Assessing human vulnerability in industrial chemical accidents: a qualitative and quantitative methodological approach.

Iran as a developing country is experiencing the industrialization process quickly and is thus exposed to different industrial hazards mostly derived from chemicals. In the light of this problem, this study estimated the human vulnerability in chemical accidents using the software simulation of accidental chlorine gas releases. A mixed method (qualitative and quantitative) study carried out in 4 phases during 2015-2017 in Ray County, Tehran Province.

Industrial chemical accidents: a growing health hazard in the Islamic Republic of Iran.

Background: Occupational chemical accidents have increased in recent years in the Islamic Republic of Iran. In June and August 2015, three large explosions occurred at chemical warehouses in Rey, Tehran Province, and toxic vapours were released.

Aims: This study reviewed the three chemical accidents and assessed the extent to which the requirements for chemical safety and preparedness for chemical incidents under the International Health Regulations (IHR) are in place, and implemented at local and national levels in the Islamic Republic of Iran.

Areal location of hazardous atmospheres simulation on toxic chemical release: A scenario-based case study from Ray, Iran.

Background And Aim: Chemical accidents cause significant danger for residents living close to chemical facilities. For this reason, this study assessed the impacts of a simulated chemical accident on surrounding residents in the city of Ray, Iran.

Methods: In this scenario-based case study in 2015, the Areal Location of Hazardous Atmospheres (ALOHA) model was applied to simulate a toxic chemical release from a chlorine warehouse in Shourabad, Ray, Iran.

COPEWELL: A Conceptual Framework and System Dynamics Model for Predicting Community Functioning and Resilience After Disasters.

Objective: Policy-makers and practitioners have a need to assess community resilience in disasters. Prior efforts conflated resilience with community functioning, combined resistance and recovery (the components of resilience), and relied on a static model for what is inherently a dynamic process. We sought to develop linked conceptual and computational models of community functioning and resilience after a disaster.

Constructing the Indicators of Assessing Human Vulnerability to Industrial Chemical Accidents: A Consensus-based Fuzzy Delphi and Fuzzy AHP Approach.

Introduction: Industrial chemical accidents have been increased in developing countries. Assessing the human vulnerability in the residents of industrial areas is necessary for reducing the injuries and causalities of chemical hazards. The aim of this study was to explore the key indicators for the assessment of human vulnerability in the residents living near chemical installations.

Search and rescue in collapsed structures: engineering and social science aspects.

This paper discusses the social science and engineering dimensions of search and rescue (SAR) in collapsed buildings. First, existing information is presented on factors that influence the behaviour of trapped victims, particularly human, physical, socioeconomic and circumstantial factors. Trapped victims are most often discussed in the context of structural collapse and injuries sustained.

Managing volunteers: FEMA's Urban Search and Rescue programme and interactions with unaffiliated responders in disaster response.

In the aftermath of disasters it is not uncommon for a large number of individuals, ranging from professional technical responders to untrained, albeit well meaning, volunteers, to converge on site of a disaster in order to offer to help victims or other responders. Because volunteers can be both a help and a hindrance in disaster response, they pose a paradox to professional responders at the scene. Through focus group interviews and in-depth structured interviews, this paper presents an extended example of how Urban Search and Rescue (US&R) task forces, a type of professional technical-responder organisation, interact with and utilise volunteers.

Hurricane Katrina and the healthcare infrastructure: A focus on disaster preparedness, response, and resiliency.

The aftermath of Hurricane Katrina provides a window of opportunity to address a frail and failing healthcare system. Katrina was the rare incident that disrupted the external systems supplying hospitals with key services and resources needed for the organizations to function; increased the number of patients, both present and expected, that required medical care; and affected directly the physical plants of the hospitals, challenging their functionality. Sorting through and gleaning useful lessons to increase the resilience of hospitals for this type of catastrophic incident will take time and will require system-wide public health planning and intervention.