Volume 5: Issue 1- December 2008
The December issue of Crisis Response Journal covers a wide range of international disasters and incidents, written by leading authorities in their fields of expertise
Incident reports
Channel Tunnel vision David Lane, asks what measures should be brought in to avoid another disaster like the Channel Tunnel fire that occurred in September this year
Kauhajoki School shooting Pentti Partanen examines the recent school shooting tragedy at Kauhajoki in Finland which claimed the lives of nine students and a teacher
Sunrise propane blast Fire Chief William A Stewart outlines the firefighting response following a propane explosion in Toronto, Canada, this year
Cyber attack resilience Mati Raidma examines the Estonian cyber attacks and explains that even small scale attacks can have a major impact on the security environment as a whole
Bihar’s flood relief Paras Nath Rai explains the rescue efforts for the 3.5 million people affected by flooding when the banks of the river Kosi suffered a breach in August
Hurricane Ike experience Jamell Robinson discusses the impact that Hurricane Ike had on the Turks and Caicos Islands earlier this year
High-rise drill Frank G Straub discusses a recently held a high-rise emergency drill in the City of White Plains, New York
Preparing for the next quake A new training programme in Turkey aims to improve the co-ordination of international assistance during an earthquake
Features
A climate of change Chris Abbott, Cleo Paskal and Thomas Phipps say some European emergency services have yet to take the appropriate measures to prepare for the potential effects of a climate stressed world
Societal continuity Brett Lovegrove explains that a more co-ordinated approach to information and resources can help increase a nation’s resilience
Asteroids: A new challenge Russell L Schweickart and Paul Kovacs explain why emergency managers must be provided with asteroid impact predictions in the future
Improving Europe’s 112 number Olivier Paul-Morandini discusses the importance of European emergency number 112 and explains why more people need to be made aware of its existence
Pilgrims’ progress in Spain Francisco Javier Antonio Alonso Urbita describes the logistical challenges involved in ensuring the safety of more than a million people during the annual El Rocio pilgrimage
Command and control Jonathan Lofthouse says much has changed for Nottingham University hospitals NHS Trust since the opening of an emergency command suite
Disaster management Hilary Phillips interviews Colin Deiner, Head of the recently commissioned 50-million Rand Gauteng Disaster Management Centre in South Africa
In depth
Mountain rescue In the second part of this series, Yannick Dissart chronicles the organisation and development of mountain rescue in France
No-tech terror Joseph Almog and Jay Levinson discuss the reasons why unsophisticated acts of terrorism are becoming more and more prevalent
Campus and workplace shootings Hollis Stambaugh looks at the lessons that have been learned from the Virginia Tech School shootings and other major incidents
Crisis management Robert Jensen explains how data management systems can help ease demands upon grieving families
Wildland fires Alexander C Held, Chair of the Regional Fire Network of the United Nations International Strategy for Disaster Reduction, discusses southern Africa’s devastating fire season
Regular sections
Events Crucial diary dates for the next few months, along with previews and reviews
European civil protection The European Commission’s Joint Research Centre explains their forecasting and early warning systems for fires and floods, earthquakes, tsunamis and storms
Lessons learned JL Smither explains how the increasing worldwide turmoil and financial uncertainty evolving from private economic problems can affect the public sector