MY FIVE-CENTS WORTH OPINION... ICT AND DISASTER MANAGEMENT ICT is a very powerful tool in disaster warning. Used properly, it can make the daunting task of the Local Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Officer (LDRRMO) effective and efficient. With the use of ICT, the internet for that matter, people in the affected areas can be effectively warned as disasters events like storm, flood, earthquake and the like, can be tracked, monitored, assessed, thus, its strength and origin and destination would be known immediately and information on it can be transmitted instantly to both the messenger and the recipient of the message and vice versa. Henceforth, extra precaution must be done ahead to prevent destruction of ICT facilities during disasters, especially in areas where disasters are foreseen and are likely to occur. If destruction can be prevented, even in the midst of storm, information and communication can still be processed to reach its two-way destination: the victims and the rescuers. With ICT in place, people in affected areas would be able to communicate primarily, to seek for help to the standby rescue teams and other communities that are alerted to help. A greater number of people now have realized just how important disaster warnings, preparedness and rescue can be during and after typhoon “Yolanda”; intensive research resulted into realization that all information could have been brought forth through the ICT. But all those information and communication fizzled out when the ICT facilities bogged down in the middle of the storm, moreover, people had no way to know what happened immediately unless one travelled to Tacloban. People lost contact and the victims and the outside world were helpless with ICT out of hand. It was only after 7-10 days that people knew the extent of the damage. Earlier warnings could have been brought forth through ICT (google, yahoo, social media-- instagram, twitter, facebook and other social media tools); these are effective as users can interact and respond in seconds. We supposed some people there may have turned to the radio transceivers, but, this type of communication has its limitations not as speedy and interactive as the net, reaching almost everybody particularly those who have wifi- ready cellphones. Information can just be at people’s finger tips when ICT is at hand. In areas where people are not adept at using the internet, which may be placed about a good 40 percent in the country, they can also turn to their radio sets (my estimate, not a documented research). Radio has greater listenership, but it can’t be as significant as net viewership/readership, wherein interaction can be instantaneous and simultaneous for all users. Admittedly, radio has limited interaction, however, it can reach all types of audiences (ABCDE). ICT then is indispensable, I would like to conclude, especially at these times that climactic and environmental changes have become so unpredictable. For survival then, ICT must be learned. And, of course, it should come hand in hand with preparedness. (Note: haloooo ...medyo boring ni nga topic, hopefully, a dose...karon lang ni...awakens non-FB users hehehe)
Posted on: Thu, 20 Mar 2014 14:26:52 +0000
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