Transcript lessons learned from past notable disasters. chile. part 5

LESSONS LEARNED FROM PAST
NOTABLE DISASTERS
CHILE
PART 5: WILDFIRES
Walter Hays, Global Alliance for
Disaster Reduction, Vienna,
Virginia, USA
NATURAL HAZARDS THAT HAVE CAUSED
DISASTERS IN CHILE
FLOODS
GOAL: PROTECT PEOPLE
AND COMMUNITIES
WINDSTORMS
EARTHQUAKES/TSUNAMIS
HIGH BENEFIT/COST FROM
BECOMING DISASTER
NRESILIENT
VOLCANOES
WILDFIRES
GLOBAL CLIMATE CHANGE
Natural Phenomena that Cause
Disasters
Planet Earth’s
atmosphericlithospheric
interactions
create
situations
favorable for
Wildfires (AKA
BUSHFIRES)
CHILE’S CITIES
WILDFIRES
are conflagrations caused by
lightning discharges (or acts of
man) in wilderness areas close
enough to one or more urban
interfaces that they threaten people,
property, infrastructure, and
business enterprise.
SCIENCE OF WILDFIRES
LOCATIONS OF 2012’S
NOTABLE WILDFIRES
WILDFIRE HAZARDS
(AKA POTENTIAL DISASTER AGENTS)
•
•
•
•
FIRE
HOT GASES AND SMOKE
HOT SPOTS
BURNED OUT SLOPES (with
increased susceptibility to insect
infestation, erosion, and landslides)
WILDFIRE HAZARDS
(AKA POTENTIAL DISASTER AGENTS)
• SUNDOWNER WINDS
• LOCAL CHANGES IN AIR
QUALITY
• LOCAL CHANGES IN WEATHER
CAUSES
OF
DAMAGE
LIGHTNING STRIKES
MANMADE FIRES
PROXIMITY OF URBAN AREA
TO THE WILDLAND FIRE
WILDFIRES
WIND SPEED AND DIRECTION
(DAY/NIGHT DIFFERENCES)
DISASTER
LABORATORIES
DRYNESS
(AKA
BUSHFIRES)
HIGH TEMPERATURES
LOCAL FUEL SUPPLY
LESSONS LEARNED ABOUT
DISASTER RESILIENCE
ALL WILDFIRES
PREPAREDNES
FOR THE
EXPECTED AND
UNEXPEDTED IS
ESSENTIAL FOR
DISASTER
RESILIENCE
LESSONS LEARNED ABOUT
DISASTER RESILIENCE
ALL WILDFIRES
TIMELY
EMERGENCY
RESPONSE IS
ESSENTIAL
FOR DISASTER
RESILIENCE
LESSONS LEARNED ABOUT
DISASTER RESILIENCE
ALL WILDFIRES
EARLY WARNING (THE ISS)
AND
EVACUATION
ARE
ESSENTIAL
FOR DISASTER
RESILIENCE
NOTABLE WILDFIRES IN
CHILE
2012’s wildfires - the worst Chile has
seen in years - were worsened by
strong winds, high temperatures and
exceptionally dry conditions
Chile's southern regions,
normally experiencing rain in
January, were suffering
instead from a nationwide
heat wave on top of a
drought; two factors that
make wildfires more likely.
LOCATIONS
Nearly 50 wildfires in southern
Chile destroyed hundreds of
houses, forced the evacuation
of thousands of people, and
caused millions of dollars in
damage to the forestry and
tourism industries.
TORRE DEL PAINE NATIONAL
PARK (AFTER THE DEC. 2011 FIRES)
WILDFIRE IN BIO BIO
REGION: JAN. 4, 2012
• The worst of the blazes were
concentrated in Chile's Bio Bio
region, where about 24,800
hectares were destroyed
BIO BIO (QUILLON AREA)
WILDFIRE: JAN 5, 2012
QUILLON AREA WILDFIRE:
JAN 5, 2012
AN IMPOSSIBLE TASK: QUILLON
AREA WILDFIRE: JAN 5, 2012
A POSSIBLE TASK: FIGHTING THE
QUILLON AREA WILDFIRE
FIGHTING THE QUILLON
WILDFIRES
WILDFIRE IN BIO BIO
REGION: JAN. 4, 2012
• Helicopters fight a massive forest
fire affecting the commune of
Ranquil, in southern Chile's Bio
Bio region, 450 km (275 mi) south
of Santiago.
FIGHTING THE BIO BIO
WILDFIRES
IMPACTS: WILDFIRES IN BIO
BIO REGION: JAN. 4, 2012
• 600 people were evacuated
from the area
• 160 homes destroyed.
WILDFIRE IN ARAUCANIA
REGION: JAN. 5, 2012
• Seven firefighters died after being
trapped by flames when the wind
suddenly changed direction.
• They were part of a team trying to
extinguish a blaze near Carahue in the
Araucania region, about 700 km (434
miles) south of the capital Santiago.
ARAUCANIA WILDFIRE: JAN
5, 2012
Mapuche Indians blamed for
starting the deadly wildfires
ARAUCANIA WILDFIRE:
FALLEN FIREFIGHTER
7 FALLEN FIREFIGHTERS
ELEMENTS OF HAZARDS
AND RISK
ELEMENTS OF WILDFIRE RISK
HAZARDS
EXPOSURE
RISK
VULNERABILITY
LOCATION
A DISASTER CAN HAPPEN
WHEN THE
POTENTIAL DISASTER AGENTS
OF A WILDFIRE INTERACT WITH
CHILE’S COMMUNITIES
A DISASTER is ----- the set of failures that overwhelm the
capability of a community to respond
without external help when three
continuums: 1) people, 2) community
(i.e., a set of habitats, livelihoods, and
social constructs), and 3) complex
events (e.g., wildfires, floods,…)
intersect at a point in space and time.
Disasters are caused by
single- or multiple-event
natural hazards that, (for
various reasons), cause
extreme levels of mortality,
morbidity, homelessness,
joblessness, economic losses,
or environmental impacts.
THE REASONS ARE . . .
• When it does happen, the
functions of the community’s
buildings and infrastructure can be
LOST.
THE REASONS ARE . . .
• The community is UNPREPARED for what will likely
happen, not to mention the
low-probability of occurrence—
high-probability of adverse
consequences event.
THE REASONS ARE . . .
• The community has NO DISASTER
PLANNING SCENARIO or
WARNING SYSTEM in place as a
strategic framework for early threat
identification and coordinated
local, national, regional, and
international countermeasures.
THE REASONS ARE . . .
• The community LACKS THE
CAPACITY TO RESPOND in a
timely and effective manner to
the full spectrum of expected
and unexpected emergency
situations.
THE REASONS ARE . . .
• The community is INEFFICIENT
during recovery and
reconstruction because it HAS
NOT LEARNED from either the
current experience or the
cumulative prior experiences.
THE ALTERNATIVE TO A
WILDFIRE DISASTER IS
WILDFIRE DISASTER
RESILIENCE
WILDFIRE RISK
•WILDFIRE HAZARDS
•PEOPLE & BLDGS.
•VULNERABILITY
•LOCATION
DATA BASES
AND INFORMATION
ACCEPTABLE RISK
RISK
UNACCEPTABLE RISK
CHILE’S
GOAL: WILDFIRE
DISASTER RESILIENCE
COMMUNITIES
POLICY OPTIONS
HAZARDS:
GROUND SHAKING
GROUND FAILURE
SURFACE FAULTING
TECTONIC DEFORMATION
TSUNAMI RUN UP
AFTERSHOCKS
• PREPAREDNESS
•PROTECTION
•EARLY WARNING
•EMERGENCY RESPONSE
•RECOVERY and
RECONSTRUCTION
MONITORING TECHNOLOGIES
AND WARNING SYSTEMS ARE
A VITAL PART OF SURVIVAL.
TECHNOLOGIES FOR
MONITORING, FORECASTING,
AND WARNING ARE VITAL FOR
SURVIVAL.
THE FACTS: SURVIVORS OF A
WILDFIRE HAVE TO START OVER
LESSONS LEARNED ABOUT
DISASTER RESILIENCE
ALL WILDFIRES
RECOVERY AND
RECONSTRUCTION
USUALLY MEANS
STARTING OVER.