spreading awareness

 Flood

Floods are the most common natural disaster in India. Several states have been affected over the years by heavy floods. Recent examples include 2015 Gujarat floods and 2018-19 Kerala floods.

Warning systems:Initially, Emergency time functions are activated by SEOC and DEOC. All necessary forces are pre-positioned as per the direction of the state incident commander. And the defence wing along with the central force is ready to move into any location in the state.

Flood Preparedness

If each one of us is better involved in the process of preparedness, creation of awareness and the working of skilled emergency response teams, we can reduce loss of life and minimize human suffering.

BEFORE FLOODING OCCURS

·        Identify the nearest shelter and know the route. Prepare an emergency kit which includes:

·        First aid kit with extra medication for snakebite and diarrhoea

·        Strong ropes for tying things

·        Radio, torch and spare batteries

·        Stocks of fresh water, dry food, salt and sugar, kerosene, candles and matchboxes

·        Water-proof bags

·        Umbrellas and bamboo sticks(for protection from snakes)

·        If in rural areas, identify areas which are higher than your surroundings or build an earthen mound to locate cattle etc in the event of a flood

WHEN FLOODING APPEARS LIKELY

·        Tune in to radio or Tv for warnings and advice

·        Keep vigil about warnings from local authorities

·        Keep the emergency kit ready

IF YOU NEED TO EVACUATE

·        Inform volunteers or DMT the address of the place you are moving to.

·        Raise furniture, clothes, appliances onto beds or tables

·        Turn off power

·        Put sandbags in the toilet bowl or cover all drains to prevent sewage back-flow

·        Lock your house and take the route to nearest shelter

·        Do not get into water of unknown depth and current

DURING FLOODS

·        Drink boiled water

·        Don’t eat heavy meals

·        Use raw tea, rice water, tender coconut water etc during diarrhoea

·        Do not let children remain on empty stomach

·        Use bleaching powder and lime to disinfect surroundings

·        Avoid entering floodwaters

·        Do not eat food that got wet in floodwaters

·        Use halogen tablets to purify water before drinking it

·        Be careful of snakes

Man made disasters:Disasters that are caused by human beings are called man-made disasters. Examples are nuclear bombs, transportation accidents etc.

The most serious threats occur due to nuclear, biological and chemical warfare which are collectively known as WMD or Weapons of Mass Destruction.

·        Nuclear Weapons:

Nuclear weapons are the most dangerous weapons on earth. One can destroy a whole city, potentially killing millions, and jeopardizing the natural environment and lives of future generations through its long-term catastrophic effects. The dangers from such weapons arise from their very existence. Although nuclear weapons have only been used twice in warfare—in the bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki in 1945—about 13,400 reportedly remain in our world today and there have been over 2,000 nuclear tests conducted to date. Disarmament is the best protection against such dangers, but achieving this goal has been a tremendously difficult challenge.

·        Biological Weapons

Biological weapons disseminate disease-causing organisms or toxins to harm or kill humans, animals or plants. They can be deadly and highly contagious. Diseases caused by such weapons would not confine themselves to national borders and could spread rapidly around the world. The consequences of the deliberate release of biological agents or toxins by state or non-state actors could be dramatic. In addition to the tragic loss of lives, such events could cause food shortages, environmental catastrophes, devastating economic loss, and widespread illness, fear and mistrust among the public.

·        Chemical Weapons

The modern use of chemical weapons began with World War I, when both sides to the conflict used poisonous gas to inflict agonizing suffering and to cause significant battlefield casualties. Such weapons basically consisted of well known commercial chemicals put into standard munitions such as grenades and artillery shells. Chlorine, phosgene (a choking agent) and mustard gas (which inflicts painful burns on the skin) were among the chemicals used. The results were indiscriminate and often devastating. Nearly 100,000 deaths resulted. Since World War I, chemical weapons have caused more than one million casualties globally.

 

Petrochemical Transportation Accidents

Warning Systems

Emergency Response Vehicles of Oil Companies are under the control of State Emergency Operations Centre.

Standard Operating Procedure

1.Revenue department will Evacuate 500 metre radius and ensure compliance of all procedures by concerned departments along with informing SEOC for availing the services of the Emergency Response Vehicle of Indian Oil Corporation.

2.Fire & Rescue Services Will Avoid ‘Boiling Liquid Expanding Vapor Explosion (BLEVE)’ by continuous cooling with water and foam till the fuel is removed by the Emergency Response Vehicle or until the containment gets exhausted.

3.Police will ensure that no public shall be permitted within 500 m radius and stop all transport from and leading to the site within this radius. They will ensure that no vehicle shall enter the 100 m radius of the site other than Fire Force vehicles and the Emergency Response Vehicle of the petroleum companies and no one other than Fire & Rescue Service Personal and the experts of oil companies shall be permitted within the 50 m radius of the event site.

4.The electricity board will disconnect electricity to the panchayats falling within the 500 m radius and BSNL along with other private mobile telephone companies will switch off mobile towers within 500 m radius of the event.

5.Oil Companies will honor the directions issued by SEOC immediately for operational deployment of ERVs and they shall specifically designate officers not below the rank of General Managers to liaison with SEOC for operational deployment of the ERVs. The Oil PSUs shall ensure that ERVs have permanent mobile numbers issued and the numbers shall be intimated formally to SEOC such that SEOC can track the movement of the ERV during emergency deployment and ensure smooth movement through traffic control and Police escort.

Cyclones:Cyclones account for 30% of the total occurrences of disasters in India. It is defined as a region of low atmospheric pressure surrounded by high atmospheric pressure resulting in swirling atmospheric disturbance and accompanied by powerful winds. The Odissa super-cyclone in 1999 had a wind speed of 260-300 km/hr and killed thousands.

·        EOCs are required to disseminate warning to all the line departments & activate the emergency time functions.

·        All control rooms should function 24 hours.

·        Navy, Coast Guard and other central forces should be ready to move into any location.

·        BSNL should sent early warning SMS to public as per the information from EOC. Police should deploy emergency communication systems

·        Hospitals, CHCs and PHCs in the districts predicted to be affected by the cyclone should function at full strength 24 hours as per requirements by making necessary human resource arrangements from district level. Medical teams should be kept ready for field level disaster management. Ensure control measures for epidemic prevention. Adequate quantities of medicines, bleaching powder, chlorine tablets and trained manpower have to be ensured.

·        Relief camps should start functioning and relocation of the vulnerable population should be given priority.(particularly those living in kutcha houses and low lying areas) to the relief camps and other safe locations

·        The electricity board and public works department should be ready with emergency repair teams for deployment. Make necessary arrangements for drinking water distribution.

·        Police should stop vehicular traffic other than that of emergency services via roads prone to inundation. Collect and intimate the details of mainland fishermen to EOC, if stranded.

 

·        Declare holiday for all educational institutions

·        All mass gatherings and social events to be stopped

·        Adequate lifeguard, rescue boats, life lines/buoys to be positioned near the beaches.

 

·        Fisheries - Keep record/data of fishing boat /number of fishermen venturing to sea for fishing in particular islands. Advise fishermen to not venture into sea

Relief camps

Introduction

Setting up and managing camps is one of the most challenging tasks when a disaster occurs. They are indispensable and require proper planning and execution. The process is dynamic in nature. The camps need to be constructed such that the physical, emotional, cultural and social well-being of the camp inhabitants are ensured.

Relief camps are usually considered temporary, with an aim to provide basic necessities in an efficient manner. The site of construction, climatic changes etc will affect the stability and maintenance of the camps.

In this level, we look at the general guidelines of constructing a camp during a disaster as well as the setting up of an FLTC.

Standard Operating Procedure for Relief Camps

Location

·        The site should not be vulnerable to natural disasters like landslides, earthquakes etc

·        Preferably accessible by motor vehicles

Shelter

·        Inhabitants should be protected from adverse effects of the climate

·        Sufficient warmth, air, security and privacy must be maintained

General administration of the camp

·        A camp officer should co-ordinate and supervise the day-to-day activities in the camp

·        Any government officer can be asked to assist depending upon the requirements in the camp.

Management of the camp

·        Treat every inhabitant of the camp with dignity and respect

·        Make effective arrangement for distribution of food and aid to the people in the camp

·        Special care should be taken to ensure that vulnerable people like disabled, elderly, pregnant women and children get adequate aid and supply of food and other facilities.

·        Voluntary Organizations and leading citizens may be encouraged and involve in management of relief camp

Basic Facilities

·        Lighting Arrangement and Generator Set

·        Water Facilities

·        Sanitation

·        Food and clothing

·        Medical Facilities & Psycho-social Support

Briefly, these are the following steps involved in Setting up a FLTC:-

·        Identifying a suitable building

·        Procurement of goods

·        Setting up of Doffing & donning areas

·        Creating partition and Laying of beds

·        Prepping of washrooms, drinking water facility, recreational area

·        Setting up of the nursing station

·        Demarking and sealing isolation area

·        Setting up of Administrative area

·        Identifying the staff and training them

These steps are to be dealt with in-depth in the coming chapters.

A First-Line Treatment Centre(FLTC) is a facility where the most mildly symptomatic or asymptomatic COVID patients are treated. 70-80% of COVID patients are asymptomatic and only exhibit mild symptoms.

All such patients will be admitted into the FLTCs so that hospitals may be reserved for the most critically ill. FLTCs are not hospitals in the strict sense but only makeshift healthcare centres.

FLTCs are usually created as and when the need arises for such a facility within the Panchayat. A suitable Community Hall or any building is identified and the same is converted into a FLTC for a definite time period.

The following steps must be followed to set up the physical infrastructure required to create an FLTC:

·        Demarcate the isolation area as per the facility layout

·        Identify separate entry and exit points for patients and staff

·        Place the furniture and fittings as per the facility layout.

·        Set up enclosed Doffing and Donning areas

·        Set up an administrative office. The office must have a computer, a printer and one smart phone.

·        Set up a room for medical staff and non-medical staff each and a store room

·        Arrange for charging points both inside the isolation area for the patients and at the officer space outside the isolation area

·        Internet connectivity through Wi-Fi must be enabled both for the patients as well as staff

·        Drinking water must be made available in the isolation area

·        The electric lines and plumbing must be checked

·        Place signages to clearly establish a circulation flow for patients staff as well as stock

·        Place one smart phone permanently within the isolation area and the other smart phone in the administrative office outside the isolation area. This will be the primary mode of communication between the staff within the isolation area and the administrator stationed outside.

·        Seal the isolation area securely.

·        The building identified to be converted into a FLTC must have the following facilities:-

·        The Facility must be spacious enough to accommodate large numbers of patients easily.

·        It must be airy and naturally lit.

·        It must be a closed building so that the isolation area can be easily sealed.

·        The building must be ideally located away from hospitals and schools to protect the sick, elderly and children from any possible spread of the infection.

·        The building must be located within a short distance from a Taluk Hospital so that support can be sent from the Taluk Hospital in case of any medical emergency.

·        The facility must have separate entry and exit for patients and staff.

·        The proposed isolation area must have a partition to house Male and Female Patients separately (If the facility is open for both men and women)

·        There must be an adequate number of washrooms with at least one washroom per 4 patients.

·        There must be a dining area and a recreational area within the isolation area

·        There must be room outside the isolation area to set up the administrative office, area for staff and to set up a storeroom.

·        There must be a secure storeroom to store the medical supplies and other necessary items.

·        There must be an ambulance bay and waiting area outside the building

·        There must be enough space to create Donning (putting on of PPE kits) and Doffing (Putting off PPE kits) areas for nurses and doctors.

A.RECEPTION AREA:

Most patients who reach the First Line treatment centers are Covid 19 cases who have mild symptoms. With minimum but efficient use of PPE, triage the patient into stable & unstable.

All patients should sanitize their hands & wear masks before entry.

If a patient is a direct entry case and not referred through the Telehealth Helpline Unit, then a screening questionnaire needs to be applied for initial categorization and admission to FLTC.

B.COVID CARE AREA

The isolation area should have 3 entry/exit points:

·        STAFF ENTRY

·        STAFF EXIT

·        PATIENT ENTRY/EXIT

The area is completely sealed shut at all other places to ensure that no unauthorised entry or exit takes place.

C. ISOLATION AREA:The isolation patient area should have

1.Nurse Station

2.Sample Collection Area

3.Utility Area (Dining Area and Recreational Area)

4.Cots should