Disaster Management: Major Styles of Desition Making - Essay Example

Initially, during an emergency, sufficient information may not be available with the manager to take a logical decision which is acceptable to everyone. For an immediate response, it is necessary to have a quick and timely action to avoid the spread of disaster.In order to have a wider span of control, it is necessary to have a high level of commitment and hence the acceptance of the decision by all the people are extremely important. In an emergency situation, Incident Commander is expected to take immediate action and hence it is very important to have mechanisms to generate sufficient information is in place.

If the decision is made based on the best possible outcome in the circumstances, could attract higher commitment from the people in the team a could wider the span of control.A major challenge during any major emergency is to generate sufficient data to strategize response measures. In a normal situation, the data collection process is very difficult due to the various predicaments at ground level. Increased intensity and spread of disaster also limit the access to critical data pertaining to the impact and need for support.

The use of geographical information system (GIS) will certainly enable the Incident Commander to operate more effectively with a wider span of control in a wider area. The geographic information system will provide the crucial scientific data required for decision making which will help in better coordination among the team members and the affected communities. This will also help in analyzing the impact of action during a post-disaster situation. This will eventually improve the confidence of the people and will help the Incident Commander to widen the span of control.

GIS can assist the Incident Commander in many ways during a disaster or emergency. GIS could be used in proper management of the emergencies in various stages like emergency response, Recovery, mitigation, and preparedness. With an increase in the frequency of disasters in the recent past, it has become very important to have sufficient precautionary measures to facilitate immediate response. During an emergency response, GIS can help in developing and managing immediate response plan, inventory plan and help in and carrying out search and rescue operations.

During the recovery phase, it helps in need and impact assessment, developing a plan of action, damage control, and reconstruction. It can also be used in risk assessment and hazard management. In order to reduce the impact of disasters, it is also vital to prepare the community to face the various disasters. GIS will help the community and response team to develop an early warning system, evacuation plan, emergency response plan and interface for a public communication system.