Internet Pages
Below are new or updated Internet resources the Hazards Center staff has found useful. For a more complete list of some of the better sites dealing with hazards and disasters, see http://www.colorado.edu/hazards/sites/sites.html.
All Hazards
http://www.munichre.com
Munich Re, one of the world’s leading reinsurance groups, has produced Topics—its annual review of global natural hazards losses for 2001 (2001, 48 pp., free, Order Number 302-03202). The entire report, along with a downloadable poster depicting the natural catastrophes of 2001 as well as a world map of natural catastrophes, are all available free from this URL. In the past year, at least 25,000 people lost their lives in natural catastrophes, compared to 10,000 the previous year. Economic losses due to natural disasters were about $36 billion, up six billion over the previous year. Over two-thirds of losses were caused by windstorms and floods. However, Munich Re notes, the greatest burden carried by insurers was caused by terrorism. An additional major natural catastrophe would have stretched the capacity of the international insurance industry a great deal further. Nevertheless, owing to the increase in world population and insured values, especially in highly exposed areas and densely developed urban centers, Munich Re expects significantly steeper growth in insured losses from natural catastrophes than in economic losses in general. Sections in the report include an overview of natural disasters in 2001, major engineering and fire catastrophes (including the losses from September 11 in the U.S.), “the insurance industry’s billion dollar loss list,” the Gujarat earthquake, flooding and storm damage, loss potentials, meteorites, and climate negotiations. As always, the report is full of colorful photos, charts and diagrams, and substantial data about the impacts of destructive natural events. To obtain a printed copy, contact Gerhard Berz, Thomas Loster, or Angelika Wirtz, Munchener Ruckversicherungs-Gesellschaft, Central Division, Corporate Communications, Koniginstrasse 107, 80802 Munchen, Germany. For further information about the report and its content, contact Berz, Loster, or Wirtz; tel: +49 (0) 89/38 91-52 91; fax: +49 (0) 89/38 91-56 96.http://www.un.org/womenwatch/daw/csw/46sess.htm
During its 46th session in March, the United Nations Commission on the Status of Women examined “Environmental Management and the Mitigation of Natural Disasters: A Gender Perspective.” Using reports from an “Expert Group” meeting that occurred earlier in Ankara, Turkey; roundtable dialogue between governments, non-governmental organizations, and other UN bodies, the commission negotiated a set of “Agreed Conclusions” that advance an integrated approach to gender equality, disaster reduction, and sustainable development. All documentation, including the UN Secretary General’s report on the topic, can be downloaded from this URL, which is the web site of the UN’s Division for the Advancement of Women.http://www.paho.org/english/PED/Publication_eng.htm
The Pan American Health Organization’s (PAHO) new Catalog of Disaster Publications and Information Resources is posted here in both HTML and PDF formats. The catalog contains detailed descriptions of all PAHO disaster training materials (books, CDs, slides, and videos) and other sources of information, including the Virtual Health Library for Disasters, the Regional Disaster Information Center (CRID), and the principal web sites with PAHO content. Printed copies of the catalog are also available; send an e-mail request to disaster-publications@paho.org.http://www.emergencyemailnetwork.com
The Emergency Email Network provides emergency notifications from local, regional, and national governments, the Red Cross, and civil defense and other public service agencies to subscribers via the Internet and e-mail (computer, cell phone, digital pager, and fax). Users sign up to receive the emergency information alerts by filling out an on-line form and choosing one or more U.S. counties of interest. Messages contain alerts about severe weather, evacuations, health emergencies, natural disasters, utility outage information, locating emergency supplies, organ donations, daily weather forecasts, routine blood drives organized by the Red Cross, and other Internet services (third-party solicitation). Government and public agencies can join the network and distribute their alerts and notices to professional and citizen subscribers.http://www.fema.gov/mit/planning_toc3.htm
Understanding Your Risks—Identifying Hazards and Estimating Losses, the first entry in the Federal Emergency Management Agency’s new series of mitigation planning publications (see the Observer, Vol. XXVI, No. 3, p. 4), is now on-line at this URL. Like its printed precursor, the downloadable PDF format of the document gives step-by-step guidance for estimating the physical damage and economic losses a community could suffer from natural hazards.http://groups.yahoo.com/group/transport-communications/messages
The Transportation Communications Newsletter will feature the web sites of U.S. state and Canadian provincial emergency management offices in its “Web Site of the Day” segment. The free, daily e-mail publication lists news items and contains information about all aspects of communications in the transportation and emergency management field. View back issues of the newsletter at the above web address. To subscribe, send an e-mail to: transport-communications-subscribe@yahoogroups.com.Terrorism/Biohazards
http://www.academicinfo.net/usa911.html
http://www.worldtradecenterdisaster.com/#Title
http://www.evergreen.edu/library/govdocs/hotopics/index.html
http://www.freepint.com/gary/91101.html
These four sites provide detailed but different information about various aspects of the September 11, 2001, terrorist attacks and related background topics. Materials available include academic research studies; personal stories and contributions; pictures; maps; article, video, and audio links; worldwide government documents; commentaries and discussion papers; and much more.http://www.nist.gov/public_affairs/factsheet/homeland.htm
Homeland security means protecting U.S. citizens from and rapidly responding to terrorism, military, natural disaster, and other threats. The National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) assists in preparing the country for homeland security. Its newest endeavors, sparked by the September 11 attacks and outlined on this web page, focus more intently on terrorism and helping those on the front lines cope with and respond to terrorist threats. The projects include safer structures and secure information systems, enhanced threat detection and protection, tools for law enforcement, and emergency response.http://www.fema.gov/pte/gaheop.htm
A new supplement to the Federal Emergency Management Agency’s Guide for All-Hazard Emergency Operations Planning: State and Local Guide has been produced to help state and local emergency planners develop and maintain terrorism annexes to their emergency plans. The new annexes should specify how local, state, and federal responses to a terrorist incident will be integrated. The guidance has been appended to Chapter 6 of the Guide as “Attachment G—Terrorism.” The web site listed above has a downloadable PDF version of the whole guide (divided into segments for ease of downloading). Printed copies can also be ordered free from FEMA, P.O. Box 2102, Jessup, MD 20794-2012; (800) 480-2520; fax: (301) 362-5335. Specify the item number (9-1051) and the short title (SLG-101).http://securebuildings.lbl.gov
This web site is intended for emergency management personnel and building operators. It contains the most up-to-date advice from the Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory for dealing with a biological or chemical release in a building. The information is appropriate for small and medium-sized releases such as those that would be expected from a terrorist attack, not for industrial-scale releases such as those that occurred in Bhopal, India, or Chernobyl, Ukraine. Tips are provided for immediate and long-term hazard assessment and preparedness and dealing with releases that occur indoors, outdoors, or from an unknown location.Floods
http://web1.msc.fema.gov/webapp/commerce/command/ExecMacro/MSC/macros/welcome.d2w/report
Ordering flood maps and related reports, studies, and other materials from the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) is easier now that FEMA has opened its on-line Flood Map Store. Customers can search the “store” for maps and products, browse product descriptions, or enter known community and map numbers to find products fast. Users must log in and provide a credit card number before ordering. Products can also still be purchased through the toll-free telephone number: (800) 358-9616.
Hurricane
http://www.tallytown.com/redcross/hurrproof.html
What do you get when you combine a leaf blower, construction paper, drinking straws, and tape? A high school science class building hurricane-proof houses. This web site gives background information about this Red Cross project, which helps students explore protecting homes from high wind damage while also having fun. The students learn about and apply science principles about the force of hurricane winds as well about construction techniques—such as roof truss bracing—that make homes more durable in the face of strong winds.Drought
http://drought.unl.edu/dm
The “Drought Monitor” web site uses maps and written summaries to provide a weekly overview of where in the U.S. drought is emerging, lingering, subsiding, or expected. The data, synthesized multiple indices, outlooks, and news accounts are available on-line and via e-mail updates for decision-makers, farm service agencies, the media, and others interested in drought-related information. The “Monitor” is produced jointly by the National Weather Service’s Climate Prediction Center and National Climatic Data Center, the U.S. Department of Agriculture, and the National Drought Mitigation Center at the University of Nebraska–Lincoln. To subscribe to the Drought Monitor’s weekly updates, which appear each Thursday, go to http://drought.unl.edu/mailman/listinfo/DMupdate.Wharton Seeks Info on Insurance Economics and Risk Management
The S.S. Huebner Foundation for Insurance Education, administered by the Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania, is developing a new web site as an international resource on research and teaching materials in insurance economics and risk management. The site will serve as a central distribution point for both the academic and industry research communities and offer a library of teaching tools to help instructors design and plan courses in insurance economics and risk management.
To unveil the new web site later this year, the foundation is working to accumulate materials and requests that electronic versions of the following be submitted:
- Working papers and accepted-but-not-yet-published articles,
- Unpublished book chapters,
- Seminar and conference announcements,
- New book announcements,
- Insurance and risk management course reading lists,
- Insurance and risk management course syllabi, and
- Innovative teaching materials such as computer simulation models and case studies.
Materials will be listed on the site free of charge and will benefit from having the attention of a wide, international audience. Please e-mail any of the above materials that you would like included in the web site to huebner_foundation@wharton.upenn.edu. PDF format is preferred. For more information, e-mail J. David Cummins at cummins@wharton.upenn.edu.
Table of Contents for This Issue of the Natural Hazards Observer
