emergency management
Disaster response planning
Emergency management is the organized effort to prepare for, respond to, and recover from disasters and crises—whether natural (hurricanes, earthquakes) or human-caused (industrial accidents, terrorist attacks).
The field encompasses mitigation, preparedness, response, and recovery phases.
The city's emergency management office coordinated evacuation routes.
Professionals in this field work for government agencies, hospitals, corporations, and humanitarian organizations.
Planned approach to goals
- logisticsCoordination of complex activities
- coordinationOrganized cooperative movement
- protocolsEstablished codes of conduct
- mitigationReduction of severity
contingency planning · resource allocation · evacuation routes · communication plan · stakeholder engagement · policy development · after-action review · standard operating procedures
Source of potential harm
- catastropheDevastating, large-scale misfortune
- threatIndication of potential harm
- escalationProgressive increase in intensity
- instabilityTendency toward unpredictable change
meltdown · flashpoint · tipping point · urgent · severe · dire · peril · declaration
Personnel arriving at emergencies initially
- paramedicsEmergency medical technicians
- firefightersEmergency personnel combating blazes
- search and rescueFinding and saving people
- evacuationRemoval from danger
triage · 911 · dispatch · shelter-in-place · decontamination · field hospital · medevac · aid stations
State of being prepared
- stockpileAccumulated reserve supply
- suppliesResources for a task
- drillsRepetitive training routines
- exercisesActivities for fitness
training · education · awareness · early warning systems · alert systems · public education · community outreach · risk assessment
Seismic ground movement
- floodOverwhelming water overflow
- hurricaneViolent tropical windstorm
- tornadoViolent rotating windstorm
- tsunamiSeismic sea surge
wildfire · pandemic · avalanche · drought · volcano · landslide · blizzard · typhoon
Rebuilding after destruction
- rebuildingConstructing anew after destruction
- restorationReturning something to condition
- rehabilitationRecovery from injury/addiction
- rehousingProviding alternative accommodation
debris removal · insurance claims · federal assistance · long-term recovery · business continuity · economic recovery · community rebuilding · damage assessment
Fitting to new conditions
- bounce backRecover from difficulty
- robustnessResistance to failure
- enduranceSustained effort capacity
- flexibilityAbility to adapt easily
sustainability · redundancy · climate adaptation · risk reduction · building codes · floodproofing · retrofitting · social capital
strategy
Planned approach to goals
- logisticsCoordination of complex activities
- coordinationOrganized cooperative movement
- protocolsEstablished codes of conduct
mitigation · contingency planning · resource allocation · evacuation routes · communication plan · stakeholder engagement · policy development · after-action review · standard operating procedures
hazard
Source of potential harm
- catastropheDevastating, large-scale misfortune
- threatIndication of potential harm
- escalationProgressive increase in intensity
instability · meltdown · flashpoint · tipping point · urgent · severe · dire · peril · declaration · activation
first responders
Personnel arriving at emergencies initially
- paramedicsEmergency medical technicians
- firefightersEmergency personnel combating blazes
- search and rescueFinding and saving people
evacuation · triage · 911 · dispatch · shelter-in-place · decontamination · field hospital · medevac · aid stations · National Guard
readiness
State of being prepared
exercises · training · education · awareness · early warning systems · alert systems · public education · community outreach · risk assessment
earthquake
Seismic ground movement
- floodOverwhelming water overflow
- hurricaneViolent tropical windstorm
- tornadoViolent rotating windstorm
tsunami · wildfire · pandemic · avalanche · drought · volcano · landslide · blizzard · typhoon · cyclone
reconstruction
Rebuilding after destruction
- rebuildingConstructing anew after destruction
- restorationReturning something to condition
- rehabilitationRecovery from injury/addiction
rehousing · debris removal · insurance claims · federal assistance · long-term recovery · business continuity · economic recovery · community rebuilding · damage assessment · temporary housing
adaptation
Fitting to new conditions
- bounce backRecover from difficulty
- robustnessResistance to failure
- enduranceSustained effort capacity
flexibility · sustainability · redundancy · climate adaptation · risk reduction · building codes · floodproofing · retrofitting · social capital · self-sufficiency
- humanitarian aidaid, aid organizations, aid workers, disaster relief, aid agencies
- public safetypolice, 911, ambulance, fire department, firefighters
- emergencies911, ambulance, ER, paramedic, EMT
- rescuerescue, rescue team, search and rescue, rescue dog, save
- Chicago governmentalderman, city clerk, city treasurer, precinct, city budget
- NYC Governmentmayor, city council, comptroller, public advocate, city clerk
emergency managementpanic response
Involuntary fear reaction
chaos · disorganization · unpreparedness · negligence · inaction
manage, emergency, manager, management, managed, managing, emergencies, managerial, emergency room