Disasters impact on entire communities. The immediate effects include loss of life and damage to property and infrastructure, with the survivors (some of whom may have been injured in the disaster) traumatized by the experience, uncertain of the future and less able to provide for their own welfare, at least in the short term. More than likely, they are left without adequate shelter, food, water and other necessities to sustain life. Rapid action is required to prevent further loss of life. The Red Cross and Red Crescent aims to respond to disasters as rapidly and effectively as possible, by mobilizing its resources (people, money and other assets) and using its network in a coordinated manner so that the initial effects are countered and the needs of the affected communities are met.

The primary aims of disaster response are rescue from immediate danger and stabilization of the physical and emotional condition of survivors. These go hand in hand with the recovery of the dead and the restoration of essential services such as water and power. How long this takes varies according to the scale, type and context of the disaster but typically takes between one and six months and is composed of a search and rescue phase in the immediate aftermath of a disaster followed by a medium-term phase devoted to stabilizing the survivors’ physical and emotional condition.

The social, economic and political consequences of disasters are frequently complex. For instance, the disaster may:

• disrupt vital community self-help networks, further increasing vulnerability;
• disrupt markets over a wide area, reducing the availability of food and opportunities for income generation;
• destroy essential health infrastructure such as hospitals, resulting in a lack of emergency and longer-term medical care for the affected population.

Moreover, the situation may be compounded by a secondary threat, such as earthquake aftershocks or epidemics.

It is essential that disaster response activities do not make a bad situation worse by fostering dependency or destroying existing community-support mechanisms. Rather, they should lay the foundations for the subsequent recovery of the affected population. Disaster situations are highly fluid, evolve rapidly (often in unpredictable ways) and therefore require a close degree of coordination and cooperation between those involved in the response, including the affected community itself.

Recovery refers to those programmes which go beyond the provision of immediate relief to assist those who have suffered the full impact of a disaster to rebuild their homes, lives and services and to strengthen their capacity to cope with future disasters. Following a disaster, life-saving assistance is the most urgent need. The rapid provision of food, water, shelter and medical care is vital to prevent further loss of life and alleviate suffering. However, practical experience, backed by research, supports the view that even at this stage, relief must be conducted with a thought to the affected community’s longer-term benefit and certainly should not be prejudicial to it. And as people begin to get back on their feet and rebuild their lives, aid agencies need to help them to strengthen their resilience to future hazards. Just restoring the pre-disaster status quo may inadvertently perpetuate vulnerability. Likewise, development programmes need to take into account existing risks and susceptibility to hazards and to incorporate elements to reduce them. The two approaches are interdependent, complementary and mutually supportive.

The International Federation is a leading humanitarian organization active in post-disaster and post-conflict relief and rehabilitation. Whatever the nature of the disaster – flood, earthquake, industrial accident or civil disturbance – there is an opportunity to link and integrate relief, rehabilitation and development. To do so effectively requires an analysis of the broader political, social and economic context. In structural crises, for instance, the provision of emergency relief should not create social or economic distortions. In a protracted disaster, there may be a need to rehabilitate livelihoods even while the emergency is ongoing. Root causes need to be identified and exposed.

For the International Federation, the key to ensuring that both short-term and longer-term needs are addressed is in supporting and strengthening the capacity of the National Society to work with vulnerable communities.