Floods expose shortcomings in North West disaster response systems

Visit North West University press office Heavy floods that cut off roads, bridges and communities across the North West province have exposed gaps in disaster preparedness, emergency response capacity and long-term planning, according to Prof Christo Coetzee. While the province has disaster management plans in place across most district and local municipalities, many of these plans are outdated and difficult to implement because of limited resources, says Prof Coetzee, an associate professor at the African Centre for Disaster Studies at the North-West University’s (NWU’s) Potchefstroom Campus. “A major challenge is how often these disaster management or disaster preparedness plans are updated.” He says some municipalities are still relying on plans that no longer reflect current risks, changing weather patterns or the growing exposure of communities to disasters. “Municipalities can identify hazards and communities that may be affected by disasters, and even plan for them,” he says. “However, the lack of funds and human resources means they can’t operationalise programmes or activities related to their plans before or during disaster events.” Identifying at-risk communities is challenging Flooding in several parts of the province has left communities isolated, while damaged infrastructure has complicated rescue efforts. According to Prof Coetzee, one of the biggest challenges during floods is identifying communities that are trapped or at risk. “It is very challenging to identify all the communities that are cut off and in imminent danger,” he says. “The damage done by flooding to communication infrastructure means some communities can’t even connect with emergency services to indicate where they are.” He warns that emergency response teams are also forced into dangerous situations when residents ignore evacuation instructions. Communities must heed evacuation orders “Communities can sometimes be reluctant to follow evacuation orders, meaning rescue teams have to go