As a result of this Hurricane disaster, many people lost their lives, and properties worth millions of money were destroyed. The Katrina Hurricane occurred on August 28th of the year 2005.

New Orleans levees have a long historical background but were constructed to control floods in the southern city of Louisiana. The Katrina hurricane in New Orleans levees has been regarded as one of the devastating and worst engineering errors in world history. This paper illustrates the technical aspects of the event before and after, the reasons why these levees failed to control the flooding problems during the time of the Katrina hurricane a factor attributed to engineering ethics and the precaution measures which have been put in place by the government to improve the structure of these levees to prevent such a problem in future.

Ethical principles involved

An investigation into the disaster reveals that the U. S. Army Corps of Engineers confirmed that a massive contribution to the grave damage caused to the city of New Orleans had been made by improper design specifications, substandard construction, and incomplete sections of the levee structures. As a matter of fact, the American Society of Civil Engineers admitted that most of the flooding had been caused by the breaching of the levees. (Schwartz, J 2006).

The New Orleans levees date back to the pre-Katrina era. They had been initially constructed by the French Government who can be termed as the real owners of these levees. Later, they were monitored by the Spanish Government and later sold to the U. S. Government that still controls them to date. In New Orleans pre-Katrina, civil wars in the southern states of Louisiana constantly led to the destruction of the levees by those participating in the wars often evolving from racial discrimination within the state.

The reconstruction of the levees always took a lot of time as financial resources to fund those projects. The city is reported to have always been poor before Katrina and had a deteriorating financial position following its literal seclusion from federal and state funds by the then-serving governor. (The Doctors Lounge p. 20).

This led to the lowering of the citys economic status following a reduction in the amount of revenue collected in form of tax. Due to such wars, most of the levee reconstruction was highly constrained. As a result, most levees broke down and the city experienced water overflows that often led to the destruction of property. Such incidences were occasioned by weak foundations for the levees and substandard constructed ditches.

It was therefore not a wonder that when Hurricane Katrina struck, immense destruction occurred as the levees could not prevent the Hurricane. The inefficiency of the New Orleans Hurricane Protection Project steered government investigations including the formation of a Commission to scrutinize the logic and engineering behind the failure of the flood protection system that would have contained the storm surge caused by Katrina.

Following the findings of the commission of inquiry into the disaster, a lot of blame can be attributed to the engineering faults of the army corps of engineers. Their work as implicated in the inability of the levees to contain flooding was shoddily done and it is such a shame that with their expertise as engineers, they could not figure out the possibility of such a disaster in the event of flooding as the soil around the region is also not any strength to hold backwater. Their construction lacked emphasis on the weak points with regard to the nature of the soil, the volume and level of the water in the Mississippi River, and the strength of the levees.

The engineers on constructing the levees were in a position to determine their efficiency concerning the purpose for which they were being constructed. Unfortunately, they were paid for what turned out to be destruction contrary to the construction. Their blame can be shared with the financiers of their work and the supervision team that failed to ascertain the effectiveness of their construction with regard to the sole purpose or goal of constructing the levees. The levees constructed by these engineers did not serve the purpose they were meant to in time of the disaster but instead contributed to more harm (Fleddermann, 168)

The design of the levees constructed by the army corps of engineers through their officials claims that they were not fully funded but were geared at controlling a minor catastrophe. The group could indeed focused on constructing levees that could only combat substandard flooding when a possibility of terrible flooding existed. As engineers, they were supposed to have figured out the possibility in the design of their construction with regard to the nature and volume of water in the river and the soil surrounding New Orleans.

If their officials thought that more money would have to some extent led to more perfect construction then they could have insisted on more time and perhaps more funding to completely do a perfect piece of work. Money might have been a major factor as to why the work was not done to the expected standards but their officials who seemingly knew the type of work done did not attempt asking for any financial support to help correct their mistakes.

The works done by the army corps of engineers on the levees are a sign of negligence of duty and a lack of full responsibility and accountability. Even if the engineers had not done the construction perfectly, they failed further by not informing the authorities and perhaps seeking an alternative to correct their mistakes through repairs and maintenance. All engineers are expected to keep a record and be accountable for all their works. If at all the army corps engineers had any records of their work on the levees then they at some point would have discovered their errors. It is a shame that this did not occur leading to such a loss.

It is also evident that the army corps of engineers neglected warnings that called for repair and maintenance of the outlet that was at the time thought to be responsible for causing massive destruction of the nearby wetlands. A report from renowned engineer Bob Mea indicated that the massive flooding and destruction that occurred during the hurricane was as are a result of the poor construction and improper repair of the Mississippi outlet. Indeed the flooding may have been fully controlled if the Army corps of Engineers had properly done their work; or went back to repair and maintain the levees, the flooding was a synthetic error of the engineers and they should be held responsible to perhaps prevent future errors of the same magnitude (Fleddermann, 168)

New Orleans before and after Katrina

New Orleans is geographically situated on a natural steep ground parallel to the Mississippi River. Right from the beginning, New Orleans is shown as a city wed to a river and the ocean. As such this strategic situation could control the trade between the vast interior of North America and the rest of the world. New Orleanss strange situation might even determine the political future of North America.

Developments erected later on incorporated the filling in of a nearby lake to raise its altitude. Navigable canals were constructed to facilitate water transport and trade. Following the building of the Inner Harbor Navigations Canal, the waterways present were closed drastically lowering the citys water table. In fact, the conglomeration of the highly absorbent organic soils led to subsidence reaching up to 2.4 meters. This illustrates why most of the city of New Orleans lay below sea level. The 1965 Betsy Hurricane raised a lot of concern pertaining to flooding about the future hurricanes and which led to the enactment of The Flood Control Act of 1965.

This Act among other key issues authorized the design and even construction of flood barriers in the city of New Orleans by the Corps of Engineers subject to cost-sharing conditions but the legislation later waived some of them. Though the responsibility of maintenance; particularly lay on the local municipal authorities upon completion of the flood control protection, projects were scheduled to take thirteen years inclusive of both design and construction.

In spite of the compulsory order to evacuate, people declined because of various reasons which included: the obligation to protect their property, lack of finances and reliable means of transport, and the belief that their houses offered adequate protection. The extensive floods greatly affected the remnants that survived Hurricane Katrina and even remained long after the hurricane had passed.

In fact, the obviously stranded survivors resided at their housetops throughout the city while some were trapped inside their attics. According to Galles report, most residents chopped their way onto their roofs with sledgehammers and hatchets as they had been advised to keep in readiness for such disastrous occurrences. There was no uncontaminated water and outages experienced were anticipated to last for long periods. On 29th August, the loss of lives was described as significant as bodies floated on the water in the whole city particularly in the eastern region. (Galle, J 2006).

New Orleans experienced communication failures after Hurricane Katrina. This resulted from the breaking of transmission lines, power failures, and destruction of base stations which in turn affected telephones and internet access. Television stations with local coverage were disrupted and newspapers were transferred to their other stations in neighboring cities. This had a great impact on the dissemination of information in New Orleans as electronic mailing and broadcasting were the most significant means of transmitting information to the survivors and the rest of the world. Sander (3) confirms that in New Orleans only the local CBS-affiliate WWL-TV remained on the air during and after the storm.

Emergency and tactical communications were provided by the Amateur radio which also handled health and welfare inquiries. (Sanders, T 2006). New Orleans had a well-established infrastructure before Hurricane Katrina struck. The infrastructure comprised a well-laid network of roads that led into and out of the city. There were also several banks, warehouses, gymnasiums, hotels, clubs, a Superdome, airlines, educational and financial institutions among other buildings.

Though the Hurricane spared New Orleans the worst implications by passing to the eastern side of the city on 29th August at noon thus seemingly making the city appear to have escaped most of the destruction, the levee system was not spared in the least. The storm surge severely damaged the citys improperly constructed levee system that had been built by the Army Corps of Engineers. The Mississippi River Outlets levees were breached at about twenty points flooding much of New Orleans to the eastern side.

The London Avenue Canal, the Industrial Canal, and 17th Street Canal levees formed the principal levee breaches in New Orleans that resulted in most of the citys flooding. The flooding that occurred as a result of the breaching drowned most of the city for days up to weeks in certain places. Most buildings and roads were destroyed by Hurricane Katrina. (Housser, Christine, et al)

Measures put in place

After the Katrina Hurricane in New Orleans, the government has taken many measures to rebuild the levees to prevent any future destruction of properties and human lives in general. During that time the Bush administration got seven million dollars from the United States of America congress for the repairing of the levees covering a distance of 350 miles. This measure was aimed at protecting the residents of New Orleans against the floods which would sometimes extend up to the lake of Pontchartrain and the Gulf of Mexico at large (John Smith, 83-90).

At the same time, the government has started to fund the projects aimed at restoring some places which were identified as wetlands, which will help to absorb the flooding waters and prevent hurricanes from coming into the city. Most of the Katrina damages have been repaired by the administration. At the same time, the damaged levee walls have currently been replaced with the T-walls which are stronger. Consequently, the transition areas in the levees have been strengthened. Many flood walls have been created. The height of the flood gates has been increased in height to prevent further overflow.

Conclusion

Hurricane of Katrina can be regarded as one of the catastrophic disasters in the history of the United States of America. The New Orleans levees have got a historical origin. The cause of the large destruction can be attributed to the engineering errors and the strength of the storms. Had any of the measures been installed before the hurricane, chances are that the impact of the hurricane would not have been as devastating as it was.

The ethical implications in the engineering work done by the Us Army corps engineers may be to blame to a very large portion for the impacts of the storm. Had their works been properly done, it may not have been possible for the flooding to overflow and even break through the walls of the banks. The levee floods resulted from the failure of the levee system after an inland swash of the storm inwards. The effects of Hurricane Katrina in New Orleans were not only shattering but also long-lasting. Although a great portion of the Katrina missed the city, the storm surge caused greater than fifty breaches according to a report issued by investigators into the catastrophe.

Works Cited

Galle, Julie. Special Report: Vulnerable Cities; New Orleans LA. The Weather Channel. 2006: 2-6.

Housser, Christine, et al. Mandatory Evacuation Ordered for New Orleans as Storm Nears. New York Times. 2005.

John Smith Kendal, History of New Orleans , Washington; Oxford University press, 2002.

Sanders, Tony. Belo Corp Profile. The Center for Public Integrity. 2006.

Schwartz, John. Army Corps Admits Flaws in New Orleans Levees. The New York Times 2006.

Fleddermann Charles ,Engineering Ethics (3rd) Prentice Hall, 2007.

Introduction

Earthquakes have been a major issue for mankind for a long time. Many people have lost their lives during earthquakes. Property worth billions of dollars has been destroyed as well. The fact that it is not possible to predict with certainty when an earth quake is going to strike makes it even scarier. But tools have been developed to monitor the behavior of the earths core and use it to try and predict the possibility of earthquakes striking certain regions (United States Geological Survey 1).The distribution of earthquakes around the world is not uniform. Some parts experience earthquakes frequently while others do not.

Main body

In the United States, earthquakes are more common in the north western part and the Pacific Coast. States such as California and Alaska experience earthquakes more frequently than other states. There seems to be a higher concentration of earthquakes in the coastal areas of the United States than the inland part (United States Geological Survey 1). This pattern is the same for the world whereby most earthquake activity is concentrated on coastal areas as well as islands. Asian countries such as Japan and North America are some of the parts of the world that have witnessed higher earthquake activity in history (United States Geological Survey 1).

If I am asked to live in one of the areas marked red on the maps, I would try as much as possible to decline. This is because red means that the area is most likely to be affected by earthquakes, meaning that the risk of being injured or losing property is higher. If I have to live in such an area, then I would take the decision but take all the precautions such that in the event of an earthquake, I am not injured. Making use of the resources provided by the government for safety during earthquakes would be one of the things I would do to ensure that I am not in danger.

In the event that I and my family are forced to move to an area that has high chances of experiencing earthquakes, I will make use of the resources availed by the United States government to help my family prepare for earthquakes. These resources include the advice on what I and my family members should do during and after the earthquake. This is important information that will help us avoid getting injured or killed during an earthquake. For example the information availed by the government advices people who are caught in earthquakes to avoid trying to reach for the door (United States Geological Survey 1).This is because one stands a higher chance of being injured by falling objects. It is safer to take a position that is not likely to collapse due to the shakes generated by the earthquake. Are there any earthquakes that have occurred recently?

Earthquakes are always striking one area of the earth or another. The two most recent earthquakes occurred in Indonesia. One occurred at Halmahera while the other struck the Flores region, both in Indonesia. These earthquakes struck on the 17^th of August 2010 (United States Geological Survey 1). The continued occurrence of earthquakes despite all the available technology shows that science is not the ultimate answer when it comes to the prediction or control of natural occurrences such as earthquakes. But due to the frequency of these destructive earthquakes and the discovery of the connection between the movement of the contents of the earths core and the occurrence of earthquakes, special tools such as the seismograph have been developed so measure or detect the rumblings of the earth.

The energy that is experienced during earthquakes is different from the biological energy that is obtained through respiration in that the earthquake energy is related to the physical energy conversion processes whereby potential energy in the earths core turns into kinetic energy that causes motion on the earths surface. In respiration, the food we eat is broken down in an oxidation process to release energy. The similarity in these two types of energy is that they both lead to motion.

Conclusion

In conclusion, it is evident that as much as a considerable amount of resources have been dedicated to research about earthquakes, it is still not possible to perfectly predict when an earthquake will strike. This leaves us with the option of being on the lookout and utilizing the history of the places where we stay to stay safe. The coastal parts of the United States especially the North West and the pacific coast are the areas that are frequently affected by earthquakes. The world pattern of earthquake activity also points to the fact that the coastal parts of the world are more prone to earthquakes than the areas that are far from the coast. If I were to be asked to live in an area that is frequently affected by earthquakes would try to make use to the available information so as to remain safe. This is what I would do with my family too. It is also clear that earthquake activity is ongoing. The recent earthquakes were experienced in the Flores region and Halmahera in Indonesia. Lastly, earthquake energy is different from the calories generated in our bodies due to the fact that the calories are a product of respiration while earthquake energy is due to the movement of the liquid part of the earths core. The similarity is that both are capable of motion.

Work Cited

United States Geological Survey. Earthquake Hazards Program 2010.Web.

Introduction

Haiti is located in the Caribbean between the North Atlantic Ocean and the Caribbean Sea and to the north of the Dominican Republic. It has a tropical semiarid climate; however, it lies in the hurricane belt and is prone to storms, floods, droughts and earthquakes. It has a population of around 9 million people and use French as the official language. With a republic form of government, it gained its independence from France in 1804 and its capital city is at Port-au-Prince (Haggett 456).

Haiti is the poorest country in the northern hemisphere with most of its occupants, in the excess of 80% living below the poverty line. Due to their high dependence on agriculture, they are exposed to the natural calamities such as the floods, droughts and storms. Most of its labor force is unskilled while the country has no regular military forces and has had UN peace keepers maintaining civil order since 2004.

New Orleans on the other hand is an international sea port on the delta of the Mississippi river, with miles of coastline and a humid semi tropical climate regulated by the surrounding waters. Basically, the place is prone to tornados. Its economy is dependent on tourism, oil/gas, the port and ship/boat building and aerospace manufacturing.

The disasters that have affected the two parts of the world have had adverse effects on the lives of people. Dead, maimed and missing people have always been the direct result, while the aftermath has always been violence and looting due to frustrations resulting from unavailable aid or logistical problems in distribution of the little available aid. Moreover, political greed, corruption and selfish interests of some donors have always formed part of the ethical issues arising from disasters. This paper will discuss the ethical and legal issues during catastrophes or disasters, with particular reference to the Haiti earthquake disaster.

Ethics

Ethics may be described as a code of rules that tend to establish what is right or wrong, mainly where human beings have to act in a manner that affects the societys rights, values, and beliefs. Disaster is an event or series of events that harms or kills a significant number of people or interferes with the day to day lives of the affected individuals and may be natural in origin or caused deliberately or through accidents by man (Zack, 7).

Sources of ethics

Sources of ethical standards are varied because people have different interpretations of ethical standards and what they base them on. Ethics especially in the times of disaster or calamity can be based on utility. Ethical action can be seen as the one that does most good or least harm to all the affected people. This therefore deals with the consequences as an act; if the good outweigh the bad, the act is seen as ethical. The rights approach is another way to determine what is ethical and not. This advocates for the respect of the human moral rights. The fairness or justice approach states that since people are equal; they should be treated equally and proportionately. The common good approach sees the community as having goodness in itself hence our actions should be geared towards contributing to that goodness. Finally, the virtue approach helps people to act to their highest potential character; it guides an individual to act according to the kind of a man he wants to be.

The Haitian and the New Orleans disasters

In 2005 New Orleans was rocked by a devastating hurricane named Katrina that led to severe destruction of property and loss of lives. According to the National Climate Data Center, the hurricane was in the category of one of the strongest storms to ever hit the U.S. this led to 80% of New Orleans being flooded (Lawrimore para. 18). This led to the disruption of the oil industry leading to increased costs of gasoline. Power losses were a common phenomenon and the transport sector was paralyzed due to flooding on the highways and airports. Interstate bridges were also destroyed. There was also the lack of clean drinking water due to the burst in the main pipe that supplied the area. This overall effect of the hurricane led to thousands of deaths and destruction worth hundreds of billions of dollars.

The recent Haiti earthquake, the most powerful to ever hit the country with a magnitude of 7.0 with an epicenter 10 miles from the capital, struck the poor country knocking down buildings and power lines. The death report is in hundreds of thousands and property destruction beyond imagination.

Due to the destruction of the buildings, residential areas and the paralysis of the transport sector in the most affected areas; getting aid to the people who needed and still needs it was rendered almost impossible. The levels of hygiene have dramatically dropped due to lack of clean drinking water and at the beginning, the dead bodies were left to decompose in the places of their death because they could not be reached and disposed of as is norm due to the damaged infrastructure and prioritization which meant that saving of the trapped alive people was more important than burying the already dead ones. However, the aftermath which involved looting, violence and lawlessness seems to be a common phenomenon in both Haitis and New Orleans disasters (Sherwell and Sawer para. 27).

Ethics in disasters truck areas

The issue of ethics in the disaster struck areas has been of major concern to both the victims and the donors. What some people may see as help to those affected, others may see as an opportunity to further their selfish agendas. The main question when a disaster strikes is if we care, and if we do what we can do to help and how. The earthquake has brought Haiti into the spotlight and this has helped people to see that the devastation was man made as well as natural in origin.

Situation on the ground

The man made part in the Haiti earthquake disaster is accentuated by increased bad governance, poverty and political conflict over time. The government officials are corrupt and seem to be in power so that they can accomplish their own selfish dreams and not lead the people to prosperity. Moreover, the aid may be stolen and diverted from its original targets to be used either for personal gain or stored to be used by a select group of people. This would deny the majority the access to the aid thus not serving the greater good. On the other hand, the works of the construction companies greatly increased the level of devastation. As a result of absence of authority in some areas, building codes were not properly enforced leading to substandard structures in an effort to cut cost. These structures could not withstand the force of the earthquake leading to major and catastrophic collapse (Gaestel para. 3).

Invading instead of helping

Many people may be using the excuse of being in Haiti to help as a guise to further their ideals. The US government, after supporting the coup that brought in the current president, is now using the tragedy to increase its hold and control of Haitis political landscape by increasing its presence in the country militarily. Moreover, a large chunk of the aid given ends with the charity organizations as operating and sometimes administrative costs.

Lack of co-operation among the foreign nations bringing in aid leads to the question of what their motive of being there is. The US has been reported of denying other donors the access to its controlled airports. This led to delays as would-be donors had to find other means of transporting the relief foodstuffs and equipments.

Looting, violence and gang wars

The aftermath of the quake has led to violence and looting. Sporadic violence accompanied by stealing and gang related gunfire was witnessed in Haiti as the hungry people fought over for the relief food. This resulted to the elderly and the children being left out as they were pushed aside from the melee. Convoys carrying the relief food had to increase security to guard the supplies from the looters. This was exacerbated by the prison break by 4000 convicts from the port-a-prince main prison. This, together with the failure by the government to bring in law and order, has led to the citizens taking law into their own hands (Sherwell and Sawer para. 18).

The lawlessness hampered the relief efforts for the volunteers had to at times seek cover from the unruly looters and gangs. This included the physicians leaving their patients unattended in the makeshift clinics, some who had life threatening injuries or had just had an operation. This led to deaths of the looters as the police opened fire on them in an effort to calm them.

Due to the lack of order and the increasing rates of lawlessness much of the aid does not reach the targeted people at the grassroots. This is because the channels for distributing the foodstuffs and other materials collapse due to the lack of law and order. This leads to these materials stock piling in the warehouses and stores because distribution becomes almost impossible (Learning, Briggs and Chen 182).

Dilemma of triage

During a disaster, there is a problem of deciding who has to be served first especially in the cases of medical emergency. Since in most of the times the patients are much more than the paramedics, there is an ethical dilemma of determining who to treat in terms of priority. Triage is the medical screening and grouping of the people affected health-wise in the cases of calamity or catastrophe so as to prioritize the ones who need the medical attention more and to who it would be of the greatest use (Zack 14).

In the cases of a disaster, those needing medical care are divided into three groups which are those not expected to survive even after receiving medical care, the ones who can and will recover without treatment for they are not seriously injured, and those who need treatment immediately for their survival. This guides the physicians in concentrating on those that they know are potential survivors. The ethics behind this is the question of how the doctors accurately assess the level of need; however, ethical and legal codes in cases of disaster call for unrestricted aid to all recipients despite their race, nationality or any other affiliations on the basis of need (Ciottone 64).

Ethics of calamity

The rules of ethics in times of calamity and disasters have led to studies on how people behave in the times of need. Some of the scholars argue that these rules of ethics in the times of disasters do not apply and have come up with their own rules for the catastrophic situations. These include price gouging, the three moral situations, the criteria for taking things for personal use and the theory of shooting the looters, as well as the theory of looting in the absence of the state.

In making an ethical decision, one has to have an ethical issue and recognize it. He needs to examine whether his decision or the prevailing situation could be having a negative effect on someone or to some group. There is also need to determine whether the decision is between two good alternatives or a good and a bad one. The relevant facts in the case are important for they help in making the decision. The person also needs to examine if the information held about the problem is enough to make the right choice, and if not enough, where else he can get more information on the subject. Moreover, the people who have are involved and will be affected by the outcome of the decisions made need to be considered. He should also have an idea of why they are involved and how the outcomes will affect them. Indeed, evaluation of other alternatives should be done in order to determine the option that will be more suitable for the given situation and then make decisions based on these facts.

Conclusion

The way we deal with ethical matters differs from individual to individual because what other people may see as ethical may be unethical to us. All these factors like looting and violence that happened and may be still happening in Haiti happened also in New Orleans after the devastation caused by Katrina. This shows that in the time of crisis most people are motivated to act in a way that is beneficial to them with no regard for others. Ethics helps and holds sway in some cases especially where a degree of calm is present in order to give the decision maker enough time to study the situation; but in the cases of disaster and chaos, the rule of the jungle for the survival of the fittest kicks in and people become more vulnerable unlike when the rule and order are put in place. In situations of disaster, there is always little time to make distinction on who should be aided or not since making the wrong move may have an adverse effect on the victims, while unsatisfactory intervention may trigger social vices such as violence, looting or even civil war; thus worsening the situation.

Works Cited

Ciottone, Gregory R. Disaster medicine. NY, Elsevier Health Sciences. 2006.

Gaestel A. Engineers press for earthquake-safe infrastructure in Haiti to avoid future catastrophes Media Global: Voice of the Global South. 2010. Web.

Haggett, Peter. Encyclopedia of World Geography, Volume 1. Edition2. NY, Marshall Cavendish. 2001.

Leaning, Jennifer et al. Humanitarian Crisis: The Medical and Public health Response. London, Harvard University Press. 1999.

Sherwell, Philip & Sawer, Patrick. Haiti earthquake: looting and gun-fights break out. Telegraph.co.uk. 2010. Web.

Zack, Naomi. Ethics for disaster. NY, Rowan and Littlefield publishers Inc. 2009.

Introduction

The level of Americas preparedness in dealing with emergencies and disasters has been tested by many disasters and emergencies. The top ones that have had far-reaching effects are the Exxon Valdez Oil Spill, Hurricane Katrina, Hurricane Gustav, and the BP Oil Spill. The responses to these disasters were different in several ways. Some had a well-planned response that reduced casualties and damage to property. Others had far-reaching environmental damage due to poor response. In this research paper, the responses that were made during these four disasters and emergencies will be compared. Areas of success in dealing with these issues will be pointed out. Areas of failure will equally be pointed out and the lessons that were learned by the parties that were involved. Did the parties apply the lessons they learned from these disasters? This question will be answered in the research paper.

The Disasters and the Responses

The Exxon Valdez Oil Spill

This manmade disaster occurred on the 24^th of March 1989. An oil tanker named Exxon Valdez struck a reef on the coast of Alaska spilling what has been estimated to be fifteen million gallons of crude oil (Markle 1998, pp.30-32). The fatigue that the crew members had, the poor state of the tanker, and the bad weather are considered major causes of the collision that led to the spill. The total amount is still an issue of the contest between environmental groups that claim that the total crude that was spilled was more than twenty-five million gallons and the company that estimates the total to be slightly above ten million gallons. Unlike the recent BP oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico that was deep under the water, the Exxon Valdez spill occurred on the surface. It spread over more than two thousand square kilometers of coastline and covered more than twenty-five thousand square kilometers of ocean waters. The damage that the Exxon Valdez oil spill caused is still being felt in the coastal areas where the oil reached. The water life that was affected included the numerous bald eagles that died, the thousands of salmons that were killed as well as otters and other forms of water life. The lives of the local people who depended on fishing salmon were thrown off balance as they were unable to access their source of income (Markle 1998, pp.19-22).

The Response to the Exxon Valdez Oil Spill

After the spill, the company, Exxon Mobil, the federal government, and the state of Alaska were caught off guard. The oil spread over a large surface before ideas such as the spray of dispersants and the burning of some of the oil would be implemented. The explosion or burning of the oil worked to a reasonable degree compared to the dispersant proved to be ineffective due to the lack of waves and the windy conditions that are necessary to make the dispersant reach as much oil as possible. The geography of the coastline where the spill occurred did not help matters. It is rocky and this made it hard for skimming boats to clear the oil. The responsibility of dealing with oil spills done by companies is in the hands of these companies. It was therefore expected that Exxon Mobil should have moved a bit faster to deal with the spill. But this is not what happened. The residents as well as the federal government that got involved in the case later on through lawsuits considered the Exxon Mobil response inadequate. Indeed, had the explosion been carried out early, the oil would not have spread to a huge area as it did (Markle 1998, pp.56-57). The situation would have been even much more different if there had been a concerted effort that included the use of other methods such as skimming.

The BP Oil Spill

This is also called the deepwater horizon spill. It occurred in the Gulf of Mexico on the 20^th of April 2010 and continued till the 12^th of August 2010. It is considered to be the largest oil spill in the history of petroleum. More than two hundred million gallons of oil were spilled into the waters at the Gulf of Mexico. At the time of the explosion of the oil rig that led to the spill, eleven employees of the company died. Seventeen others were wounded in the confusion that ensued. The damage that the spill caused is likely to reverberate over a long time in the Gulf of Mexico and across the United States as well as the world. Water life took the hardest hit. The number of sea birds that died was too high (Mason 2010, p.1). Other sea animals that died include shrimps and crabs. The economic impact of the spill has been felt by the residents of the Gulf of Mexico as well as the citizens of the larger United States due to the interconnected nature of economic activities. The Gulf residents make their living from the fishing and tourism that takes place in the area. These activities were disrupted (Jones & Jervis 2010, p.1). People in other parts of the US and the world who relied on shrimp and other types of seafood from the Gulf of Mexico had to go without these supplies due to oil contamination. It is important to note that there is still concern over seafood from the Gulf of Mexico because it may be having traces of oil.

The Response to the BP Oil Spill

The response from BP was extremely poor. The company underestimated the magnitude of the spill and therefore used shaky methods to handle the initial flow of crude oil into the waters. The shaky means included the usage of boats that were sweeping the floating crude into the shore where it was collected. The later addition of other mechanisms such as burning the oil is something the company should have done earlier on. The recruitment of the local people who participated in the collection effort for the pieces of crude that were scattered along the shores and the beyond was done at a slow pace and a later date. The company also took a considerably longer period to come up with a way of stopping the leakage (Mason 2010, p.1). This is an indication that the company had not considered the fact that such an incident was a possibility. It is therefore a pure case of poor foresight on the part of the companys management.

Leaving the above aside, the care that was supposed to be accorded to the wildlife that was affected by the oil was not timely. It took BP and the other parties such as the state governments as well as the federal government several days to come up with a way to care for birds that were covered by oil and would not even move or breathe properly. It was also not adequate in the sense that only a small number of the affected birds were eventually washed and placed in conditions where they would recover. The other birds, crabs, turtles, and other sea creatures that were affected by the spill died (Jones & Jervis 2010, p.1).

The other vital player in the response team, the federal government also displayed a degree of weakness whereby a long time was taken before the company would be given stern instructions on how they need to handle the disaster to reduce the negative impact on the environment and the economy. The strict instructions to the company came late and directly from the president who had to visit the disaster area personally and express his displeasure with the companys efforts in dealing with the disaster. This is something that should have been done earlier on by junior officials.

Hurricane Katrina

Hurricane Katrina went down in history as the disaster that exposed the level of unpreparedness the United States had as far as natural calamities are concerned. This has since changed as we shall see in the case of Hurricane Gustav that came much later in 2008. Hurricane Katrina began with a less formidable force at the coast of Florida where a few people died and the property was destroyed. By the time it reached Louisiana, it had reached its highest in terms of strength and all that followed was destruction. More than one thousand five hundred lives were lost and property worth more than eighty billion dollars was destroyed. The levees that had been put in place to hold back floodwaters failed miserably. The result was the heavy flooding that buried peoples residences underwater for weeks (Cooper & Block 2006, pp.28-29).

The response to Hurricane Katrina

The National Hurricane Watch rightfully expressed their concern over the ability of the levees to hold back the floodwaters. It is expected that the governments should have taken these concerns seriously and monitored the hurricane to take any necessary step if it proved to be dangerous (Cooper & Block 2006, pp.47-50 ). But what happened? The floodwaters swelled and the levees collapsed. The people of New Orleans began drowning and their property began getting covered by water with little response from the government. After the hurricane, the government displayed more inability in dealing with the aftermath. The diseases outbreak that followed the floodwaters is something that should have been expected. But it was not until after people began dying that a weak effort was directed towards taking care of the victims.

The people whose houses were destroyed spent several months and years in some cases living in trailers. There was no clear plan to help them rebuild. Even the monetary donations that came from individuals and organizations were spent in an unclear way. There was no plan to help the school-going children whose education had been put to a sudden stop by the hurricane. The sick, the disabled, and veterans of Louisiana did not have help from their government. It is for this reason that the president of the time, George W. Bush saw his poll numbers sink (Cooper & Block 2006, pp.87-90). The American people and a watching world felt that his administration did not do all that it was able to do to reduce the impact of the disaster before it occurred or deal with its aftermath in a way that would have reduced the suffering of the people. It was a disaster that will live in the minds of most Americans in general and Louisiana residents in particular for generations to come.

Hurricane Gustav

Hurricane Gustav affected more than four countries in the August of 2008. These countries include the United States, the Dominican Republic, Haiti, Jamaica, Cuba, and the Cayman Islands. It began as a small storm in the capital of Haiti and by the time it turned into a full-blown hurricane and reached the United States, it had killed more than eighty people. The total number of lives lost was more than one hundred and fifty. Property worth more than four billion dollars was also destroyed by this hurricane. This was a small percentage of what Hurricane Katrina had done more than three years earlier as already noted elsewhere in this research paper. Why is there a difference in the numbers of people killed by Hurricane Katrina and Hurricane Gustav? Is it that Hurricane Gustav was extremely weak compared to Hurricane Katrina? It is possible that hurricane Gustav killed such a small number of people and destroyed fewer properties due to its relative weakness when compared to Hurricane Katrina. But it is also true that more people would have died in the wake of Hurricane Katrina had the authorities not staged a smart response (Nossiter 2008, p.1).

The Response to Hurricane Gustav

The authorities in the United States took the information about hurricane Gustav seriously. They, therefore, moved with speed and warned the people that if they were not willing to move, they would have themselves to blame. There was also an attempt to evacuate people forcefully to avoid any casualties. Those who had the chance to move their movable properties such as cars did so thus reducing the overall damage caused by the hurricane. There were also plans to deal with the aftermath which included medical care as a way of avoiding waterborne diseases (Nossiter 2008, p.1). Accommodation plans were also made for both the long term and the short term depending on how long the hurricane waters would have stayed on the surface. It so happened that the hurricane turned out to be pretty weak compared to Hurricane Katrina. Its casualties were few and the floodwaters were limited when compared to the waters that flooded the Louisiana area during hurricane Katrina.

The Comparisons

Exxon Valdez Oil Spill and the BP Oil Spill

The response given to the Exxon oil spill in 1989 is not any different from the one witnessed in the BP oil spill in 2010. In both cases, the companies underestimated the ability of the crude oil to spread in the ocean waters. Also, both Exxon and BP responded incrementally. They began with small-scale control measures and ended up putting up their best efforts when the crises had reached monumental levels with large-scale destruction of the environment. The behavior of the federal government is slightly different in that in the Exxon Valdez spill, the government played a minor role in the response. It came in full force when a court case was launched against Exxon. In the case of BP, the government was concerned and involved right from the time the oil rig exploded whereby the National Guard moved in with speed to search for the missing BP personnel who were later assumed to be dead as they were missing by the time the well as being sealed. The government also remained on sire carrying out its checks in the effort to deal with the disaster and ensuring that BP took measures to help both the local people whose lives had been thrown into disarray and the wildlife.

The similarity in the two oil spills is that the responses in both cases were hampered by poor weather. In the case of the 1989 Exxon oil spill, the dispersant that was being used would not work due to t the absence of windy conditions that would have hasted the mixing of the oil with the dispersant. The Gulf Spill also got its share of bad weather through storms that made the personnel stop the burning and skimming efforts for a while. Thus in both cases, poor weather conditions affected the effectiveness of the responses.

Hurricane Katrina and Hurricane Gustav

There are numerous differences in the response that was staged in the wake of Hurricane Katrina and what was done later during hurricane Gustav. During the time of Hurricane Katrina, the federal government did not do anything as far as the evacuation of the residents of New Orleans was concerned (Cooper & Block 2006, pp.32-34). This is why many of them ended up getting trapped in the floodwaters and eventually dying. The aftermath was also poorly handled. Waterborne diseases broke out killing many more people and accommodation arrangements were so poor that people ended up living in trailers for a very long time. There were no clear plans for rebuilding and even the education of the school-going children were heavily affected by the poor response of the government.

On the other hand, the government at both state and federal levels moved with speed and alerted the people on the possible dangers of Hurricane Gustav. They were advised to evacuate and those who refused were forced to do so (Nossiter 2008, p.1).

Successes and failures in both four instances

In the oils Exxon and BP oil spills, the companies failed miserably. The BP case is particularly notable for its failures given that it had the Exxon history to learn from. It should have been even more aggressive considering the enormity of its task since it was dealing with a well and not a spill from a vessel.

In the case of hurricane Katrina and Hurricane Gustav, the response to Hurricane Katrina was a failure. The lack of evacuation, before and during the rising of the floodwaters and the mediocre response after the hurricane is the failure indicators. But the response to Gustav was a huge success in that evacuations were carried out leading to fewer casualties.

Lessons learned

The government and the companies that deal with oil seem to have learned less from the Exxon Valdez oil spill. This is why the response to the BP oil spill was lackluster. The government on the other hand seems to have learned that proper warnings and evacuations are necessary during hurricanes. This was done in Hurricane Gustav and the effect was a reduced number of people who died.

Overall Preparedness

The government may have learned some lessons as far as dealing with Hurricanes is concerned. But oil spills are still an issue (Burger 1997, pp.56-57). The evidence is the swift and well-coordinated response to Hurricane Gustav after Hurricane devastated New Orleans whereas the BP oil spill was dealt with poorly even after the 1989 Exxon Valdez oil spill.

Conclusion

From this research paper, it is clear that the response to hurricanes improved from the poor one witnessed during Hurricane Katrina to the good response witnessed during hurricane Gustav. Therefore the lesson of proper coordination may have been taken by the government. Bu tin the case of oil spills, there is evidence of lack of preparation. There is evidence of poor coordination and delay in responding powerfully.

References

Burger, J., (1997). Oil Spills. New York: Rutgers University Press.

Cooper, C & Block R., (2006). Disaster: Hurricane Katrina and the Failure of Homeland Security, (1^st ed.).New York: Time Books.

Jones, C., & Jervis, R., (2010). Oil Spill Takes Toll On Tourism On Gulf Coast. Usa Today. Web.

Mason, R., (2010). BP oil spill: Suicide of fisherman distraught at spill. The Telegraph.co.uk. Web.

Markle,S.,(1998).After the Spill: The Exxon Valdez Disaster, Then and Now. New York: Walker & Company.

Nossiter, A., (2008).New Orleans Starts Up, But Not at Full Power. The New York Times. Web.

An earthquake also referred to as an earth tremor is a phenomenon that takes place as a result of the abrupt discharge of energy within the Earths outer layer that leads to the formation of seismic waves. The apparatus used for the detection and registration of earthquakes is referred to as a seismometer that resisters earth tremors with a moment magnitude of above 3. Those with magnitude below are often unnoticeable; and those with a magnitude above 7 leading to severe damage and their quaking intensity are measured using a Mercalli scale. The negative effects of major earthquakes include tsunamis and induced volcanic action. (Cave 23-26)

The recent Haiti earthquake was caused by the shaking of the same mechanisms that are known to affect the urban centers by the side of the San Andreas Fault. The earthquake had a magnitude of 7.0 that could cause destruction anywhere but its effects were more far-reaching due to the weak infrastructural system of the poor nation. In the Haiti case, the Caribbean and North American plates slid past each other in an East-west direction which is scientifically referred to as a strike-slip boundary. As a result, there is a build-up of stress along the border at the areas of the fault where the different earth plates joint. As a result, the stress that has built up is abruptly discharged; in a sudden physically powerful movement that makes both sides of the fault move forming an earthquake. The Enriquillo-Plantain fault system is the fault that was involved in the rupture leading to the Haiti Earthquake. The Haiti earthquake may also be argued to have resulted from the short distance between the Haiti region and the epicenter that in the case of Haiti is estimated to be 10miles southwest of the Capital Port-au-prince and 6.2 miles beneath the Earths surface. The other cause of the earthquake is the strategic location of the island that lays amid two tectonic plates the Caribbean and North American. Another cause for the Haiti Earthquake is the detachment of two plates that had remained stuck together since 1751 releasing the pressure that had built up for over 250 years from the earthquakes epicenter that led to the displacement of Haiti Island. However, all the pressure that had built up was released by the Quake; raising more alarm than is caused by the paltry nature of the underlying Caribbean plate. (Boyle 20-23)

This is made worse by the fact that much of the region that forms the plate boundaries are far below the sea level therefore inaccessible to the evaluation of scientists who can help unveil the other reasons behind the Haiti earthquake. However, after the 7.0 earthquake struck Haiti; at least fourteen aftershocks with a magnitude up to 5 or more have been recorded. This further places the island at the risk of being struck by another earthquake accident. (Sutton, Anthony & Pascal 12-20)

An earthquake is a natural occurrence that takes place due to the sudden release of energy that develops as a result of the seismic action that results from the friction that takes when two adjacent tectonic plates move in opposite directions to one another. The sudden discharge of this energy leads to the movement of the land plates in contact that is felt on the surface of the earth as tremors whose magnitude is measured using a seismometer. In the case of Haiti, the causes of the quake include the sliding past each other of the Caribbean and North American plates and the pressure release of pressure that had built up over 250 years among other factors.

Work cited

Sutton, Jane., Anthony, Boadle. and Pascal, Fletcher.Haiti quake death toll may hit 200,000-minister.Reuters.Alertnet(Reuters). 2010:12-20. Web.

Cave, Damien. Exodus to Countryside Reverses Long Trend. The New York Times, 2010: 23-26.

Boyle, Christina. Haiti earthquake: Thousands flee ravaged Port-au-Prince following powerful aftershock.Daily News, 2010: 20-23.

Preparing for hazards means developing skills and gaining knowledge that will allow to allocate less time on decision making in case of emergency. Readiness is a result of training and leads to establishment of certain action patterns that, if memorized well, could save ones life or potentially the lives of others. Emergency produces lots of stress that obstructs clear thinking process. Humans often act based on instincts or well established codes that through continuous training are executed without additional thought. Nurses as the force that directs and guides patients through clinical procedures have a moral duty to prevent, respond to, and mitigate the consequences of various types of disasters. Therefore, it is vital to know, memorize, and practice all-hazards disaster preparedness. My learning goals included building the knowledge on the role of the nurse in establishing communication during the hazardous situations and peculiarities of operation in low-resource setting.

Meeting the Goals

To meet the first goal, I started from researching sources on communication during hazardous situations. According to the Association of Womens Health, Obstetric & Neonatal Nursing (The Role of the Nurse in Emergency Preparedness, 2012), the role of the nurse is to establish communication between a patient, family, and the team to ensure hopeful expectations are shared by all members of the care process, which is vital in hazardous situations due to panic prevention. This knowledge was then implemented in the clinic where I work. I asked my colleagues to simulate the emergency situation where I could demonstrate my communication skills and assess how well I would manage the task of establishing proper communication and prevent excessive stress. As my colleagues noticed, I was generally successful at my mission but would need to concentrate more on fulfilling my duties during the process of communicating.

The second goal involved consulting with colleagues and scholarly sources as to how to proceed in various situations during crisis events that involve low access to necessary items. In both cases, the information I received revolved around better planning and preparing for hazardous events and memorizing the items I might need in most common cases, their places, and quantity (Spain, Clements, DeRanieri, & Holt, 2012). In practical conditions, it was challenging to model the situation, but I tried gaining hasty access to necessary items such as wound and cut management materials.

Implementation into Practice

Both communication and working in low-resource environment require substantial of practice to be able to fully implement them into practice when they are most needed. This week I have only begun practicing my emergence communication skills and working in low-resource environment. I believe that consistency here is the key because to establish a pattern that requires no contemplation it takes meticulous and continuous repetition. By training those skills for a week, I have established a basis for further training and perfecting my all-hazards preparedness competencies.

Conclusion

A commitment to continuous practicing of all-hazards preparedness seems to benefit me as a future nurse professional. A full acquisition of a hazard prevention, response, and mitigation competencies requires zeal and repletion, which I have begun to demonstrate during this weeks practice. Communication and working in low-resource setting seem like the two skills that are critical in primary care during a disaster. The nurse has to be leading by example, demonstrating courage and finesse in the times of need.

References

Spain, K. M., Clements, P. T., DeRanieri, J. T., & Holt, K. (2012). When Disaster Happens: Emergency Preparedness for Nurse Practitioners. The Journal for Nurse Practitioners, 8(1), 3844.

The Role of the Nurse in Emergency Preparedness. (2012). Journal of Obstetric, Gynecologic, & Neonatal Nursing, 41(2), 322324.