Cholera in Sudan: An account of an epidemic in a refugee camp in eastern Sudan, May-June 1985

In 1985 cholera has been a serious problem in the horn of Africa, particularly affecting the many famine victims and refugees in that region. In this paper the history of cholera in Africa is briefly summarized, as is the background to the current refugee situation in eastern Sudan. A cholera epidemic involving 1,175 cases in two adjacent refugee camps in eastern Sudan is described. In this epidemic there were thirteen inpatient deaths and thirty-eight known home deaths from cholera. The management of the epidemic is described in detail. Overall an average of 8 1. of intravenous fluid was used per case, a higher figure than was anticipated, probably because of the unexpected degree of vomiting and the shortage of trained nursing staff.
The relationship between cholera and malnutrition is explored and hypochlorhydria is suggested as the main reason for the increased susceptibility to cholera among malnourished populations. It was observed that severely malnourished adults and children appeared to nave less severe diarrhoea with their cholera, presumably because of reduced mucosal surface area and poor enterocyte function. Finally possible means of aborting cholera epidemics are discussed.     

有限运力条件下的地震救灾物资调度模型及方法

救灾物资的调度是地震救灾工作中的一个重要环节。如何将地震救灾物资以时间最短、安全性最高及经济性最好的方式运送到物资需求点是救灾物资调度的关键。本文从时效性、安全性及经济性方面考虑了地震救灾物资的调度问题。建立了运力不足的条件下,时间最短、出救点数目最少、安全性最高的地震救灾物资调度数学优化模型;将问题转化为不受运力约束的情况,求解出可行方案的集合,再利用模糊规划对每个可行方案求最优解;通过比较最优解,求出"时间最短,出救点数目最少,安全性最高"的方案。最后,通过一个仿真算例阐述了本文方法的使用。     

基于GIS的宁波市应急救援物资信息系统初步研究

分析了全国应急救援物资情况,然后基于宁波市只有纸质记载的这种现状,对应急物资进行分类整理,抽象出概念模型。同时运用GIS的基本理论设计出宁波市应急救援物资信息系统框架,并就框架的各个子系统进行详细的深化,为系统的实现打下了基础。     

An outbreak of scurvy in Somali refugee camps*

Between June and October 1982, an outbreak of scurvy occurred in the refugee camps of Somalia. An epidemiologic investigation eventually detected more than 2,000 cases. The outbreak came at a time when the relief programme had been well established and the general health status of the refugees had otherwise stabilized. We report on 72 of the cases. Joint pain of the lower extremities and gingivitis were prominent features in the majority. Hemorrhagic phenomena were not observed and no deaths occurred. The outbreak primarily affected the poorer refugees who were unable to purchase locally available Vitamin C-containing foods. This outbreak demonstrates the vulnerability of a large population of displaced persons who are dependent on imported relief supplies for survival.     

Limitations of anthropometry during acute food shortages: high mortality can mask refugees' deteriorating nutritional status

Longitudinal comparison of anthropometric data from cross-sectional surveys is commonly used to assess nutritional status in relief operations. In a refugee camp in Sudan, assessment indicated a high level of childhood malnutrition, but nutritional status appeared relatively unchanged between cluster sample surveys in January (26.3% below 80% of median weight-for-height) and March 1985 (28.4% below 80% of median weight-for-height). However, in this interval, which was marked by irregular food supplies and relatively low energy (calorie) intake as well as by a high incidence of diarrhoeal disease and measles, nearly 13% of all children in the camp died. This deceptive appearance of stability in nutritional status in the face of high mortality may be explained by ongoing nutritional deterioration ("replacement malnutrition") among surviving children. These findings demonstrate that collection and analysis of mortality data are essential for the correct interpretation of anthropometric results during periods of uncertain food supply.     

Practical experience with the management of a cholera outbreak in a refugee cAMP in eastern Sudan, 1985

From May to November 1985 most refugee camps in Eastern Sudan were affected by cholera. This article summarizes the experience from the refugee camp Wad Sherife with the emphasis on the practical aspects of management of cholera in a refugee context. Paramedical personnel from the refugee community were used to a great extent both in curative and preventive measures. The home visitors played an important role in the early detection of the cases and in trying to prevent the spread of cholera in the camp. A total of 1793 cases were admitted during a three month period. The results show a case fatality rate of 1.8%. A significantly higher number of women were affected in the age group 15–44. As seen in other refugee camps in Eastern Sudan, there was a relatively high intravenous fluid consumption with an average of about 6 litres in adults.     

Livelihood patterns of displaced households in greater khartoum

Members of impoverished households in Greater Khartoum, who have been displaced from their homelands by famine and civil war, gain a livelihood by utilising a wide variety of subsistence activities and sources. These include moonlighting, income diversification and pooling, exchange relations, scavenging, relief supplies from aid agencies and remittances from relatives working in other areas. This finding challenges the widely held view of the displaced as dependent and parasitic on the wider urban community. Several public policies are identified which have a detrimental effect on the livelihood of the displaced.     

The Yellow Fever Epidemic in Western Mali,September—November 1987: Why Did Epidemiological Surveillance Fail?

Recent yellow fever epidemics in West Africa have underlined the discrepancy between the official number of cases and deaths and those estimated by a retrospective epidemiological investigation. During the yellow fever epidemic that broke out in western Mali in September 1987, a total of 305 cases and 145 deaths were officially notified, but estimates revealed true figures abut five times higher. This paper attempts to discuss the factors that hindered early case detection and more complete reporting. They were, first, the insufficient training on the clinical diagnosis, the blood sampling method for laboratory confirmation, and the curative treatment of patients (resulting in low utilization of services); second, the lack of an action plan to prepare in advance a quick response to the epidemic, affecting reporting procedures at the peripheral level and active case-finding during the outbreak; and third, the lack of laboratory facilities for a quick confirmation of the disease.
The difficulties experienced during the yellow fever epidemic in Mali demonstrated the importance of a preparedness strategy for epidemic control, based on an integrated approach of epidemiological surveillance within basic health service activities. The need for regional collaboration and for institutionalized funds in the donor community that could be mobilized for epidemic preparedness activities is also emphasized.     

Malnutrition in Emergencies: How Can We Do Better and Where Do the Responsibilities Lie?

Over many years, the international relief system has been repeatedly criticised in terms of slowness of response, poor inter-agency co-ordination, and technical incompetence on a larger or smaller scale. Notwithstanding many initiatives to improve co-ordination and other aspects of international relief performance, relief failures, including epidemic malnutrition, continue to occur. The reasons for these failures are discussed from the perspective of the characteristics of the international system, and the way in which this would be expected to perform under different conditions. The chief limitations of the international system identified are: the lack of any focus for imposing co-ordination, other than governments of affected countries; the lack of any requirement for donor nations to ensure that adequate resources are supplied; and a tendency for the system to respond uncritically to the international media. A broad typology of international responses is proposed. It is suggested that relief failure can be recast in terms of the lack of any system which can ensure the correct allocation of food and other resources between emergencies, and ensure the systematic distribution of such resources as are supplied. It concludes that the scope for further improvement in the performance of the international relief system is now limited, but that the most promising area for investment would, where possible, support governments in affected countries to take greater control of the management of the international relief system.     

Malnutrition in emergencies: how can we do better and where do the responsibilities lie?

Over many years, the international relief system has been repeatedly criticised in terms of slowness of response, poor inter-agency co-ordination, and technical incompetence on a larger or smaller scale. Notwithstanding many initiatives to improve co-ordination and other aspects of international relief performance, relief failures, including epidemic malnutrition, continue to occur. The reasons for these failures are discussed from the perspective of the characteristics of the international system, and the way in which this would be expected to perform under different conditions. The chief limitations of the international system identified are: the lack of any focus for imposing co-ordination, other than governments of affected countries; the lack of any requirement for donor nations to ensure that adequate resources are supplied; and a tendency for the system to respond uncritically to the international media. A broad typology of international responses is proposed. It is suggested that relief failure can be recast in terms of the lack of any system which can ensure the correct allocation of food and other resources between emergencies, and ensure the systematic distribution of such resources as are supplied. It concludes that the scope for further improvement in the performance of the international relief system is now limited, but that the most promising area for investment would, where possible, support governments in affected countries to take greater control of the management of the international relief system.     

初议防疫-减灾综合体制

危害生命健康的自然灾害和疫病的发生,既有内因,也有外因;既有自然因素,也有社会因素,而根本上是由地球气圈、水圈、岩石圈、生物圈和人类社会圈等诸圈层的运动、变异和相互影响造成的.自然灾害和疫病各自具有独特的属性与表象特征,然而总体来看,无论是在时间分布与空间分布上,还是在灾因、病因上,两者又具有广泛的联系性.因此应以系统整体观为指导,研究自然灾害与疫病的发生、发展规律,并建立以保护资源、保护环境、减少各种致灾因素和推动防疫减灾系统工程为基础的社会防疫-减灾综合体制.为了维护国家安全,防疫与减灾要协调并进.     

Listing for change? Exploring the politics of relief lists in Bangladesh after Cyclone Sidr

Ideal notions of efficient aid are challenged continuously by realities on the ground in the wake of major disasters, such as dire needs, limited resources, and opportunism. This paper demonstrates how ‘relief lists’ can be productive entry points for a systematic inquiry into the pervasive politics of disaster assistance. Through an analysis of qualitative data collected during the five years after Cyclone Sidr struck Bangladesh on 15 November 2007, it examines how relief lists featured in both physical and phantom forms and then developed beyond their transparency-making aims, becoming elevated sites of struggle for post-disaster resources. Three list processes, selected to indicate the temporal, material, and spatial dynamics of relief encounters, are assessed in depth. Although recipients of cyclone relief appreciated its value, the paper argues that list politics also stimulated structures of vulnerability, including inequality. Gradually, relief, as governed after Sidr, also served to restore the differential vulnerability of the country's coastal poor.     

Floods and Livestock in Bangladesh

The effects of monsoon floods on livestock in terms of death, loss of livestock feeds, distress sales of livestock and their consequences for livestock owners were assessed using data derived from a survey of 1000 households in nine districts conducted after the 1984 floods. The results show that there were very few deaths due to drowning during the floods but there were large number of deaths after the floods due to disease and hunger caused by loss of animal feeds. Floods contributed to increased distress sales of livestock, land and other assets. Floods worsened the already serious draught power problem making it difficult for many farmers to plant winter crops on time and in adequate quantity, thereby adversely affecting output. In general, floods exacerbated the livestock related problems which are quite serious even under normal conditions. The post-flood relief/rehabilitation programmes included very few of these problems, if at all. In reality, the solution to these problems should be sought within the framework of overall longterm agricultural and livestock development policies and programmes.     

一起换流变压器压力释放阀动作的原因分析及处理

针对一起换流变压器压力释放阀动作的原因进行分析,发现换流变压器储油柜油位计浮子过长,导致安装时注油太满造成油箱内油压过大,在没有高油位报警的情况下,压力释放阀动作喷油。针对此问题提出了防范措施,旨在为换流变压器的验收、运维、检修提供参考。     

From Relief to Development: Food for Work in Bangladesh

The National Food-assisted Works Programme for Water and Land Development in Bangladesh which began as a relief operation in 1975, was designed to evolve gradually into a development-oriented programme. This complex and largely successful transition offers a study in change of relevance to the current debate on the relief–development continuum. What emerges from a review of the Bangladesh experience is that the transition from relief to development is as complex as it is desirable, and that while there is a 'continuum of sorts if it can be reached, getting there has lately become more arduous.'     

Post-seismic allocation of medical staff in the Longmen Shan fault area: case study of the Lushan Earthquake

In April 2013, a 7.0 magnitude earthquake struck along the Longmen Shan fault in the city of Ya'an, Sichuan province, China, causing 200 deaths, 11,470 injuries and 21 people to go missing. As no scientific disaster management studies have been done on medical staff dynamic behavior in the Longmen Shan fault area, this paper develops a system dynamics (SD) model to simulate the relief activities in the area after the 2008 Sichuan Earthquake shook Wenchuan County. Based on this SD model, the simulation showed that the results regarding the cumulative number of deaths and the final death toll fit the reality well for the 2008 Sichuan Earthquake in the Longmen Shan fault area. Findings from the simulation confirmed the best ratio of medical staff to rescue workers. After implementing the findings for the medical relief work at the 2013 Sichuan Lushan Earthquake, reasonable earthquake rescue policies were developed for the Longmen Shan fault area. The SD model demonstrated that it was possible to predict the optimum number of medical staff and that medical staff need to be trained to improve their treatment abilities. Furthermore, it is suggested that search and rescue workers should also assist in restoring road transport during any medical relief activities in the Longmen Shan fault area. These policies can be generalized to other earthquake relief activities in the Longmen Shan fault area as well as being a valuable reference for similar mountainous earthquake areas.     

Success in Kashmir: a positive trend in civil–military integration during humanitarian assistance operations

The modern cast of disaster relief actors includes host nations, non-governmental organisations, private volunteer organisations, military organisations and others. Each group, civilian or military, has valuable skills and experiences critical to disaster relief work. The goal of this paper is to supplement the study of civil–military relief efforts with contemporary anecdotal experience. The paper examines the interaction between US military forces and other disaster relief actors during the 2005 Kashmir earthquake relief effort. The author uses direct observations made while working in Pakistan to contrast the relationships and activities from that effort with other accounts in prevailing scholarly disaster literature and military doctrine. Finally, this paper suggests that the Kashmir model of integration, coordination and transparency of intent creates a framework in which future humanitarian assistance operations could be successfully executed. Recommendations to improve civil–military interaction in future relief efforts will also be addressed.     

我国秦至清末的疫病灾害研究

本文根据《中国历代天灾人祸表》中疫病的文字记载，统计出各个历史时期疫病发生时间（季节）、频数及其与旱、涝（水）、地震、战争等灾难事件的关系，进而推测历史时期疫病所包含的急性传染病。统计发生周期，证实疫病周期与太阳、太阳系活动规律有明显的相关性。     

The growing role of web‐based geospatial technology in disaster response and support

This paper examines changes in disaster response and relief efforts and recent web‐based geospatial technological developments through an evaluation of the experiences of the Center for Geographic Analysis, Harvard University, of the Sichuan (2008) and Haiti (2010) earthquake responses. This paper outlines how conventional GIS (geographic information systems) disaster responses by governmental agencies and relief response organisations and the means for geospatial data‐sharing have been transformed into a more dynamic, more transparent, and decentralised form with a wide participation. It begins by reviewing briefly at historical changes in the employment of geospatial technologies in major devastating disasters, including the Sichuan and Haiti earthquakes (case studies for our geospatial portal project). It goes on to assess changes in the available dataset type and in geospatial disaster responders, as well as the impact of geospatial technological changes on disaster relief effort. Finally, the paper discusses lessons learned from recent responses and offers some thoughts for future development.     

Prospects for disaster management in China and the role of insurance

ABSTRACT

Natural disasters have serious negative consequences for China and it is necessary to build an effective and efficient disaster relief system. This paper aims to provide suggestions for how to restructure and optimise China’s disaster relief system. This paper first discusses the four main channels through which relief funds are currently distributed in China while also examining the relative share of relief funds directed through each channel. Then, the advantages and disadvantages of these relief channels are compared. Finally, suggestions for how China can reduce the negative economic and social impacts of natural disasters by restructuring and optimising its current disaster relief system are provided. The paper presents several main findings. Currently, government-channelled funds are the most important source of disaster relief in China. However, the actual ratio of relief funds from the government to the total amount of losses and the ratio of relief funds from the four channels added together are both very low. This paper argues that the role of commercial insurance in disaster relief is far from sufficient. Importantly, suggestions are also provided on how to restructure the system and on the relative role that each of these channels should play in China’s disaster relief system.