Rapid Damage, Loss and Needs Assessment of Winter Storm Alexa : A Report by the Palestinian Authority

Winter storm Alexa, which hit the West Bank and Gaza from December 11 to 14, 2013, was one of the strongest storms to arrive in five decades. Coordination during the emergency highlighted the inadequacy of the region's disaster preparedness plans - neither the West Bank nor Gaza had a disaster risk management (DRM) framework or policies in place. The report lays the groundwork for implementing a longer-term DRM framework within the West Bank and Gaza, and for international partners' assistance in doing so. It estimates the physical damages and economic losses in the water and sanitation, transport, energy, housing, and agriculture sectors because they endured most of the storm's impacts. Furthermore, the report explores ways to strengthen emergency management capacity, improve coordination between central and local governments, and establish a decentralized decision-support system. One of the major findings of the report was that agriculture and livestock was the most affected sector, accounting for 65 percent of the total damages and losses. Given the increased frequency of extreme weather events, and the increased economy shocks that follows, the assessment strongly recommends developing and adopting a DRM policy, which would comprise of both a legal framework and risk reduction activities across sectors. The assessment is organized into four sections: (i) an introduction that includes an overview of disaster facts and an assessment methodology; (ii) economic and social impacts; (iii) damage and losses and impact on human development, broken down into sectors; and (iv) recovery and needs, broken down into sectors. There are also two appendixes, one on "Participants in the Rapid Assessment," and the other on "Existing DRM Initiatives in West Bank and Gaza." Included are also maps, photographs from a spacecraft, tables, and charts.

Bibliographic Details

Main Authors:	Erekat, Dana, Nofal, Alaa
Language:	English en_US
Published:	World Bank, Washington, DC 2013-12
Subjects:	ACCESS ROADS, ACCIDENTS, AGRICULTURAL PRODUCTION, AIR, BLANKETS, BOTTLENECKS, CASUALTIES, CASUALTY, CIVIL DEFENSE, CLIMATE CHANGE, COMMUNITY NETWORKS, CONTINGENCY PLANNING, DAMAGE ASSESSMENT, DAMAGE ASSESSMENTS, DAMAGED HOUSES, DAMAGES, DECENTRALIZATION, DECLARATION, DISASTER, DISASTER PREVENTION, DISASTER RECOVERY, DISASTER REDUCTION, DISASTER RESPONSE, DISASTER RISK, DISASTER RISK REDUCTION, DISASTERS, DISPOSABLE INCOME, DRAINAGE, EARLY WARNING, EARLY WARNING SYSTEMS, EARTHQUAKE, EARTHQUAKES, EMERGENCIES, EMERGENCY MANAGEMENT, EMERGENCY OPERATIONS, EMERGENCY PREPAREDNESS, EMERGENCY RESPONSE, EMERGENCY SUPPORT, EMERGENCY TEAMS, EMPLOYMENT, ENVIRONMENTAL DISASTER, EVACUATION, EVACUATION ROUTES, EVACUATIONS, EXPLOSIVES, EXTREME WEATHER, EXTREME WEATHER EVENTS, FARMERS, FATALITIES, FIRES, FLOOD, FLOODED, FLOODING, FLOODS, FOOD DISTRIBUTION, FOOD SECURITY, FUEL, GENERATOR, GENERATORS, HEAVY RAINFALL, HOUSING, INFLATION, INFORMATION SYSTEM, INFORMATION SYSTEMS, LANDSLIDES, LEGAL FRAMEWORK, LEGISLATION, LOCAL GOVERNMENTS, LOCAL ROADS, METEOROLOGICAL ORGANIZATION, MINISTRY OF TRANSPORT, MINISTRY OF TRANSPORTATION, MUNICIPAL DEVELOPMENT, MUNICIPALITIES, NATURAL DISASTERS, NATURAL HAZARD, NATURAL HAZARDS, NATURAL RESOURCES, PEAK DEMAND, PHYSICAL DAMAGES, POPULATION DENSITY, PORT INFRASTRUCTURE, PRICE CHANGES, PRODUCTIVITY, PUBLIC WORKS, RECONSTRUCTION, RECOVERY OPERATIONS, REDUCING POVERTY, RELIEF, RESCUE, RISK ASSESSMENT, RISK MANAGEMENT, ROAD, ROAD ACCIDENTS, ROAD CONDITIONS, ROAD DAMAGE, ROAD INFRASTRUCTURE, ROAD NETWORK, ROAD TRANSPORT, ROADS, ROUTE, SAFETY, SANITATION, SEWAGE, SNOW STORM, STREETS, TEMPORARY SHELTER, TRAFFIC, TRANSPORT, TRANSPORT SECTOR, TRANSPORT SYSTEM, TRANSPORTATION INFRASTRUCTURE, TRUCKS, TSUNAMIS, TUNNELS, VEHICLE, VEHICLES, WATER METERS, WATER SHORTAGES, WATER SUPPLY, WINTER STORM, WINTER STORMS, WORLD HEALTH ORGANIZATION,
Online Access:	http://documents.worldbank.org/curated/en/2013/12/19756137/rapid-damage-loss-needs-assessment-winter-storm-alexa-report-palestinian-authority https://hdl.handle.net/10986/20120
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