Public Administration- due 9/22/2013 11:59:59 PM

Assignment Guidelines
Due Date:
   before 9/22/2013 11:59:59 PM 

Revise and amend your Week 4 Key Assignment by adding what you learned by taking into consideration your instructor’s comments (Revision is done and file is attached). 

Finally, the committee will need to propose policies on training and education for earthquake preparedness. Both the organization’s employees and the public will need education and training for the earthquake preparedness plan to be truly effective.

•Add your responses to the following to your Key Assignment Final Draft:

 ◦How will the organization address training for employees? Explain in detail.

◦How should the public be trained and educated on earthquake preparedness? Explain in detail.

•Be sure to reference all sources using APA style.

Runninghead:

PBAD201-1303B-03 P4IP

P4IP 2

PBAD201-1303B-03 P4IP

Colorado Technical University

Instructor: Professor Knetzger

Connie Hutson

15 September 2013

PBAD201-1303B-03 P43IP

Colorado Technical University
Instructor: Professor Knetzger
Connie Hutson
15 September 2013

Earthquake Preparedness

Every disaster has different effects. It can cause permanent damage or temporary inconvenience. This research paper seeks to illustrate how to avoid terrible outcomes of unexpected earthquakes. Every disaster, if prepared for can cause less damage. An earthquake is one natural disaster that has a high rate of damage in its after effects. It is known as the abrupt and fast shaking of the ground caused as rock breaks and shifts due to the strain that has accumulated over a long period (Walker 2008). Earthquakes are one of the major disasters not anticipated, and they end up causing irreparable damage. This paper will use a sample of the San Francisco Bay area. It has a population size of 7,150,739 people as at the census taken in 2010. The Bay Area sits at border where a couple of the earth’s biggest tectonic plates intersect and pass each other. Sometimes, the boundary faults may break. Then the North American plate hurls at the Pacific Plates. This is when an earthquake occurs.

The area has had a number of earthquakes, a trend that scientists cannot take to be random. Some of the earthquakes have a magnitude of 6 and even higher. There is a high frequency of earthquakes. It is estimated that there is a 50% probability that in the next thirty years there will be more occurrences of the same magnitude. Ranging from 1836 to 1911, there was an alarming 18 earthquakes. The Earthquake that occurred in 1906 caused a great strain. This is believed to be the reason for the reduction in earthquakes since only one followed that. The Loma Prieta earthquake had a magnitude of 7.1. It occurred after 1979 (Walker 2008).

Factors that make this area suitable for my proposal are the population of bay area is considerably high, and a great number of people will be affected by an earthquake should it occur. The reason for this is that the area is strategically located between two tectonic plates, making it prone to earthquake occurrence. In addition to this, the continual damage proves that the area needs to take up measures to keep it free from more damage. It could gain from learning about disaster preparedness. These strategies would eliminate the greater risks by foreseeing them and training the residents. From studies carried out bay area is prone to the occurrence of earthquake especially in the future due to the factors mentioned above. Furthermore, only a few individual poses the disaster management skills, which increases fears and further affect the area economic development. Moreover, only a few numbers of homes have kits containing tools to protect against loss of life and property (Lassieur, 2000).

The following steps should be taken before an earthquake: Each home should be provided with an emergency kit for preparedness purposes. Each family should also have a plan for communication, in case they will need to communicate during the earthquake. In addition, cabinets that are along the walls of a house should be fastened, so that they do not fall off and injure a person. Furthermore, the objects that are heavy and can cause the most damage are rearranged on shelves or placed in lower places. In addition, the items that are easily broken should be stored in latched drawers. All piping systems in the house should be made flexible. This is to avoid leakages of water or gas. This could accelerate other dangers, such as fires breaking out. Another step to be followed should be safe spots within the house. This is where a family knows they can run to when danger strikes. In case there are children, they can hide in a place where they will be safe until the danger passes over (Lassieur, 2000).

Another step would be in case the house has any structural inhibitions, they should be corrected. An example of this would be that some houses have cracks along the walls. These walls should be repaired, since there is a great risk of them falling apart in case there is an earthquake. It is vital that this advice is sought from a professional. Drills to follow in case of an earthquake should be learnt by the family, and plan for: incident command, drop, cover, and hold on, evacuation, search and rescue, while remaining attentive to after-effect, in addition to a triage and victim accountability/ reunification (Knetzger, 2013).

Implementing the policy might be costly, because there are many costs involved, such as training cost, cost of purchasing equipment, and proper maintenance cost. In addition, failing to train personnel well in disaster management is another challenge facing the implementation of the policy; this is where the trainees have not gained enough skills to be able to tackle any eventuality. In case an earthquake occurs, they are subdued by the actual occurrence. There is lack of detailed backup plans. In case the earthquake is major, there is need to connect with another department in another state, so that they can be available to provide the assistance that is needed (Walker 2008).

Some of the necessary equipment is first, the seismometer, which is more expensive and is larger than a geophone. It is used to measure and indicate very small movements that occur at lower frequencies, and costs approximately fifty-five dollars. Then, there is the velocity sensor, which is used to record small earthquakes. If a moderate or a large earthquake occurs, the instrument becomes saturated. Another is the accelerometers, which are used to monitor earthquakes, both large and moderate. They are teamed up with seismometers to improve the range of ground motion that is covered. A time-synchronization device would help to harmonize other instruments for effective service delivery. The cost of this is 1% of the project costs of equipment. Geophones are used to measure the motion that is present in the ground. They are used in mining for measuring machine vibrations. These can cost one thousand dollars each, but the cost varies, depending on the features it has (Lassieur, 2000). The residents should give donations to the kitty. The justification of this is that since they are the ones who are affected by the devastating effects of earthquakes, they would not hesitate. The youth in the society, who are trained by the program, should be engaged in income generating activities. Some percentage of this income is allocated to the kitty. There should be a low fee that is charged to every person who is trained on handling disaster. This way the program will be self- sustaining. The purchase of the equipment should be done in bulk. This way, there is the possibility of attracting quantity discounts. Get a government fund specific to earthquake traumas.

The trainees are supposed to be retrained every once a year. In case there is danger of an earthquake reoccurring, retraining should occur. The families should refresh their skills amongst themselves. The cost of the personnel training are travel costs, acquisition of simulation kits for disaster preparedness and the costs to create virtual realities. It is vital to avert risks that are associated with earthquakes. It is better to incur preventive costs rather than loss of life and property, after the damage has occurred (Walker 2008).

According to Southern California Earthquake Center (ASCE), in 2008 California began an earthquake preparedness event, which is called the “Great ShakeOut Earthquake Drills.” Every year on October 17th at 10:17 a.m. (a drill can be at any time within two weeks of this date) many people globally will practice how to do what is known as “Drop, Cover, and Hold On.” The universally accepted “Drop, Cover and Hold On” protocol to safeguard lives is defined as: “DROP to the ground (before the earthquake drops you!), Take COVER by getting under a sturdy desk or table, and HOLD ON to it until the shaking stops. By participating in this, organization and families can be prepared to not only survive, but able to quickly recover from immense earthquakes” (ASCE, 2013). The key point to remember is to not attempt to move, but to instantaneously safeguard yourself wherever you may be. In addition, there are audio files available to play during an organizations drill; it is called “ShakeOut Drill Broadcast.” A few very important things to remember are to DO NOT get in a doorway, DO NOT run outside, and DO NOT have faith in the purported “triangle of life” (ASCE, 2013). This so-called “triangle of life” is an alternative approach, which is in theory- life threatening, and the integrity of the source has been largely questioned (ASCE, 2013). A great link to use for more information on this is

www.earthquakecountry.org/dropcoverholdon/

.

References

Knetzger, M. (September 12, 2013). Earthquake Preparedness.pptx, Live session 8,

Instructor’s files. Retrieved from https://campus.ctuonline.edu/pages/MainFrame.aspx?

ContentFrame=/Home/Pages/Default.aspx

Lassieur, A. (2000). Earthquakes. Mankato, Minneapolis. Capstone Books. Retrieved

September 11, 2013 from

http://www.powells.com/biblio/9780736805865

Southern California Earthquake Center, (2013). Drop, Cover, and Hold On! Retrieved from

http://www.shakeout.org/california/dropcoverholdon/

Walker, S. M. (2007). Earthquakes. Minneapolis, MN Lerner Publications. Retrieved from

https://www.lernerbooks.com/products/s/s562/LB/series#eSource