Presentation material for IDRiM 2016 in Isfahan,IRAN

1. An Introduction to
Disaster Information Sharing System
Considering the Diversity of the Municipalities
and its Possible Utilization
in the Aftermath of 2015 Gorkha Earthquake
Tadashi ISE (1 and Akhilesh Kumar Karna (2
1) Principal Research Fellow, Disaster Risk Unit,
National Research Institute for Earth Science and Disaster Resilience (NIED), Japan
2) Freelance Engineer,
Sunrise Cityhomes-B2, Anamnagar New Baneshwor, Kathmandu, Nepal
7th International Conference on Integrated Disaster Risk Management
Isfahan, IRAN
1-3 October 2016
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2. Self-introduction
• National Research Institute for Earth Science and
Disaster Resilience (NIED), Japan
– 1963 Established
– For the management of the seismograph, mainly analysis
and measurement of natural disasters
• Our Team (Disaster Risk Unit)
– In recent years, in order to improve the disaster prevention
force, social science approach is necessary
– Studying the utilization of disaster information
• My research theme
– Research and development of disaster information sharing
system
2

3. 2015 Gorkha Earthquake in Nepal
• Date : 11:56 NST (local time) on 25 April, 2015
• magnitude : 7.8 (MW)
• epicenter : the central part of NEPAL
• At that time, disaster information how to share, how had
been utilized
We had the interviews to people of various positions
3

4. 4
List of Interviewees
*26-May
JICA NEPAL, Tribhuvan University Institute of Engineering, National Society for Earthquake
Technology-Nepal (NSET)
*27-May
Japanese resident, Nepal Electricity Authority, Nepal Electricity Authority Ratnapark
Distribution Center, General public
*28-May
Victim in Tundekhel Shelter, World Vision (NPO) , Nepal Risk Reduction Consortium, Nepal
Health Research Council (NHRC), Freelance Engineer, JAPANESE RED CROSS SOCIETY
*29-May
Grocery stores management in Charikot, Dolakha,
Sindhu Sadabahar Hospital in Khadichaur, Sindhupalchok
*30-May
Nepal Electricity Authority, JICA Expert, Victim in Sankhu, NPO, Tibetan children’s Project
*31-May
Lalitpur Sub-Metropolitan City Office, Kathmandu Metropolitan City, Ministry of Home
Affairs District Administration Office, JICA NEPAL
*1-June
Sagarmata Television Pvt. Ltd., Department of Water Induced Disaster Prevention,
Priest of Bodanato., Japanese Mountaineer

5. 5

6. 6
Summary of Issues in Utilization of Disaster Info.
• For information sharing among central governments, such as
information linkage between the Nepal government and
governmental institution of various countries, a mechanism to
share information of damage and responding situations using
the information sharing system called the CLUSTER SYSTEM is
functioning with the support of the United Nations.
• The CLUSTER SYSTEM, which was developed by OCHA, is a
system that has been used in a number of countries and was
effectively applied to handle the 2015 Gorkha Earthquake
situation.
• The interviewees of this survey including staff of the Nepal
Health Research Council (NHRC), which is a research institute
of MoHP; the JICA Nepal Office (Survey No. 26); and the
National Society of Earthquake Technology (NSET), which is a
major earthquake research institute in Nepal (Survey No. 2),
said the CLUSTER SYSTEM was the main mechanism used to
share disaster information.
- What has been found from the interviews -

7. 7
Summary of Issues in Utilization of Disaster Info.
On the other hand……
• With the support of the United Nations, central
governments of various countries are taking action,
but due to the limited capability of local
governments affected by the political situation,
which has been unstable for a long time, support for
disaster victims is not comprehensive enough.
• Disaster information gathering from the disaster site
to the district department level is mainly done by
mobile phones
• Reporting format of various disaster information is
not prepared.

8. 8
Approach toward Introduction of
NIED Disaster Information Sharing System
 NIED has long studied and developed a disaster
information sharing system to support the smooth
utilization of disaster information.
 Based on Web-GIS for sharing geographical information
indicating disaster situations and corresponding
statuses on the Internet.
 The visual organization and presentation of disaster
information, including to neighboring municipalities as
geographical information.

9. 9
(2) Display procedures
of each operation with
menu buttons
(3) Visually indicate
items that should be
entered
(1) Tab format to classify
operations of emergency
disaster correspondence
Figure : Image of two-layered tabs and menu buttons
- Based on Web-GIS
- Composed by Map & List view

10. 10
Target municipality
of this system
Neighboring municipality
Neighborin
municipality
Figure : Image of information sharing with neighboring autonomous communities

11. 11
The effect of the NIED system
 Since the situation of the neighboring municipality is
visible, with cooperation, effective disaster response
will be carried out.
 The information that municipalities have input, it will
be possible to integration in the district (higher level)
government office immediately.
 For example, Kathmandu City and Lalitpur City,
District Office, by sharing each situation, we will be
able to carry out effective response.
This is the purpose of our research for disaster
information sharing system.

12. 12
Explanatory meeting
Content
Date Date: 1, Nov, 2015
From 10:00 to 11:00
Place Radisson Hotel in Kathmandu
Participant Kathmandu City
Lalitpur City
Baktpur City
Thimi City
Baktpur District Development Committee

13. 13
Hands-on Demonstration
Content
Date Date: 10, Jan, 2016 From 10:00 to 13:30
Place Radisson Hotel in Kathmandu
Participant Kathmandu City, Lalitpur City
Baktpur City, Thimi City
Baktpur District Development Committee
JICA-Nepal

14. 14
An outline of participant responses
to the demonstration
 What is expected of the system:
- All 11 respondents of the questionnaire survey felt that
the system is highly effective for the local government.
- From local governments to the central government, will be
linked to ensure information sharing.
 What should be conducted simultaneously with the
introduction of this system:
- Training in inputting information to the system and
improving the skills of information collection and
organization should be provided.
- A system that can guarantee the reliability of information
should be established.

15. 15
Summary
 There is no standardization on what information should be
reported and in which form this information should be
transmitted from the affected spots to district governments in
the wake of a disaster, which forms a major bottleneck in the
nationwide flow of disaster information.
 In addition, NIED disaster information sharing system was
introduced as a measure to overcome the problems faced by
municipalities around Kathmandu, and a demonstration of
this system was held.
 From the demonstration, it is clear that the local government
staff in Nepal has high expectations for this system.
 In future, we will conduct a more detailed investigation on the
effects of introducing this system, identify the problems that
arise from this introduction, and develop countermeasures for
these problems.

16. 16
Thank you for your attention.
It is appreciated in any questions or comments.

17. 17

18. Measures to communication disruption
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緊急代行サーバ
被災自治体
緊急代行サーバ
DB
被災自治体
System
DB
System
DB
STOP
Local Gov.
Temporary server
DB
Affected Local Gov.
Normal:
The system & DB
are working on Cloud.
① ②
③ ④
Disaster:
Boot the PC as a server with a USB
Bring back the latest data
to the LAN
※ 電波の届くところまで移動し、ファイルとしてデータを格納 ※ 通信回復時に再同期

19. Results of Interviews
1) Education before Disaster Occurrence
 Through an initiative of the National Society for
Earthquake Technology-Nepal (NSET) and other
organizations, disaster prevention education is
provided and the effect is partially observed.
 However, among the general public of Nepal, hazard
maps are not well recognized
 and the level of understanding of the correct
response to protect oneself at the time of an
earthquake is low, so disaster prevention education
cannot be said to be very effective.
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20. Results of Interviews
2) Communication Environment after Disaster
 In the central area of Kathmandu, some interviewees
said that mobile phone communication was available for
20 minutes after the disaster in some areas.
 Communications started becoming congested 30 minutes
after the disaster and recovered about a half day later (5
to 6 hours).
 However, even around Kathmandu Valley, it took about
three weeks for the restoration of service in some areas.
 Internet services in the central part of Kathmandu
recovered in a few hours, and no significant damage was
observed. However, use of smartphones or personal
computers was restricted due to electricity outages.
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21. Results of Interviews
3) Basic System of Response to Disaster
 In the event of a large-scale disaster such as the 25
April earthquake, the Nepal Emergency Operation
Center (NEOC) of the Ministry of Home Affairs is
officially tasked with conducting overall risk
management.
 However, due to the unstable political situation that
has pertained for a prolonged period, NEOC is not
functioning effectively and thus disaster response is
in fact carried out with the help of the United
Nations and governmental institutions of countries
providing aid.
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22. Results of Interviews
4) Collection and Sharing of Knowledge Regarding Damage
(among central governments)
 Information sharing among central governments, such as
between the Nepal government and governmental
institutions of various countries, is conducted relying on the
CLUSTER SYSTEM, which was developed through an UN-OCHA.
 However, given the limited capability of the Nepal
government, the actual operation is conducted by the United
Nations.
 The CLUSTER SYSTEM is used to summarize the activities of
governmental departments, and the information on deaths
and injuries collected from the hospital network overseen by
the Ministry of Health and Population functioned relatively
well. Having the national hospital as the Hub-Hospital,
damage in respective regions are summarized and reported.
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23. Results of Interviews
5) Collection and Sharing of Damage Information
(among local governments)
 Information sharing at the level of local governments
between the site of a disaster and the central
government is realized mainly via mobile phones.
 ex) In Kathmandu City, 71 engineers are engaged in
the task in 35 districts, in Lalitpur City, and 17
engineers engaged in the task for 30 districts to
understand the damage to constructions. The
information gathered by them is reported to their
respective district administration offices.
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24. Results of Interviews
6) Provision of Information to Disaster Victims
 With the support of the United Nations, central
governments of various countries are taking action,
but due to the limited capability of local
governments affected by the political situation,
which has been unstable for a long time, support for
disaster victims is not comprehensive enough.
 The information provided by the government is
inadequate and, for the psychological ease of
residents, more information is need.
 In the city of Kathmandu, a system was launched
whereby ID cards are distributed to disaster victims
to control distribution of supplies, etc.
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25. Results of Interviews
7) Others
 One of the largest characteristics of the damage
caused by the 25 April earthquake is that many
Nepalese people choose to sleep outdoors for more
than a month as they were afraid of damage to
buildings caused by aftershocks.
 This generated anxieties over property loss and
damage to health.
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