Читать книгу Disaster Response and Recovery - David A. McEntire - Страница 114

As an emergency management official, you must be aware how each of the agencies, organizations, groups and individuals interact during disasters. Thy myriad of people and organizations involved in disasters can be viewed holistically by means of a well‐known disaster organizational typology (Dynes, 1970) (see Figure 2‐9). This model was developed by scholars from the famous Disaster Research Center (DRC) at Ohio State University (now located at the University of Delaware). For this reason, it is called the DRC typology. Its purpose is to help scholars and practitioners comprehend the unique characteristics of organizations that engaged in activities during and after disasters.

The DRC typology was developed by Russell Dynes and E.L. Quarantelli upon interviewing hundreds of people and practitioners who observed disasters or were involved in emergency management. These researchers categorized prior findings based on two dimensions and produced a fourfold typology of organizational involvement in disasters (Dynes, 1970; Quarantelli, 1966). The two dimensions of the model are tasks and structures.

Tasks refer to the activities of the organization. This may include functions that are routine (common to the organization) or non‐routine (unfamiliar to the organization). Structures refer to the organization’s relationships and longevity. The organizational structure may be old (implying that it existed before the disaster) or new (suggesting that it was created after the disaster). Each type of organization has unique characteristics. For instance:

 Established organizations are groups that perform routine tasks with existing structures. A fire department falls under this category. A fire department existed before the disaster and it fulfills fire suppression functions on a daily basis.

 Expanding organizations are groups that perform routine tasks with new structures. The Red Cross falls under this category. Its diverse workers from around the country are sent to a disaster site, but they still complete their normal responsibilities.

 Extending organizations are groups that perform non‐routine tasks with existing structures. A possible example of this type of organization is a church. The pastor and congregation take new on duties but were familiar with one another prior to the disaster.

 Emergent organizations are groups that perform non‐routine tasks with new structures. Citizens who were strangers prior to a disaster fall into this category (e.g., if they are completing unfamiliar search and rescue activities for those injured in an earthquake).

The DRC typology should be considered as a useful heuristic tool for those involved in response and recovery operations. This model underscores the fact that there are many groups that participate in emergency management activities and that they each have distinct backgrounds, different goals, unique experiences and varying lengths of existence. For these reasons, coordination among the various groups may be hindered and organizational conflicts or problems may occur. As an example, a fire department and police department may have an existing interagency rivalry (due to budgetary competition within a city), which may adversely affect cooperation in a disaster. Or it is possible that some nonprofit organizations may not wish to work with other humanitarian agencies in order to better highlight their individual accomplishments in a disaster.

Figure 2‐9 Disaster organizational typology