ABSTRACT
A disaster is a “serious disruption of the functioning of a community or a society involving widespread human, material, economic or environmental losses and impacts, which exceeds the ability of the affected community or society to cope using its own resources.” [1] Four stages of a ‘disaster cycle’ have been identified: Mitigation and prevention, preparedness, response, and recovery. [2,3] Communication between authorities and the public about disasters occurs in all stages of the cycle, with different aims at each stage. Communication is a potentially valuable way of avoiding and reducing harm caused by disasters.
