Incident Management Approaches above the Incident Management Team Level in Australia

Author(s):  
Roshan Bhakta Bhandari ◽  
Christine Owen ◽  
Cain Trist

AbstractThis paper discusses incident management strategies widely used above the incident management team (IMT) level in the four Australian States namely, Victoria, New South Wales, Tasmania and Queensland. It begins with an overview of how incident management approaches above the IMT might differ from the local IMT level. By exploring this difference, this paper provides an insight into how emergency management personnel working above or beyond the local IMT level often deal with large scale multiple emergency events and require an understanding of broader problems that they might confront in the future. Then, it provides an outline of how strategic emergency management objectives are addressed in the state level arrangements in aforementioned jurisdictions. Specifically, this includes response orientations, state level emergency management facilities, long term thinking, the management of stakeholder relationships, leadership, and organisational adaptation and capacity building. Later, some of the challenges associated with incident management above the IMT level are discussed. Finally, the paper concludes by discussing the implications of this study to the emergency management sector.

Author(s):  
Changwon Son ◽  
Farzan Sasangohar ◽  
S. Camille Peres ◽  
Jukrin Moon

Investigating real-life disasters and crises has been challenging due to accompanying difficulties and risks posed by these complex phenomena. Previous research in the emergency management domain has largely relied on qualitative approaches to describe the event after it occurred. To facilitate investigations for more generalizable findings, this paper documents ongoing efforts to design an emergency management simulation testbed called Team Emergency Operations Simulation (TEOS) in which an incident management team (IMT) is situated. First, we describe the design process based on our previous work. Next, we present the overall description of TEOS including representative roles, tasks, and team environments. We also propose measures of team performance of the IMT and propose future research that can be realized through TEOS.


Author(s):  
Xiaobing Li ◽  
Asad J. Khattak ◽  
Behram Wali

Traffic incidents, often known as nonrecurring events, impose enormous economic and social costs. Compared with short-duration incidents, large-scale incidents can substantially disrupt traffic flow by blocking lanes on highways for long periods. A careful examination of large-scale traffic incidents and associated factors can assist with actionable large-scale incident management strategies. For such an analysis, a unique and comprehensive 5-year incident database on East Tennessee roadways was assembled to conduct an in-depth investigation of large-scale incidents, especially focusing on operational responses, that is, response and on-scene times by various agencies. Incidents longer than 120 min and blocking at least one lane were considered large scale; the database contained 890 incidents, which was about 0.69% of all reported incidents. Rigorous fixed- and random-parameter, hazard-based duration models were estimated to account for the possibility of unobserved heterogeneity in large-scale incidents. The modeling results reveal significant heterogeneity in associations between operational responses and large-scale incident durations. A 30-min increase in response time for the first, second, and third (or more) highway response units translated to a 2.8%, 1.6%, and 4.2% increase in large-scale incident durations, respectively. In addition, longer response times for towing and highway patrol were significantly associated with longer incident durations. Given large-scale incidents, associated factors included vehicle fire, unscheduled roadwork, weekdays, afternoon peaks, and traffic volume. Notably, the associations were heterogeneous; that is, the direction could be positive in some cases and negative in others. Practical implications of the results for large-scale incident management are discussed.


2013 ◽  
Vol 7 (4) ◽  
pp. 433-438 ◽  
Author(s):  
Mazen J. El Sayed

AbstractThe emergency response to mass casualty incidents in Lebanon lacks uniformity. Three recent large-scale incidents have challenged the existing emergency response process and have raised the need to improve and develop incident management for better resilience in times of crisis. We describe some simple emergency management principles that are currently applied in the United States. These principles can be easily adopted by Lebanon and other developing countries to standardize and improve their emergency response systems using existing infrastructure. (Disaster Med Public Health Preparedness. 2013;0:1–6)


Plants ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 10 (9) ◽  
pp. 1851
Author(s):  
Boyang Shi ◽  
Olusegun O. Osunkoya ◽  
Aakansha Chadha ◽  
Singarayer K. Florentine ◽  
Kunjithapatham Dhileepan

Navua sedge (Cyperus aromaticus (Ridley) Mattf. & Kukenth) is an invasive perennial sedge, native to tropical Africa, which is threatening many natural ecosystems and agroecosystems, especially in northern Queensland, Australia. Crop and pasture production have been impacted by Navua sedge and it is also directly causing reductions in dairy and beef production in affected regions. This review documents the biology, ecology and potential management options to minimise the spread and impact of Navua sedge. The weed reproduces both sexually (seeds) and vegetatively (via underground rhizomes). Its tiny seeds can be spread easily via wind, water, vehicles, farm machinery and animals, whilst the rhizomes assist with establishment of dense stands. The CLIMEX model (which uses distribution and climate data in native and novel ranges) indicates that in Australia, Navua sedge has the potential to spread further within Queensland and into the Northern Territory, New South Wales and Victoria. Several management strategies, including mechanical, chemical and agronomic methods, and their integration will have to be used to minimise agricultural production losses caused by Navua sedge, but most of these methods are currently either ineffective or uneconomical when used alone. Other management approaches, including biological control and mycoherbicides, are currently being explored. We conclude that a better understanding of the interaction of its physiological processes, ecological patterns and genetic diversity across a range of conditions found in the invaded and native habitats will help to contribute to and provide more effective integrated management approaches for Navua sedge.


Author(s):  
Gry Eide Fiksdal ◽  
Cathrine Floen Fullwood

ABSTRACT « October 8th at 1630 hours: Equinor reports loss of well control on the exploration well «Staalull». Large amounts of crude oil flow continuously from the seabed at the depth of 1200 feet. An oil spill from the exploration well has a potential for landfall within five days. The oil characteristics are unknown. Equinor is unable to control the well and needs to start planning for a relief well. This may take several months. » This is a potential scenario for a major oil spill and the exercise planned for the Norwegian coast, October 2019. Approximately 600 responders were involved. The intention was to test Equinor and NOFO (The Norwegian Clean Seas Association for Operating Companies) and their ability to handle a long-lasting oil spill in a safe and secure manner – within all barriers. The exercise involved Equinor CMT (Crisis Management Team), IMT (Incident Management Team), NOFO, offshore and nearshore vessels, aircraft, digital SCAT (Shoreline Cleanup and Assessment Technique) surveys and beach cleaning operations at different locations onshore. The main goal of the exercise was interaction and communication within and between the different response organisations. The intermediate objectives were 1) establish a common situational awareness and 2) communicate accurate information at the right time to affected parties. The exercise took place at seven different locations in Norway and establishment and maintenance of situational awareness throughout the response organisation was crucial to the effective handling of the incident. This required effective communication and information sharing throughout all levels. The incident management is based on the Incident Command System (ICS), but modified to align with Norwegian conditions. During the exercise we performed an extensive evaluation of all the organisations; with feedback to and from the personnel involved. The result of the evaluation, lessons learned, and implementation of improvements within the organisations involved, will improve the Norwegian industry's ability to manage long-lasting oils spills in the future.


Author(s):  
Nipa Amornruji ◽  
Parinya Pholbud

Abstract number: 1141175 Chevron Thailand commenced using a form of the Incident Management System (ICS) for response to emergency incidents and conducted ICS training and hosted a large scale oil spill response exercise in 2017 and 2018 to increase Crisis Management Team (CMT), Asset Management Team (AEMT) and On-site Response Team (ORT) competency and team readiness, including maintaining relationships with organizations that provide emergency response support i.e. Thai government agencies, association and contractors. On 23 June 2018, 12 members of a Thai boys soccer team along with their coach became trapped in a cave in northern Thailand when flood waters cut them off from the entrance. Chevron Thailand Management in Bangkok was contacted by the US Embassy Bangkok requesting Chevron Thailand to assist with providing personnel and resources for the rescue operations. Separately, the Thai Department of Disaster Prevention and Mitigation (DDPM) also called for industry support in the rescue mission. This paper will present details of how Chevron Thailand utilized their preparedness training using ICS in responding to risks within Chevron Thailand's operations to take a leading role in assisting the Royal Thai Governments rescue of the 13 trapped soccer team members. The paper will also show how collaboration with Government officials in Company training and exercise events lead to not only a good working relationship but also better knowledge of the capabilities that Chevron Thailand can bring to the table in responding to any emergency incident.


2015 ◽  
Vol 8 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Arturo Basaure ◽  
Heikki Kokkinen ◽  
Heikki Hämmäinen ◽  
V. Sridhar

Radio spectrum for commercial mobile services continues to be scarce. Countries around the world have recognized the importance of efficient utilization of this scarce resource and have initiated regulatory and policy steps towards flexible approaches to spectrum management, including sharing of licensed spectrum, and releasing unlicensed spectrum for mobile services. Technologies for shared access and the associated standardization activities have also progressed towards possible large scale deployments. In this paper, we analyze the evolution of spectrum management policies using a causal model and indicate how the markets can lock in to either centralized or flexible approach. We also cite a use case of a flexible spectrum management approach using spectrum band fill option and indicate its suitability to the Indian context.


Water ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 13 (2) ◽  
pp. 141
Author(s):  
Firoza Akhter ◽  
Maurizio Mazzoleni ◽  
Luigia Brandimarte

In this study, we explore the long-term trends of floodplain population dynamics at different spatial scales in the contiguous United States (U.S.). We exploit different types of datasets from 1790–2010—i.e., decadal spatial distribution for the population density in the US, global floodplains dataset, large-scale data of flood occurrence and damage, and structural and nonstructural flood protection measures for the US. At the national level, we found that the population initially settled down within the floodplains and then spread across its territory over time. At the state level, we observed that flood damages and national protection measures might have contributed to a learning effect, which in turn, shaped the floodplain population dynamics over time. Finally, at the county level, other socio-economic factors such as local flood insurances, economic activities, and socio-political context may predominantly influence the dynamics. Our study shows that different influencing factors affect floodplain population dynamics at different spatial scales. These facts are crucial for a reliable development and implementation of flood risk management planning.


2021 ◽  
Vol 13 (3) ◽  
pp. 1158
Author(s):  
Cecilia M. Onyango ◽  
Justine M. Nyaga ◽  
Johanna Wetterlind ◽  
Mats Söderström ◽  
Kristin Piikki

Opportunities exist for adoption of precision agriculture technologies in all parts of the world. The form of precision agriculture may vary from region to region depending on technologies available, knowledge levels and mindsets. The current review examined research articles in the English language on precision agriculture practices for increased productivity among smallholder farmers in Sub-Saharan Africa. A total of 7715 articles were retrieved and after screening 128 were reviewed. The results indicate that a number of precision agriculture technologies have been tested under SSA conditions and show promising results. The most promising precision agriculture technologies identified were the use of soil and plant sensors for nutrient and water management, as well as use of satellite imagery, GIS and crop-soil simulation models for site-specific management. These technologies have been shown to be crucial in attainment of appropriate management strategies in terms of efficiency and effectiveness of resource use in SSA. These technologies are important in supporting sustainable agricultural development. Most of these technologies are, however, at the experimental stage, with only South Africa having applied them mainly in large-scale commercial farms. It is concluded that increased precision in input and management practices among SSA smallholder farmers can significantly improve productivity even without extra use of inputs.


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