LESSONS LEARNED FROM PAST NOTABLE DISASTERS

CHILEPART 2: WINDSTORMS

Walter Hays, Global Alliance for Disaster Reduction, Vienna,

Virginia, USA 

NATURAL HAZARDS THAT HAVE CAUSED NATURAL HAZARDS THAT HAVE CAUSED DISASTERS IN CHILEDISASTERS IN CHILE

NATURAL HAZARDS THAT HAVE CAUSED NATURAL HAZARDS THAT HAVE CAUSED DISASTERS IN CHILEDISASTERS IN CHILE

FLOODS

WINDSTORMS

EARTHQUAKES/TSUNAMIS

VOLCANOES

WILDFIRES

GLOBAL CLIMATE CHANGE

HIGH BENEFIT/COST FROM BECOMING DISASTER NRESILIENT

HIGH BENEFIT/COST FROM BECOMING DISASTER NRESILIENT

GOAL: PROTECT PEOPLE GOAL: PROTECT PEOPLE AND COMMUNITIESAND COMMUNITIES

GOAL: PROTECT PEOPLE GOAL: PROTECT PEOPLE AND COMMUNITIESAND COMMUNITIES

Natural Phenomena that Cause Disasters

Planet Earth’s atmospheric-hydrospheric-lithospheric interactions create SEVERE WINDSTORMS

HIGH POTENTIAL LOSS EXPOSURES IN A SEVERE WINDSTORM

Entire communities;

People, property, infra-structure, business enterprise, government centers, crops, wildlife, and natural resources.

FORTUNATELY, CHILE’S WINDSTORMS, ALTHOUGH DAMAGING, ARE USUALLY

NOT CLASSIFIED AS SEVERE

NOTABLE WINDSTORMS IN CHILE

JULY 22, 2011 (“WHITE EARTHQUAKE”)

JULY 6, 2011 (DESERT STORM)

JUNE 8, 2011 (TORNADO)

JULY 29, 2000 (RAINSTORM)

Natural Phenomena that Cause Disasters

Planet Earth’s atmospheric-hydrospheric-lithospheric interactions create “WHITE EARTH-QUAKES”

“WHITE EARTHQUAKE” HITS EIGHT MUNICIPALITIES

• Eight municipalities of Chile were isolated by a 'white earthquake' of heavy snow with drifts of up to 2 meters or more of snow (equal to the normal snowfall in a 4 month period).

• The government declared these municipalities a "disaster area."

THE “WHITE EARTHQUAKE”

CHILE’S CITIES (NOTE: ATACAMA DESERT IN NORTH)

JULY 6, 2011

The Atacama is the world's driest desert, where wetting rains are truly rare visitors.

JULY 6, 2011

• A winter storm with unusual rain, high winds, and mountain snow struck the northern desert regions of Antofagasta and Atacama only days after another rare desert storm.

JULY 6, 2011

• Roads were cut off and flights disrupted in an area that holds some of the world's biggest, most productive copper mines.

JUNE 8, 2011 WINDSTORM

• This windstorm was a tornado, a rare event for Chile.

• It struck the heart of the town of Villarrica in southern Chile with winds of 125 to 183 kph (75 to 110 mph).

Villarrica, a city and commune in southern Chile, is located on the western shore of Villarrica Lake near the active Villarrica

volcano, 746 km (464 mi) south of Santiago, the capital.

VILLARRICA

IMPACTS OF THE WINDSTORM

• Only damage and nine injuries this time.

SANTIAGO SKYLINE

This disaster exposed Chile’s lack of disaster planning and

disaster-resilient infrastructure in 2000, and led to concerted efforts

to improve.

JULY 29, 2000 WINDS AND FLOODING IMPACT THE CAPITAL

• A state of emergency was declared in the Santiago metropolitan region.

IMPACTS

• Schools were forced to close, train services were cancelled and electricity was cut to many areas due to the high winds.

IMPACTS

• Many homes were wiped out as a result of the 90 kph (54 mph) winds and the pouring rains, forcing thousands into shelters around Santiago.

JULY 29, 2000 FLOODING IMPACTED THE CAPITAL

• Some areas of the city were at a virtual standstill as roads were blocked and bridges collapsed

ELEMENTS OF HAZARDS AND RISK

HAZARDSHAZARDSHAZARDSHAZARDS

ELEMENTS OF WINDSTORM ELEMENTS OF WINDSTORM RISK RISK

ELEMENTS OF WINDSTORM ELEMENTS OF WINDSTORM RISK RISK

EXPOSUREEXPOSUREEXPOSUREEXPOSURE

VULNERABILITYVULNERABILITYVULNERABILITYVULNERABILITY LOCATIONLOCATIONLOCATIONLOCATION

RISKRISKRISKRISK

HAZARDS OF A SEVERE WINDSTORM (AKA POTENTIAL DISASTER AGENTS)

• WIND FIELD [CAT 1 (55 mph) TO CAT 5+ (155 mph or greater)]

• DEBRIS

• STORM SURGE/FLOODS

• HEAVY PRECIPITATION/FLOODS

• LANDSLIDES (MUDFLOWS)

• COSTAL EROSION

A DISASTER CAN HAPPENWHEN THE

POTENTIAL DISASTER AGENTS OF A WINDSTORM INTERACT WITH CHILE’S COMMUNITIES

A DISASTER CAN HAPPENWHEN THE

POTENTIAL DISASTER AGENTS OF A WINDSTORM INTERACT WITH CHILE’S COMMUNITIES

WIND PENETRATING BUILDING ENVELOPE

TYPHOONSTYPHOONS

UPLIFT OF ROOF SYSTEM

FLYING DEBRIS

STORM SURGE

IRREGULARITIES IN ELEVATION AND PLAN

SITING PROBLEMS

FLOODING AND LANDSLIDES

CAUSES OF DAMAGE

CAUSES OF DAMAGE

“DISASTER LABORATORIES”

“DISASTER LABORATORIES”

A DISASTER is ---

--- the set of failures that overwhelm the capability of a community to respond without external help  when three continuums: 1)  people, 2) community (i.e., a set of habitats, livelihoods, and social constructs), and 3) complex events (e.g., windstorms, floods,…) intersect at a point in space and time.

Disasters are caused by single- or multiple-event natural hazards that, (for various reasons), cause

extreme levels of mortality, morbidity, homelessness,

joblessness, economic losses, or environmental impacts.

THE REASONS ARE . . .

• When it does happen, the functions of the community’s buildings and infrastructure can be LOST

THE REASONS ARE . . .

• The community is UN-PREPARED for what will likely happen, not to mention the low-probability of occurrence—high-probability of adverse consequences event.

THE REASONS ARE . . .

• The community has NO DISASTER PLANNING SCENARIO or WARNING SYSTEM in place as a strategic framework for early threat identification and coordinated local, national, regional, and international countermeasures.

THE REASONS ARE . . .

• The community LACKS THE CAPACITY TO RESPOND in a timely and effective manner to the full spectrum of expected and unexpected emergency situations.

THE REASONS ARE . . .

• The community is INEFFICIENT during recovery and reconstruction because it HAS NOT LEARNED from either the current experience or the cumulative prior experiences.

THE ALTERNATIVE TO A WINDSTORM DISASTER IS

WINDSTORM DISASTER RESILIENCE

THE ALTERNATIVE TO A WINDSTORM DISASTER IS

WINDSTORM DISASTER RESILIENCE

CHILE’SCHILE’S

COMMUNITIESCOMMUNITIES

CHILE’SCHILE’S

COMMUNITIESCOMMUNITIESDATA BASES DATA BASES AND INFORMATIONAND INFORMATIONDATA BASES DATA BASES AND INFORMATIONAND INFORMATION

HAZARDS: GROUND SHAKING GROUND FAILURE SURFACE FAULTING TECTONIC DEFORMATION TSUNAMI RUN UP AFTERSHOCKS

•WINDSTORM HAZARDS•PEOPLE & BLDGS. •VULNERABILITY•LOCATION

WINDSTORM RISK WINDSTORM RISK

RISK

ACCEPTABLE RISK

UNACCEPTABLE RISK

GOAL: WINDSTORM GOAL: WINDSTORM DISASTER RESILIENCEDISASTER RESILIENCE

• PREPAREDNESS•PROTECTION•EARLY WARNING•EMERGENCY RESPONSE•RECOVERY and RECONSTRUCTION

POLICY OPTIONSPOLICY OPTIONS

TECHNOLOGIES FOR MONITORING, FORECASTING,

WARNING, AND DISASTER SCENARIOS ARE VITAL FOR

SURVIVAL

LESSONS LEARNED ABOUT DISASTER RESILIENCE

ALL WIND-STORMS PREPAREDNESFOR THE EXPECTED AND UNEXPEDTED IS ESSENTIAL FOR DISASTER RESILIENCE

LESSONS LEARNED ABOUT DISASTER RESILIENCE

ALL WIND-STORMS EARLY WARNING (THE ISS) AND EVACUATION ARE ESSENTIAL FOR DISASTER RESILIENCE

LESSONS LEARNED ABOUT DISASTER RESILIENCE

ALL WIND-STORMS TIMELY EMERGENCY RESPONSE IS ESSENTIAL FOR DISASTER RESILIENCE

LESSONS LEARNED ABOUT DISASTER RESILIENCE

ALL WIND-STORMS

RECOVERY AND RECONSTRUCTION USUALLY TAKES LONGER THAN THOUGHT