Mitigation Phase of Earthquake Hazards - Essay Example

The agents like School boards, psychologists, geologists, construction engineers, architects, and politicians have something in common to deliver about earthquake mitigation. The common contribution of these agents is giving precautionary measures to the public in case of an earthquake and educating people about this natural disaster.

2. Define these occupations and discuss the different roles of each in mitigation. What kind of information would help people in each occupation work together to help mitigate the impacts of future earthquakes?

A school board is an organization appointed by the government to govern the overall activities of schools in a particular state. According to (Usavage,2011)“A school board is a legislative body of citizens called school directors who are elected locally by their fellow citizens and who serve as agents of the state legislature”. A psychologist is a doctor who specializes in treating mental illness and disorders. Geologist is a scientist who studies the constitution of the earth. A construction engineer plans designs, and constructs buildings. An architect mainly is a creative person who designs a building layout and a politician is an individual who makes public policy and administers national affairs.

These people also have different roles to play in the mitigation of earthquakes. School boards can alert students regarding earthquake occurrence and preventive measures. Psychologists can pacify and treat people traumatized by earthquakes. Geologists can make public awareness about the aftermath of an earthquake. Construction engineers can help the public to build earthquake-proof buildings for a safe future. Architects can analyze and plan building structures that can survive earthquakes to an extent. Politicians can implement strategies and earthquake funds to aid the victims of earthquake hazards. The kind of information that would help these parties to mitigate the impacts of an earthquake is as follows:

1. Understanding the nature of earthquake activity
2. What action needs to be taken by common men to not get victimized by earthquakes?
3. Which regions in a country are most prone to earthquakes?
4. Outline the tasks you need to do. These tasks include making internal assessments and working together toward long-term solutions in a collaborative manner with multiple agencies. Some internal assessments include determining potential risks, prioritizing activities according to life safety, the number of people exposed, cost, and probability the hazard will occur again.

On the occurrence of earthquakes, there is a high chance of the development of tsunamis or landslides. The rescue plan for saving the people living in coastal areas should be structured efficiently. Moreover, there should be warning and alert to people living in suburbs regarding the arrival of landslides. Due to the ground shaking, there can be a considerable loss to buildings that are vulnerable, and equipment that is lost fitted. Damage to this equipment and building can

lead to exposure of toxins and chemicals into the environment. This can cause serious damage to the people in the area affected by earthquakes. It is also highly essential to keep a record of people living in specific areas to estimate the loss of life which can happen during the occurrence of earthquakes, tsunamis, and landslides. The earthquake risk assessment must be carried out by different agencies of government and action must be taken according to the arrived outcome. As per (Brabhaharan, 2005) “The objective of an earthquake assessment is to quantify the potential damages and losses due to future earthquakes and their probabilities of occurrence in a given period”.

               It is also necessary to collect information from experts like geologists, and construction engineers to understand the potential hazards caused due to earthquake occurrence. Care must be taken by the government when building a water supply as this should not be fragile to earthquakes. As per(Brunsdon,2004)“However the vulnerability of water supply networks to earthquake actions, particularly permanent ground deformation including fault rupture, is not so widely appreciated outside of the scientific and engineering arena”.  the fund spent on the previous earthquake disaster period guides the analysts and experts in estimating the money needed to be allocated for rescue operations. So the government and non-profit organizations must monitor the money spent on aid and rescue operations related to earthquakes and other disasters related to it. As an earthquake is a natural disaster there is a high chance for it to occur at any time in the future and is also without prior notice. Here the government and nongovernment agencies must depend on geologists to speculate the movement of the earth in different situations.

4. Discuss how this information when brought to a multi-agency team review can best work together and how school officials can help. Address these issues and discuss what steps a community can take to mitigate community-wide risks as they relate to education

            The information regarding the potential risk of earthquakes allows all the agents to work together scientifically. The information given should be studied intricately by multi-agency members and school officials especially so that children and their parents get a glimpse of the disastrous potentiality of earthquakes and the measures needed to be taken by them in the event of an earthquake. The reports of earthquake damage when passed on to multi–agency can allow them to conduct their profession by considering the safety and security of the public and property. The community of people needs to study the information given out by the government and local authorities regarding earthquakes and use precautionary steps to save their lives and avoid injuries.