UAE needs national plan to deal with disasters

Abu Dhabi: Recent disasters across the globe, from earthquakes and cyclones to terrorist attacks, have raised the question whether the UAE would be able to cope in case of such an emergency.

The drawing up of a national disaster plan is one of the questions being discussed at a conference on Advanced Disaster Medical Response in Abu Dhabi.

Organisers of the two-day conference said the UAE does need a national plan, even though the country has been spared major disasters.

Doctors, paramedics, representatives from non-governmental organisations, the military, police and government officials, will discuss a unified crisis management plan.

"We have the capacity, technology, resources and manpower, but what we don't have yet is the coordination between the different departments and relief agencies," director of information and communication at the National Crisis and Emergency Management Authority (NCEMA), Dr Jamal Hosni, told Gulf News.

The NCEMA has been mandated to bring all stakeholders together. A part of its goal is to also create a National Operations Centre in Abu Dhabi, which is currently in progress.

According to some of the American delegates who participated in relief effort after hurricanes Katrina and Rita, the major obstacle was coordinating the efforts.

The American delegates praised the conference organisers. "We commend you for learning from the mistakes and success of others. You are well ahead of where we were," Dr. Susan Briggs, general and trauma surgeon involved in humanitarian work, said.

Briggs and several others produced an Arabic version of a 325-page English language manual containing detailed approaches to disasters. This was presented at the conference. It was translated by the Emirates Centre for Strategic Studies and Research.

The effects of disasters are lessened if there is a plan to deal with it.

"Even though we cannot prevent all disasters, we should be ready for them as a nation," Hosni said.

The challenge in coordinating the efforts of aid workers, relief personnel and the government is to avoid any clashes in their response plan. "In general, when a disaster happens, so many people want to help but if there is no plan to coordinate that, then it could actually make things worse," Hosni added.

"We view a terrorist attack in the same way as any disaster. Of course the goals are different but we still need to have a response plan," Hosni added.

Emergency

Organisers of the conference said just as important as a national plan, is a family plan. They called on families to discuss their own plans of dealing with disasters or emergencies.

"Every citizen should have a plan in case of extreme heat, an oil spill or any other natural disaster," Linda Sperberg, a community disaster education manager with National Training Tadreeb/EDADE said. "What will you do if you have to survive with out air conditioning? Discuss these issues with your family. Disasters disrupt life. Being prepared reduces fear, anxiety and losses," Sperberg added.

Family drill

Top 8 things to ensure your family is ready for a disaster:

- Have an action plan on what to do in case of an emergency.

- Ensure you have two ways out of every room.

- Have an emergency aid kit with water and non-perishable food in your home, car and office.

- Set up a meeting location in case communication is down.

- Put all your important documents in one file you can take quickly.

- Learn how to shut the gas supply and switch off the circuit breakers.

- Have drills where your family practises the plan.

- Stay at home and don't rush to make hasty decisions until the situation calms down.

Source: National Training Tadreeb/EDADE, 2008