Message-ID: <01HP7WZHZI548WWCJW@mr.worldbank.org> Date: Tue, 11 Apr 1995 21:04:00 -0500 From: Anil Somani ENVPE 33456 <mailto:ASOMANI@WORLDBANK.ORG> Subject: Re: Emergency response To: Multiple recipients of list DEVEL-L
There have been a number of Conferences and Colloquiums on
Managing Natural Disasters. The World Bank too has published a
report titled "Managing Natural Disaster and the Environment".
Those who are interested may wish to contact the Bank's Public
Information Centre in Washington, DC at (202) 458 5454 or via
Internet at http://wwwworldbank.org// or gopher.worldbank.org
I believe that the publication can be purchased from the World
Bank bookstore.
The current trend is in preventing disasters. Such prevention
can take many forms - flood proofing an area, preventing soil
erosion, developing earthquake proof structures, etc. However
once a disaster occurs, emergency response is required and a
number of organizations such as the Red Cross, UN, Oxfam, some
governments etc. have both the capabilities and know how to
respond to various disasters. Unfortunately, these responses
are not always uniform and time after time it would appear
that the local government and institutions do not have the
knowledge or resources to provide an immediate response which
is critical in saving lives. NGOs can certainly help but may
require fundamental rethinking of their role and considerable
resources.
Regards,
Anil Somani