ABSTRACT

Perspective matters. For example, an EF 2 tornado through a suburban neighborhood may be a disaster in the eyes of the victims, but not according to existing government policies that require certain levels of devastation before help can be approved. First responders (police, fire, and ambulance services) will rush to emergencies (traffic accidents and fires). Emergency managers typically organize their efforts around larger events that cause community disruption. To do so, both practitioners and researchers draw upon the “four phases” or the “disaster cycle” (i.e., preparedness, response, recovery, and mitigation) to think about how to manage major events.