Istanbul hosts International Conference on Seismic Risk Mitigation

APA. International Conference on Seismic Risk Mitigation has started in Istanbul today. APA reports quoting Turkish Cabinet of Ministers the conference is supported by Governorship of Istanbul, Disaster and Emergencies Ministry under the Cabinet of Ministers, World Bank’s Global Facility for Disaster Reduction and Recovery. The conference will end on December 10.

Turkish State Minister Cemil Cicek chaired the meeting. Emergencies ministers of Azerbaijan, Russia, Belarus, Croatia, Romania, Bulgaria, Bhutan, scientists from Croatia, Switzerland, Mexico, China, Albania, Jordan, Egypt, Armenia, Pakistan, India, New Zealand, Japan, Portugal, Italy, US, Macedonia, France, Palestine, Indonesia, Chile, Georgia, Kazakhstan and Uzbekistan are attending the conference.

Health officials to review disaster plan

Stung by the continuing struggle to make a vaccine against the swine flu pandemic, Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius said on Tuesday her department would review its approach to disaster preparedness.

The goal, Sebelius said, will be streamlined regulations that will speed the approval of new technologies that are promoted through government contracts with private companies.

The administration of President Barack Obama has been worried that H1N1 flu would be the equivalent of Hurricane Katrina — the 2005 disaster that flooded New Orleans, left much of the city still devastated and was seen as a failure of his predecessor George W. Bush’s presidency.

Russians mourn victims of express train wreck

Russians mourned at religious services and soccer stadiums Sunday after a deadly train wreck that authorities blamed on a terrorist bomb. The leader of the Russian Orthodox Church urged the nation not to give in to fear.

Relatives identified loved ones killed in the wreck of the express train. If confirmed as caused by a bombing, the wreck would be Russia’s deadliest terrorist attack outside the violence-plagued North Caucasus provinces in five years.

Television networks took entertainment programs off the air and moments of silence were observed before matches on the final Sunday of the Russian football league.

Patriarch Kirill, the leader of the country’s dominant church, led a service for the victims at Christ the Savior Cathedral near the Kremlin. “We will remember their sacred names,” he said.

“Our people have been challenged. A crime of which any one of us could have been a victim has been committed for effect,” Kirill said in a statement on the church’s Web site. “They want to frighten everybody who lives in Russia.”

The rear three cars of the Nevsky Express, one of Russia’s fastest trains, derailed on a remote stretch of track late Friday as it sped from Moscow to St. Petersburg, killing some passengers and trapping others in the jumbled wreckage. The head of Russia’s Federal Security Service, Alexander Bortnikov, said Saturday that an explosive device detonated under the train, gouging a crater in the rail bed and blowing the tail cars off the tracks.

Emergency Situations Minister Sergei Shoigu said at least 25 people were killed and 26 were unaccounted for, though he said some may have survived uninjured or never have boarded the train.

Federal Disaster Aid For Georgia Floods Reaches Nearly $100 Million

The total federal disaster assistance provided to Georgia communities following September’s historic flooding has reached nearly $100 million, state and federal recovery officials today announced during a joint teleconference.

“The delivery of funds to thousands of disaster survivors has been quick and efficient, despite the extraordinary impact of September’s floods,” said Terry Ball, deputy state coordinating officer for the Georgia Emergency Management Agency ( GEMA ). “We thank our federal partners for helping Georgia communities get back on their feet.”

Over the last two months, GEMA, the Federal Emergency Management Agency ( FEMA ) and the U.S. Small Business Administration ( SBA ) have worked side by side to provide the following assistance to families, individuals, businesses and communities:

More than $53.2 million in grants under FEMA programs directed at individuals and households;

Nearly $44 million in low-interest disaster loans from the SBA; and,

More than $2.2 million in assistance to local and state government, and certain nonprofits.
“More disaster recovery dollars are on their way,” said Gracia Szczech, head of FEMA flood recovery in Georgia. “Our teams will be here, working with GEMA, for as long as it takes to provide funding for cities and counties to rebuild the infrastructure Georgians rely on every day.”

Families and individuals who registered by the Nov. 23 deadline can also stay in touch with FEMA. Application questions, appeal status checks, and address and phone number changes can be directed to 800-621-FEMA ( 3362 ), TTY 800-462-7585. Phone lines are open every day from 7 a.m. to 10 p.m. ET. Information also is available online at www.DisasterAssistance.gov.

More than 28,600 people registered for federal assistance following a widespread outreach effort over the last two months. The effort included:

GEMA and FEMA community relations teams, which canvassed 17 counties and disseminated recovery information to an estimated 50,000 individuals. Outreach methods included going door-to-door and presenting at town hall meetings;

Disaster Recovery Centers, which had nearly 8,500 in-person visits from disaster survivors during four weeks of operation. Representatives from partnering local, state, and federal agencies provided one-on-one help. Agencies included the SBA, the U.S. Department of Agriculture, the Internal Revenue Service and voluntary agencies;

Toll in Chinese Mine Explosion Rises to 104

A gas explosion at a coal mine in northeastern China early Saturday killed at least 104 people, China’s worst mine disaster in nearly two years, Chinese official media said Monday.

Since an announcement on Saturday that 42 were dead and 66 were missing, no further further survivors of the powerful underground explosion have been found, and more than 60 bodies have been located. At least four miners were still missing early Monday, the official Xinhua news agency said.

The explosion took place at the Xinxing Coal Mine in Hegang City, in Heilongjiang province, according to Xinhua. At least 29 miners were hospitalized, including 6 with serious injuries.

Vice Premier Zhang Dejiang visited the site on Saturday afternoon to inspect the rescue effort, while President Hu Jintao and Premier Wen Jiabao both “made instructions on the rescue work,” Xinhua said. Expressions of concern by top offiicials after mine disasters have become frequent in recent years, as deadly accidents have continued despite repeated efforts to improve safety.

Mine disasters are regular occurrences in China; the worst previously this year appears to have been a blast at the Tunlan coal mine in Shanxi province in northern China in February, which killed 77 and was the largest such incident since 105 miners were killed in December 2007.

Official data shows that the number of coal mining deaths has been cut in half since 2002, to 3,210 last year, although some mine disasters continue to be covered up.

Will the Katrina Ruling Prevent Another Disaster?

There can be something thrilling about accountability, so it was nice to see a federal judge declare the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers directly responsible for the destruction of most of New Orleans during Hurricane Katrina. The blistering ruling validates the rage felt by so many survivors — and may put them in line for some much needed cash. It also provides an always welcome opportunity for those of us who have banged our spoons on our high chairs about the culpability of the Corps again and again and again to say we told you so. And it could help spread a message to millions of Americans who still think the tragedy of Katrina was the government’s response to the disaster rather than the government’s creation of the disaster.

It’s hard to get too excited about the decision, though, for two reasons. First, as great as it was to see a federal judge accuse the Corps of “negligence” and “nonfeasance” and other legally awful behavior, the case actually turned on a technicality of sorts — and may well be overturned on appeal. Believe it or not, the spectacular incompetence of the Corps may ultimately help its defense. And second, even if the Corps does lose on appeal, the resulting embarrassment — and the potential fiscal nightmare for the country — would be unlikely to promote the kinds of changes that would prevent another Corps-made disaster.

But before we dwell on the bad news, let’s take a moment to enjoy the deliciously brutal opinion of U.S. District Judge Stanwood Duval Jr. “The Corps’ lassitude and failure to fulfill its duties resulted in a catastrophic loss of human life and property in unprecedented proportions,” he wrote. “The Corps’ negligence resulted in the wasting of millions of dollars in flood-protection measures and billions of dollars in congressional outlays to help this region recover.”

How Hard Should it Be to Get FEMA Funds?

Disasters can take a toll on unique community. The Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) exists to assist states and communities in responding to and recovering from disasters. One community is finding out that this assistance is not always easy to get.

Many people believe that the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) makes it easy to receive a federal disaster recovery funds. In reality, these funds often require a large amount of paperwork and even spending some money.

The community of Galveston is looking at spending $800,000 to chase the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) disaster recovery dollars. Elder reported, “the Wharves Board of Trustees, which on Monday agreed to pay a Florida firm up to $800,000 to manage the Port of Galveston’s efforts to win millions of Federal Management Emergency Agency dollars to repair public docks Hurricane Ike damaged.”

Galveston is trying to get continued funding from the damage caused by hurricane Ike. Hurricane Ike a Galveston in September 2008. Since that time Galveston has been awarded 5.6 million and Federal Emergency Management Agency disaster recovery funds. These funds have been used to make repairs and clean up hurricane debris.

Regional businesses not prepared for disaster says study

Nearly 70% of all businesses in the Middle East do not have proper disaster recovery or business continuity management (BCM) programmes in place, according to a new study.

The survey, which was conducted by eHosting DataFort and the BCM Institute, found that while 76% of organisations are at some stage in the process of implementing BCM, only 19% have had robust programmes in place for several years, with a further 17% only recently completing plans. Around 24% of organisations had no plans to implement BCM.

According to Yasser Zeineldin, CEO of eHosting Datafort, the survey showed a “reasonable level of awareness of BCM among a number of organizations, but of concern if the lack of full plans and full practices in place”.

Zeineldin said that the survey was intended to both give an insight into the preparedness of companies in the region for BCM, and also to raise awareness of the need for full BCM planning and highlight the resources available to tackle the problem.

The survey covered 75 organisations in region, from the GCC and Jordan and Egypt, in vertical sectors including finance, IT, retail, energy, utilities, media and manufacturing.

A large number of respondents had at least one member of staff with a BCM certification, at 68%, while 60% had a full time or part time BCM head. However, testing of crisis management plans was low, with only 7% testing plans once every three months. 97% of respondents also felt that they could improve business continuity plans.

World Bank, Italy collaborate on disaster response

The Italian Civil Protection Department and the World Bank are using experience gained from the response to a deadly earthquake in Italy earlier this year in efforts they said they hope will help other countries prepare for natural disasters.

The organizations signed a memorandum of understanding Wednesday to collaborate further on lessons that can be taken from the April earthquake in L’Aquila, which killed about 300 people and left some 40,000 homeless.

Among efforts already undertaken, the two groups have compiled an upcoming publication on rebuilding after disasters that draws on experiences in the L’Aquila quake.

Tropical Cyclone Phyan Hits India’s Western Coast Near Mumbai

Tropical Cyclone Phyan hit India’s western coast near the commercial capital, Mumbai, prompting evacuations and storm warnings.

Phyan crossed the coast between Mumbai and Alibag, to the south of the city, between 3:30 p.m. and 4:30 p.m. local time and was forecast to track north-northeastward, the India Meteorological Department said on its Web site.

The system was likely to weaken from a deep depression to a depression during the night, after heavy rain and winds gusting to 70 kilometers (44 miles) per hour batter the coast of northern Maharashtra and southern Gujarat states, the department said in an advisory that was timed at 7 p.m. and posted at about 8:30 p.m.

Residents of slums in low-lying areas of Mumbai were told to evacuate, Mahesh Narvekar, the head of disaster management at Municipal Corp. of Greater Mumbai, said by phone. An alert for strong winds and rain was issued for all 24 wards of the city, which has a population of 18 million.