DISATER RISKS ASSESSMENT
APPROACHES AND PROCEDURES
-ASHWIN SEBASTIAN
Managing disaster risk involves reducing disaster risks, preventing new
disaster risks, reducing existing disaster risks, and managing residual risks, all of
which contribute to reducing disaster losses as well
as strengthening the capability to cope with them.
Disaster risk assessments include: the identification of hazards; a
review of the technical characteristics of hazards such as their location, intensity,
frequency and probability; the analysis of exposure and vulnerability, including the
physical, social, health, environmental and economic dimensions; and the evaluation of
the effectiveness of prevailing and alternative coping capacities with respect to likely
risk scenarios.
It consists of analyzing potential hazards and
evaluating current conditions of exposure and vulnerability that together
could cause damage to people, property, services,
livelihoods, and environmental resources.
Risk assessment is, broadly, the process of identifying and analyzing
potential future events that may negatively impact your organization, how likely each
sort of risk is, and how much of an impact a risk might have on your business. A risk
assessment can also help you decide how much of each type of risk your organization is
able to tolerate.
With the risk assessment process, users take a look at their organizations to:
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Identify processes and situations that may cause harm, particularly to people.
Determine how likely it is that each hazard will occur and how severe the
consequences would be.
Decide what steps the organization can take to stop these hazards from
occurring or to control the risk.
Risks Assessment Approaches :
The comprehensive approach to disaster management comprises four phases:
prevention, preparedness, response and recovery (PPRR) to ensure a balance
between the reduction of risk and the enhancement of community resilience, while
ensuring effective response and recovery capabilities.
There are two main types of risk assessment methodologies: quantitative and
qualitative.
 Quantitative risk assessments focus on the numbers — to perform a
quantitative risk assessment a team uses measurable data points to assess
risk and quantify it.
 A qualitative risk assessment is less about numbers and more about what would
actually happen, day-to-day if one of the risks on your list were to occur.
Risk Assessment Procedure :
 Identify the hazards
The first step to creating your risk assessment plan is determining what hazards your
employees and your business face, including:
 Natural disasters (flooding, tornadoes, hurricanes, earthquakes, fire, etc.)
 Biological hazards (pandemic diseases, foodborne illnesses, etc.)
 Workplace accidents (slips and trips, transportation accidents, structural
failure, mechanical breakdowns, etc.)
 Intentional acts (labor strikes, demonstrations, bomb threats, robbery, arson, etc.)
 Technological hazards (lost Internet connection, power outage, etc.)
 Chemical hazards (asbestos, cleaning fluids, etc.)
 Mental hazards (excess workload, bullying, etc.)
 Interruptions in the supply chain
 Determine who might be harmed and how
As you look around your organization, think about how your employees could be
harmed by business activities or external factors. For every hazard that you identify in
step one, think about who will be harmed should the hazard take place.
 Evaluate the risks and take precautions
Now that you have gathered a list of potential hazards, you need to consider how likely
it is that the hazard will occur and how severe the consequences will be if that hazard
occurs.
This evaluation will help you determine where you should reduce the level of risk and
which hazards you should prioritize first.
 Record your findings
If you have more than five employees in your office, you are required by law to write
down your risk assessment process. Your plan should include the hazards you’ve found,
the people they affect, and how you plan to mitigate them. The record—or the risk
assessment plan—should show that you:
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Conducted a proper check of your workspace
Determined who would be affected
Controlled and dealt with obvious hazards
Initiated precautions to keep risks low
Kept your staff involved in the process
 Review assessment and update if necessary
Your workplace is always changing, so the risks to your organization change as well. As
new equipment, processes, and people are introduced, each brings the risk of a new
hazard.
Continually review and update your risk assessment process to stay on top of these new
hazards.
 A comprehensive risk assessment not only evaluates the magnitude and
likelihood of potential losses but also provides full understanding of the
causes and impact of those losses.
 Risk assessment, therefore, is an integral part of decision and policy-making
processes and requires close collaboration among various parts of society.
 They help to evaluate the effectiveness of disaster risk reduction efforts and
make the necessary corrections to the plans and strategies.