The year 2017 has been record-setting for the occurrence of natural disasters. Since 1970, the number of disasters worldwide has more than quadrupled to around 400 a year. Another dataset of less serious types of weather- and climate-related events, defined as causing at least one death or a set amount of monetary damage, shows an increase, too. By this measure, compiled by Munich Re, a company specializing in determining risk factors, there are six times more hydrological events now than in 1980. Last year’s total was the highest ever seen.
Although the good news is that less people are dying from these disasters due to a focus by many countries on preparedness (see chart below), we are still faced with serious, often deadly health problems resulting from floods, earthquakes, and other similar phenomena. The task of the SBC professional is to be prepared with communication materials and approaches that will work immediately once the disaster hits, and also to help prepare the public by communication efforts before it arrives.
Retrieved from https://www.economist.com/blogs/graphicdetail/2017/08/daily-chart-19
Cholera Prevention – http://sawbo-animations.org/video.php?video=//www.youtube.com/embed/t9f3PHKkclU
Oral Re-Hydration Solution (During Cholera Outbreak) – http://sawbo-animations.org/video.php?video=//www.youtube.com/embed/HFBVgulhbp4
Charcoal Water Filtration – http://sawbo-animations.org/video.php?video=//www.youtube.com/embed/wsaBIOrjvW4
Malaria Prevention – http://sawbo-animations.org/video.php?video=//www.youtube.com/embed/V7Nfjo9qtq4
Malaria Prevention: Bed Nets – http://sawbo-animations.org/video.php?video=//www.youtube.com/embed/kBvTDtsfxhM
Dengue Prevention – http://sawbo-animations.org/video.php?video=//www.youtube.com/embed/31AspqabKbs
WNV Prevention – http://sawbo-animations.org/video.php?video=//www.youtube.com/embed/EGvBU1KCctc
Yellow Fever Prevention – http://sawbo-animations.org/video.php?video=//www.youtube.com/embed/9zJAqW2jw_8
The Zika Virus – http://sawbo-animations.org/video.php?video=//www.youtube.com/embed/2e4wW9JSUjI
Hurricanes of 2017 https://disasterinfo.nlm.nih.gov/dimrc/hurricanesof2017.html NEW! Information on Harvey and Irma on one page
Fires and Wildfires https://disasterinfo.nlm.nih.gov/enviro/wildfires.html Updated September 2017
Earthquakes https://disasterinfo.nlm.nih.gov/dimrc/earthquakes.html
Coping with Disasters, Violence and Traumatic Events https://disasterinfo.nlm.nih.gov/dimrc/coping.html Updated September 2017
Search the disaster literature:
Disaster Lit: Resource Guide for Disaster Medicine and Public Health https://disasterlit.nlm.nih.gov/
PubMed https://pubmed.gov
MeSH Terms Used in Indexing Disaster-Related Journal Articles https://disasterinfo.nlm.nih.gov/dimrc/mesh_disaster.html
Journals Indexed in PubMed https://disaster.nlm.nih.gov/dimrc/medscilit.html#journals
Did you know?
FEMA recognizes libraries as one of the facilities providing “essential services” in case of disaster through the Stafford Act. The means libraries are eligible for federal assistance and temporary relocation facilities following a disaster. https://www.fema.gov/media-library/assets/documents/15271?fromSearch=fromsearch&id=3564
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Water & Sanitation (http://bit.ly/2gPh2zc)
Cholera Fact Sheet in 5 languages (http://bit.ly/2wOEYwA)
Health problems from unsafe water (http://bit.ly/2wODFhz)
Preventing mosquito-borne illnesses (http://bit.ly/2vU76yJ)
Resources by Language (http://bit.ly/2f95DtZ)
For more resources, please see the Trending Topic page SBCC for Emergency Communication, published in 2015.
Banner Photo: Naina Gaichu, who lost her house in the 2015 Nepal earthquake, holds her daughter in their tin shed at the Bhaktipur relief camp in Kathmandu, one year after the earthquake. © 2016 Leesha Manju, Courtesy of Photoshare