Promoting Early Warning: Reducing Risk to Disasters

Gehendra B. GurungPractical Action

National Workshop on DRR:Innovation and Excellence in Nepal

29 June 2010

Presentation outline:

• Why Community Based Flood Early Warning?• Early days – “Watch and Warn”• Linking downstream with the upstream• Scaling up and extension• Way forward

Why - Community Based Flood Early Warning System

• Flood Warning is a concern and interest of communities living along the flood prone zones

• Locally Flood Warning starts from members of communities and dissemination takes place into the community

• Flood Warning is required as it originates in one location and affects in another location

• The existing traditional warning gives limited response time

Early Days – Flood Warning“Watch and Warn”

Pilot initiative in Bhandara, Chitwan- 2002

- Visual observation at local level – “Watch and Warn”

- Dissemination of the information through “Electric Siren”

Additional supports provided

- Protection of river banks

- Awareness and trainings

- Management of the Warning Tower

Limitations of Early Watch and Warn System

- Electricity interruptions

- Limited coverage of the siren

- Limited coverage of the visual sight

- Limited response time

- Less community interest

Additional needs realised

• Increase in visual range

• Rescues bridges and passages

• Rescue equipment

• Emergency shelters

• Electricity back up

• Back up to electric siren

Improvement in “Watch and Warn” System

Chitwan and Nawalpasai- 2005

• Genuinely based on intra-community warning system

• Extensive awareness programmes

• Provision of life saving equipment and other materials like boat, life jacket

• Construction of small scale mitigation structures like bridges, bio-dykes, shelters etc

• Pre-identification of evacuation route

Improvements in “Watch and Warn”

Higher tower with additional facility

Hand siren Rescue boat

Emergency Shelter

Rescue bridge

Beyond “Watch and Warn”

Linking Downstream Communities to Upstream River Information

Upstream river gauge Downstream

communities

“Linking downstream with upstream"

With equal emphasis on all the four elements of EWS

Upstream to Downstream Communication

Communicating river information to downstream through radio

Monitoring river level

Communicating the information through hand mic

Communicating the information through siren

Early Warning Communication System

Beyond “Watch and Warn”

Scaling up and Extension

Telephone +

Telemetry (internet)

Telephone cum Telemetry EWS

Scaling up and extension…

Way forward

• Make EWS a priority in National DRR

• Develop National EWS Strategy (in progress)

Way forward

• Build capacity of the communities and stakeholders in EWS

• Build necessary infrastructure for National EWS

Thank You