Please find below links to recent news about some aspects of disaster resilience…

Recent emergencies/disaster

Heavy rain hits parts of Zimbabwe, breaks 42-year-old record, 60 gold miners feared dead https://watchers.news/2019/02/16/heavy-rain-hits-parts-of-zimbabwe-breaks-42-year-old-record-60-gold-miners-feared-dead/

Heavy rain results in flooding, above average crashes and high-water rescues around the Las Vegas valley, Nevada https://watchers.news/2019/02/15/heavy-rain-results-in-flooding-above-average-crashes-and-high-water-rescues-around-the-las-vegas-valley-nevada/

Deep M6.4 earthquake hits New Ireland region, Papua New Guinea https://watchers.news/2019/02/17/deep-m6-4-earthquake-hits-new-ireland-region-papua-new-guinea/

Zimbabwe – Floods Leave 2 Dead in Masvingo Province http://floodlist.com/africa/zimbabwe-floods-masvingo-province-february-2019

Greece – 4 Missing After Flash Floods in Crete http://floodlist.com/europe/greece-flash-floods-crete-february-2019

Tropical Cyclone Oma to batter New Caledonia into midweek, New Zealand and Australia on alert https://www.accuweather.com/en/weather-news/tropical-cyclone-oma-to-batter-new-caledonia-into-midweek-new-zealand-and-australia-on-alert/70007479

Chile – 6 Dead, Hundreds of Homes Destroyed After Floods in North http://floodlist.com/america/chile-floods-arica-tarapaca-antofagasta-february-2019

Ecuador – Floods in Los Ríos and Pastaza Provinces http://floodlist.com/america/ecuador-floods-los-rios-pastaza-february-2019

King tide, supermoon and Cyclone Oma cause flooding in Brisbane city suburbs, with more at risk https://www.news.com.au/national/queensland/kind-tide-supermoon-and-cyclone-oma-cause-flooding-in-brisbane-city-suburbs-with-more-at-risk/news-story/78724933b81e0028e1eea0874616268f

Floods destroyed 346 homes, severely damaged 427, Chile https://watchers.news/2019/02/20/floods-destroyed-346-homes-severely-damaged-427-chile/

Dhaka fire that killed 80 raises questions over chemical stores https://www.theguardian.com/world/2019/feb/21/dhaka-fire-more-than-50-die-in-apartments-used-as-chemical-store?CMP=Share_iOSApp_Other

Four dead from flash flood in Pakistan https://www.suchtv.pk/pakistan/balochistan/item/82494-four-killed-70-disappeared-in-balochistan-flash-flooding-as-emergency-declared.html

Volcanic activity worldwide 21 Feb 2019: Etna volcano, Karymsky, Shiveluch, Dukono, Reventador https://www.volcanodiscovery.com/volcano-activity/news/75607/Volcanic-activity-worldwide-21-Feb-2019-Etna-volcano-Karymsky-Shiveluch-Dukono-Reventador-Turr.html

 

Extreme Weather and Climate Change

Sharp rise in methane levels threatens world climate targets https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2019/feb/17/methane-levels-sharp-rise-threaten-paris-climate-agreement?CMP=Share_AndroidApp_Tweet

The planet is getting warmer in catastrophic ways. And fear may be the only thing that saves us https://www.nytimes.com/2019/02/16/opinion/sunday/fear-panic-climate-change-warming.html

‘If not us, who?’ Failure of representation drives youth climate strike https://www.climatechangenews.com/2019/02/14/not-us-failure-representation-drives-youth-climate-strike/

UN announces roadmap to Climate Summit in 2019, a ‘critical year’ for climate action https://news.un.org/en/story/2019/02/1032801

6 Compelling Reasons Climate Change Might Be A National Emergency https://www.forbes.com/sites/marshallshepherd/2019/02/15/6-compelling-reasons-climate-change-might-be-a-national-emergency/#97d93e544c93

New Zealand: The cascading impacts of climate change: New research released https://www.preventionweb.net/news/view/63712

Storm-Lashed South Carolina Reassesses Global Warming https://www.necn.com/news/national-international/Storm-Floods-South-Carolina-Reassesses-Global-Warming-Climate-Change-505957031.html

Hard-hit by climate change, Bangladesh finds solution in floating gardens https://www.dw.com/en/hard-hit-by-climate-change-bangladesh-finds-solution-in-floating-gardens/a-47304742

Pacific Regional Climate Risk Adaptation and Insurance study underway https://ehs.unu.edu/media/press-releases/pacific-regional-climate-risk-adaptation-and-insurance-study-underway.html

The Thinking Person’s Guide to Climate Change, 2 ed. https://bookstore.ametsoc.org/catalog/book/thinking-persons-guide-climate-change-0

How climate change can make catastrophic weather systems linger for longer https://theconversation.com/how-climate-change-can-make-catastrophic-weather-systems-linger-for-longer-111832

‘See today, but remember tomorrow’ https://stories.undp.org/coasts-at-risk?platform=hootsuite

A Climate for Change: Millennials, Science and the Humanities https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1080/17524032.2018.1500927?tokenDomain=eprints&tokenAccess=m8QSwkJbkicEuv2z2CXg&forwardService=showFullText&doi=10.1080%2F17524032.2018.1500927&doi=10.1080%2F17524032.2018.1500927&journalCode=renc20

PNG, the largest of the Pacific Island Countries, faces multiple climate change-related challenges https://public.wmo.int/en/media/news/kickoff-meeting-of-papua-new-guinea-crews-project

11 Things Climate Change ‘Dismissive’ People Say On Social Media https://www.forbes.com/sites/marshallshepherd/2019/02/16/11-things-climate-change-dismissive-people-say-on-social-media/#1989413c15e4

‘Uninhabitable Earth’ Spotlights 3 Climate Change Misunderstandings https://www.npr.org/2019/02/19/695874069/-uninhabitable-earth-draws-attention-to-3-major-misunderstandings-about-climate

Staten Island’s five-mile seawall will move forward with federal funding https://ny.curbed.com/platform/amp/2019/2/19/18231726/staten-island-climate-change-flood-barrier-usace?__twitter_impression=true

Turning up the heat on Australian cities http://info.propertycouncil.com.au/property-australia-blog/turning-up-the-heat-on-australian-cities#.XGyDHYC50CY.twitter

Countdown to Calving at Brunt Ice Shelf https://earthobservatory.nasa.gov/images/144563/countdown-to-calving-at-brunt-ice-shelf

Florida is drowning. Condos are still being built. Can’t humans see the writing on the wall? https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2019/feb/15/florida-climate-change-coastal-real-estate-rising-seas

Australian headlines are designed to scare people into not acting on climate change https://www.theguardian.com/commentisfree/2019/feb/21/australian-headlines-are-designed-to-to-scare-people-into-not-acting-on-climate-change?CMP=share_btn_tw

The science/culture blend in climate science https://www.yaleclimateconnections.org/2019/02/the-science-culture-blend-in-climate-science/

West Bengal’s climate change conundrum Part II: Changing rainfall patterns have left Kolkata vulnerable to flooding; here’s why https://www.firstpost.com/india/west-bengals-climate-change-conundrum-part-ii-changing-rainfall-patterns-have-left-kolkata-vulnerable-to-flooding-heres-why-6112851.html

 

Disaster risk reduction

“These owners won’t sell after the first flood; they think they have another 99 years to go” https://www.statesman.com/zz/news/20190216/climate-change-means-more-floods-great-and-localized

A Survey of Disaster Risk and Resilience in Small Island States https://www.researchgate.net/publication/330939612_A_Survey_of_Disaster_Risk_and_Resilience_in_Small_Island_States

Dozens of flood-resistant doors fitted in the wake of Storm Desmond have broken https://www.bbc.com/news/uk-england-cumbria-47203766

Surveying soil from the sky: Can satellites predict droughts and floods? https://wle.cgiar.org/thrive/2018/01/22/surveying-soil-sky-can-satellites-predict-droughts-and-floods

Brief, Repetitive Floods in Coastal Cities Cause Economic Losses https://eos.org/articles/brief-repetitive-floods-in-coastal-cities-cause-economic-losses

When floods cross borders, satellite data can help https://www.preventionweb.net/news/view/63720

Over 350,000 Surinamese to benefit from flood risk management https://www.preventionweb.net/news/view/63703

Why do people live near active volcanoes? https://earther.gizmodo.com/why-so-many-people-choose-to-live-near-active-volcanoes-1832649751?IR=T

Great Barrier Reef coral at risk of bleaching from Queensland flood waters https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2019/feb/18/great-barrier-reef-coral-at-risk-of-bleaching-from-queensland-flood-waters

The Meteorological Culprits Behind Strange and Deadly Floods https://eos.org/research-spotlights/the-meteorological-culprits-behind-strange-and-deadly-floods

The Disaster Risk, Global Change, and Sustainability Nexus https://www.mdpi.com/2071-1050/11/4/957

Texas City’s Flood Sensors Aim to Protect Life and Auto http://www.govtech.com/em/preparedness/Texas-Citys-Flood-Sensors-Aim-to-Protect-Life-and-Auto.html

£67.4 million Ipswich tidal flood barrier officially opened https://www.gov.uk/government/news/674-million-ipswich-tidal-flood-barrier-officially-opened

Improving forecasting of flooding from intense rainfall through interdisciplinary research http://blogs.reading.ac.uk/weather-and-climate-at-reading/2019/improving-forecasting-of-flooding-from-intense-rainfall-through-interdisciplinary-research/

Nine minutes to flee: Parramatta’s ‘catastrophic’ flash-flooding warning https://www.smh.com.au/national/nsw/nine-minutes-to-flee-parramatta-s-catastrophic-flash-flooding-warning-20190214-p50xtv.html?utm_medium=Social&utm_source=Twitter#Echobox=1550525729

Topographic Controls on the Extension and Retraction of Flowing Streams https://agupubs.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1029/2018GL081799

To build or not build: that is the Townsville question https://riskfrontiers.com/to-build-or-not-build-that-is-the-townsville-question/

Simulation of Daily Extreme Precipitation Over the United States in the CMIP5 30-yr Decadal Prediction Experiment https://journals.ametsoc.org/doi/abs/10.1175/JAMC-D-18-0057.1

The government of Kenya is striving to put in place appropriate legislation, policies and strategies to increase the resilience and safety of the built environment https://www.gfdrr.org/en/feature-story/building-regulations-resilience-kenya

In living memory, geologists believed that the Earth was slowly shrivelling, little guessing how vibrantly alive it truly is https://aeon.co/essays/when-geology-left-solid-ground-how-mountains-came-to-be

If lawmakers won’t act, homebuilders and landlords must disclose flood risks https://www.houstonchronicle.com/business/columnists/tomlinson/article/If-lawmakers-will-not-act-home-builders-and-13608197.php

Rare mega storm could overwhelm Los Angeles area, cause huge damage, experts say https://www.straitstimes.com/world/united-states/rare-mega-storm-could-overwhelm-los-angeles-area-cause-huge-damage-experts-say

Up to 16% of global commercial facilities affected by coastal flooding https://www.carbon-delta.com/coastal-flooding/

Townsville homes may become ‘uninsurable’ due to flooding from climate change https://www.theguardian.com/australia-news/2019/feb/20/townsville-homes-may-become-uninsurable-due-to-flooding-from-climate-change?CMP=share_btn_tw

Bridging the Weather-to-Climate Prediction Gap https://eos.org/project-updates/bridging-the-weather-to-climate-prediction-gap

Need for interdisciplinary working in flood forecasting https://hepex.irstea.fr/ffir-interdisplinary/

Are LA’s High-Rises Ready for the Big One? https://the-big-one.scpr.org/stories/skyscrapers.html?_ga=2.33414270.1778670150.1550599204-1795147219.1544228614

Engineering With Nature: An Atlas https://ewn.el.erdc.dren.mil/img/atlas/ERDC-EL_SR-18-8_Ebook_file.pdf

Strategic approach to capacity development for implementation of the Sendai Framework for Disaster Risk Reduction: a vision of risk-informed sustainable development by 2030 https://www.unisdr.org/we/inform/publications/58211

The Limits of Earthquake Early Warning Accuracy and Best Alerting Strategy https://www.nature.com/articles/s41598-019-39384-y

 

Emergency Management

Teddy’s reopens after destructive flood https://edmonton.ctvnews.ca/teddy-s-reopens-after-destructive-flood-1.4300428

Firefighters get new tool for predicting wildfire danger https://wildfiretoday.com/2019/02/14/firefighters-get-new-tool-for-predicting-wildfire-danger/

Science in Puerto Rico Still Recovering After Hurricane Maria https://www.the-scientist.com/news-opinion/science-in-puerto-rico-still-recovering-after-hurricane-maria-65479

Mangaung municipality begins clean up after devastating floods http://www.sabcnews.com/sabcnews/mangaung-municipality-begins-clean-up-after-devastating-floods/

Inquest to be held over deaths in custody during Townsville floods https://www.sbs.com.au/news/inquest-to-be-held-over-deaths-in-custody-during-townsville-floods

Extreme weather to blame for 2017 Lake Ontario flood, board concludes https://www.democratandchronicle.com/story/news/2018/06/21/lake-ontario-shoreline-flooding-2017-caused-extreme-rain-not-regulations-board-report/722182002/

Texas county begins using 911 tech to communicate with responders faster https://www.ems1.com/ems-products/technology/articles/393441048-Texas-county-begins-using-911-tech-to-communicate-with-responders-faster/

10 Strategies for Improving Emergency Management https://triecker.wordpress.com/2019/02/18/10-strategies-for-improving-emergency-management/

Flood-ravaged north-west Queenslanders urge BOM to fix radar ‘black spots’ https://www.abc.net.au/news/2019-02-19/bom-radar-blackspot-concerns-after-qld-floods/10824146

Using flood model data to assist with humanitarian crises in the Middle East https://www.ambientalrisk.com/using-flood-model-data-assist-humanitarian-crises-middle-east/

Premier Annastacia Palaszczuk has revealed the cost of Queensland’s “summer of disasters” http://www.watercareer.com.au/news/premier-counts-disaster-costs

Why Brock Long’s Leadership at FEMA Will Be Missed https://www.hstoday.us/federal-pages/dhs/fema-dhs-federal-pages/perspective-why-brock-longs-leadership-at-fema-will-be-missed/

Dog Lost During California Wildfire Reunites With Family 101 Days Later https://www.huffpost.com/entry/dog-reunion-camp-fire-kingston_n_5c6d8558e4b0e37a1ed3f256

Canadian collaboration for flood risk awareness gains ground https://www.newswire.ca/news-releases/canadian-collaboration-for-flood-risk-awareness-gains-ground-801556703.html

DOJ sues New York over FEMA claims related to Sandy https://thehill.com/homenews/administration/430838-doj-sues-new-york-over-fema-claims-related-to-sandy

 

Disaster education, communications and engagement

Legal and Financial Advice Must Be Part of Every Community’s Disaster Response Kit https://citylimits.org/2019/02/15/opinion-legal-and-financial-advice-must-be-part-of-every-communitys-disaster-response-kit/

Disaster management on Twitter https://telanganatoday.com/disaster-management-on-twitter

Social media usage patterns during natural hazards https://journals.plos.org/plosone/article?id=10.1371/journal.pone.0210484

Photography Exhibition – ‘Perspectives of Disaster Risk’ https://www.irec2019.org/photos

Maitland Floods in 1864 https://hunterlivinghistories.com/2019/02/18/maitland-floods-1864/

Disaster Day, hosted by the Health Science Center, is the largest student-led interprofessional emergency response simulation in the country https://today.tamu.edu/2019/02/15/texas-am-simulates-a-disaster-to-train-students-in-emergency-response/?platform=hootsuite

Help us shape bushfire management strategies in your area https://engage.vic.gov.au/bushfire-planning

Civilization VI: Gathering Storm shows video games can make us think seriously about climate change https://theconversation.com/civilization-vi-gathering-storm-shows-video-games-can-make-us-think-seriously-about-climate-change-111791?utm_medium=Social&utm_source=Twitter#Echobox=1550503278

What defending my home during Tasmania’s bushfires taught me about disaster reporting https://www.abc.net.au/news/about/backstory/news-coverage/2019-02-19/what-i-learnt-about-disaster-reporting-during-tasmanias-fires/10824560

Learning Through Citizen Science: Enhancing Opportunities by Design http://sites.nationalacademies.org/DBASSE/BOSE/Citizen_Science/index.htm

Waters Rising- CFP special issue of Green Letters on floods https://www.easlce.eu/waters-rising-cfp-special-issue-of-green-letters-on-floods/

In disasters, Twitter influencers get out-tweeted https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2019/02/190213142654.htm

Monitoring Volcanoes and Magma Movements https://www.edx.org/course/monitoring-volcanoes-and-magma-movements

Thinking about resilience in the face of severe weather events https://www.insidehighered.com/blogs/library-babel-fish/stopping-library-snowy-evening

 

Sociology and Disasters

How Natural Disasters Can Spur Gentrification https://www.citylab.com/environment/2019/02/gentrification-causes-new-orleans-natural-disasters-hurricane-katrina/582499/

Stakeholders’ Perspectives of Social Capital in Informing the Development of Neighborhood-Based Disaster Resilience Measurements https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/abs/10.1177/1936724419827987

Yellow River Floods And The Collapse Of Chinese Dynasties https://sciencetrends.com/yellow-river-floods-and-the-collapse-of-chinese-dynasties/