Hazard and Disaster Response · Northern Americas

Exposure to a dangerous germ or toxin, accidental or deliberate: detection, isolation, medical care and decontamination.

A release of toxic chemicals from a plant, a spill, a transport accident or an attack: protective equipment, decontamination, medical care and evacuation or sheltering.

Covers attacks on, or loss of, the networks and control systems that essential services run on.

An explosion, accidental or deliberate: search and rescue, trauma care, checking damaged structures and clearing debris.

Failure of the systems people depend on, such as power, water, bridges or dams: emergency power and water, repairs and other routes.

Covers failure or misuse of AI, synthetic-intelligence or machine-learning systems that services or the public rely on: automated decisions, control systems and machine-generated content.

A reception and care scenario: shelter, health screening, water and food, and transport between sites.

An accident at a nuclear facility or a nuclear detonation: evacuation or sheltering, radiation monitoring, decontamination and a long recovery.

Radioactive material released outside a reactor, such as a lost source or a device that spreads it: detection, decontamination, sheltering and medical screening.

A violent or security incident such as an attack or unrest: medical care, shelter and support for people around the area the authorities secure.

A reception and care scenario for people displaced by armed conflict: shelter, health care, water and food, and transport, often for years rather than weeks.

A long shortage of rain that empties water supplies and fails crops: water hauling and treatment, and food and feed logistics.

Sudden ground shaking that brings down buildings and cuts services: search and rescue, medical care, shelter and checking structures.

Days of dangerous heat, with a risk of power outages: cooling centres, water, medical care for heat illness and power for care sites.

Water rising over land that is normally dry, from rain, rivers or the sea: rescue, pumping, shelter, clean water and clearing debris.

A large tropical storm with destructive wind, heavy rain and storm surge: evacuation, shelter, restoring power and water, and rebuilding.

A long disaster that comes in waves across a country or the world: health care, testing and vaccination sites, isolation support and the supply chains behind them.

A sudden, narrow path of destruction: search and rescue, debris clearance, power and shelter for the people along it.

Waves from an undersea earthquake or landslide that can reach the coast within minutes: evacuation, rescue, shelter and long rebuilding.

Eruptions, ash fall and mudflows around an active volcano: evacuation, respiratory protection, shelter and clearing ash from roads and water systems.

Fire spreading through forest, grass or brush toward communities: evacuation, support for firefighting, smoke and air quality, and shelter.

Snow, ice and extreme cold that close roads and cut power: clearing routes, generators and fuel, and warming centres.