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Lessons from Hurricane Katrina
in Addressing Extremes in
Developing Countries:
Paul V. Desanker, Malawi and Penn State Univ
E. Clark Knighton Seipt, Penn State Univ
E-mails: [email protected] and [email protected]
www.geog.psu.edu/desanker; www.unfccc.int/ldc
Introduction

Extreme events
such as floods,
droughts,
storms on the
increase world
wide
http://www.nasa.gov/vision/earth/lookingatearth/h2005_katrina.html
Mozambique
Mozambique's Economy
Mozambique floods of 2000




Limited tracking ability
and warning, most rural
people unaware
700 people dead, 500,000
displaced, 2 million affected
Major impact on economy
Trigger for action to
address urgent and
immediate needs in LDCs,
and the evolution of the
LDC National Adaptation
Plan of Action (NAPA)
After
12
GDP real growth rate (%)

10
8
6
4
2
0
1998
1999
Before
2000
2001
Year
2002
2003
2004
Katrina in the US

Hurricane Katrina
in the US

Brief history:
Category 4 hurricane,
tracked for several
days, evacuation
orders given, scenarios
of similar category
storm existed, system
in place to respond
from local government
to state and federal
government
Katrina in the US

Hurricane Katrina in
the US


Several hundred dead,
millions displaced
Many situations similar to
Mozambique in terms of who
most at risk, survival
strategies and other factors
associated with disasters
Determinants of Vulnerability

Physical exposure to the hazard: in the path of
destruction, flood plains

Status of ecosystem buffers e.g. wetlands; land subsidence

Socio-economic factors: the poor had limited ability to
evacuate or do anything

Level of awareness: function of level of education and
networks to communicate information

Complexities of institutional response

The poor, young, elderly and the sick especially vulnerable
Lessons learned and recommendations for
developing countries



Importance of early warning systems – but these need to
reach all stakeholders and should be adequately integrated
into normal operations
Awareness about the risks to take informed decisions about
personal response actions
Important role of pre-planning such as through scenarios
and drills: New Orleans had participated in scenarios of a
major storm to explore possible extent of damage and to plan
evacuation

Need for contingency planning, active generation of solutions

Most disasters are complex, often with dimensions no one
could have foreseen
Coping Solutions



Coping solutions assembled in the LDC
Expert Group database on local coping
Official launch Monday Dec 5th, LEG Side
Event at 1-3 pm
Will be available online at www.unfccc.int/ldc
For more information

LDC and LDC Expert Group Work
Programme at www.unfccc.int/ldc

Assessment of Mozambique Floods and
Katrina – visit Malawi booth in the Exhibits
Hall