Exposure

and
Vulnerability
 “
Vulnerability is defined as a
condition resulting from physical,
social, economic, and
environmental factors or processes,
which increases the susceptibility
of a community to the impact of a
hazard

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 “
Exposure is another component of
disaster risk, and refers to that
which is affected by natural
disasters, such as people and
property.

3
 “
Exposure is viewed as the total
value of elements at risk. It is
expressed as the number of
human lives and the value of the
properties that can potentially be
affected.

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 “
Exposure and vulnerability are the
main components of disaster risk
that have impeded the economic
growth of the Asia-Pacific Region,
and cause a direct toll on a
country’s economy.

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 “
Even with the current steady rise
in Asia community, a disaster often
pulls it down because of the
number of people and community
exposed to natural hazards.

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 “
According to Dr. Noeleen Heyzer, the
UN Under-Secretary-General of the
Economic and Social Commission for
Asia and the Pacific (ESCAP), the
shared challenge in Asia and the
Pacific is to control the growing rate of
exposure and rise in vulnerability.

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 Emergency
Management
Cycle
 “
It refers to the ability of an
individual or institution to
prevent or mitigate, prepare
for, respond to, and recover
from a crisis.

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 “
Note that the bulk of
emergency management
work should take place well
before an actual crisis.

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 “
The emergency management
cycle consists of four phases
which are cyclic in nature.

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 “
Developing an emergency
management plan should be done
systematically. Emergency
management planning begins
with setting up planning team and
defining a work plan and
schedule.

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 “
Emergency management
should produce a formal
emergency plan. A
comprehensive plan should:

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 1.
Address all phases of
emergency
management;
 2.
take an all-hazards
approach; and
 3.
ensure that available
manpower and
resources are
identified.
 “
Having an emergency management
plan would also enable the planners
to see who is best suited to fill the
key roles and responsibilities needed
in emergency management.

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 “
While there are important principles
and best practices in emergency
management, every community
must have a tailored plan based on
the following:

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 1.
Community history, culture,
and ways of doing business,
including existing local or
regional emergency
management resources and
practices.
 2.
Different types of risks
present in the community
 3.
Different national and local
government safety laws, if
any.
 “
Once the planning team is
established, the next step is
to conduct a risk
assessment.

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 “
Risk assessment includes
identification and evaluation
of the potential hazards and
the current capabilities to
cope with the onset of
emergencies.

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 “
This should be conducted by a
team of experts in various
aspects of the assessment
process who are also part of
the planning process.

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 “
Hazard assessment identifies
potential hazards, and
evaluates the probability of
occurrence and the impact
once it occurs in the
community.

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