Volume 4: Issue 3 - June 2008
The June 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
Albania munitions plant explosion Brigadier General Dr Alois Hirschmugl describes the UN response to the explosion at a munitions decommissioning facility that injured more than 300 people and killed more than 20
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Plane crash at Heathrow When a plane landed short of the runway at Heathrow, London this April, the response of the Airport Fire and Rescue Service was quick and efficient. John Trew explains what happened
Australian storm batters coast Jonathon Hall reports on the winch rescue of 37 people from a craft off the Queensland coast during a monster storm earlier this year
America's crane collapse blight There have been three separate crane collapses in the States so far this year, two in New York and one in Miami. Lucy Boon speaks to Lieutenant Ignatius Carroll, of Miami Fire-Rescue about the emergency response in downtown Miami
Dirty bomb basics Dr Laurie Mazurik describes how a group of educational establishments prepared for the threat of a dirty bomb in Toronto, Canada this year
Ready to rumble CRJ Deputy Editor Kneez Bukhari explains what happened when New Zealand held a volcanic-eruption simulation on a national level and in real-time to test the country’s preparedness
Planning for fire Ahead of the annual fire season, Europe held a major fire simulation exercise in Sardinia earlier this year. CRJ takes a closer look
Features
Searching for excellence Herman B 'Dutch' Leonard and Arnold M Howitt examine how different responses are needed for different types of emergency
Severe weather warning Richard Bingley suggests how the UK Government can best help prepare Britain for the potential threat of severe weather
Psychological first aid for children Kris Spaepen and Erik De Soir say the symptoms of acute stress in children after a traumatic event need to be recognised early
Comment
Nigeria's oil-driven security situation CRJ Editor Emily Hough speaks to terrorism analyst and consultant Hagai Segal, who warns of assuming today’s Al-Qaeda-inspired plots will be similar to that which we have seen before
Well intentioned fools rush in This company, founded in a family basement, is now a renowned global enterprise
The flood rescue challenge Following the summer 2007 floods in the UK, paul O'Sullivan gives his reaction to the report by Sir Ken Knights, Chief Fire and Rescue Advisor
In depth
Trauma support for emergency services: Part II The British Transport Police’s Trauma Support Programme helped many officers in the aftermath of the July 7 London bombings. Noreen Tehrani explains
Emergency management websites In the first of a series, Adam Crowe explains reviews US-based emergency management websites and explains how they can be improved
Looking backwards part IV: The municipality in disasters Jay Levinson asks what are the civilian response roles of local municipalities when disaster strikes?
Good governance part III: Leading adaptively In the third and final part of this series, Irwin Turbitt compares the differences between governance and management in the public and private sectors
Crisis management part IV: Emergency phone enquiries Organisations may only have minutes to set up and activate call centres once a disaster occurs. Jerry J Novosad, Jr explains how to make things easier on all concerned
Campus and workplace shootings: part II Hollis Stambaugh says that lessons learned from the Virginia Tech shootings reach beyond campuses and all employers must evaluate potential threats
Making waves part III: Differences in sound Andrew Clark examines the physics behind operating frequencies and explains how the radios sets we all rely so heavily on actually work
Wildland fires: Part IV Regional focus Sundar P Sharma explains what can be done to improve forest fire management in South Asia
Flood resilience part II: Mitigation and adaptation Because flooding cannot be eliminated, it makes sense to consider the extent to which the consequences can be mitigated. Peter Borrows take a look at the resilient approach
Profiles
Underground SAR Hilary Phillips talks to Christo de Klerk of the Mines Rescue Services which is based at a gold mine in South Africa
Preparing for everyday emergencies Tami Kihs explains how the emergency service providers of Vancouver, Washington, work with both public and private partners in order to better prepare themselves for emergencies
Regular sections
Events Crucial diary dates for the next few months, along with previews and reviews
Lessons learned JL Smither considers some of the recent severe weather events in the United States, and the initiatives aimed to improve responses to them