How do we judge the need of an emergency?
Disasters or emergencies are assessed by World Vision as soon as it’s possible to do so; for example, when roads are considered safe to travel, or floods have receded. Then a response is worked out based on what people need and what damage has been done.
It will focus on helping those most in need and the most vulnerable, including children, women and the elderly, to ensure their basic needs are met and their human rights protected.
Who is most affected by emergencies?
Poorer communities and countries aren’t the only ones hit by disasters, but they have fewer resources and less-robust infrastructure with which to deal with them. Australia is known as a country of terrible extremes and we’ve lived through some devastating emergencies, such as Black Saturday, but we have well-trained and resourced emergency services, some of the world’s best hospitals and doctors, high building standards, stable governments and countless other factors that help contribute to minimising the impact of emergencies and speeding up recovery.
Not every country is so lucky, and when emergencies hit there is little room for error, as:
- Population pressures force people to live in unplanned communities with little or no infrastructure.
- Many people live in risk-prone areas, such as earthquake zones and floodplains.
- When people can’t afford proper building materials, houses are structurally unsound or unsafe.
Being prepared and having strategies in place to respond to emergencies is just one way World Vision helps people most in need.