Early warning systems and disaster preparedness and response in local government

Abstract

Purpose

The aim of this research is to better inform public policy makers and the disaster management community about the use of early warning systems. The central research question of this article is how local governments should provide early warning to the citizenry of impending tornado danger.

Design/methodology/approach

The main objectives of the paper were achieved by reviewing the literature on early warning systems for tornadoes and by conducting a content analysis of news reports, from the Orlando Sentinel newspaper, which identified the most cost‐effective early warning system for tornadoes. The theoretical approach of the paper covered the responses, results, and recommendations themes from the disaster management early warning system literature.

Findings

The study concludes with a disaster management policy recommendation for an early warning system for tornadoes for local government. The paper's recommendation is to utilize the cost‐effective NOAA weather radios to alert the citizenry of impending tornado danger. This recommendation is also generalizable to early warning systems for hurricanes, flash flooding, terrorist attacks, and other major natural and man‐made disasters.

Research limitations/implications

A research limitation is that the paper focuses on Central Florida. Future research could begin with the paper's findings and generalize these findings to other areas internationally.

Practical implications

The paper will better inform governmental policy makers and members of the disaster management community about the early warning system alternatives available to warn the citizenry of impending tornado danger. It will hopefully begin a dialogue among disaster management practitioners and academics about early warning systems for tornadoes.

Originality/value

The paper fills a gap in the tornado early warning system literature. Heretofore, there has been little writing, which this paper reviews, that compares early warning systems for tornadoes. However, the original value of the paper is that it specifically focuses on the instrument of warning the citizenry of tornadoes, the time of day of the tornado event, and the life‐saving effects of tornado warnings. The value of the paper will be to public policy makers world‐wide and to the growing disaster management community.

Citation

Collins, M.L. and Kapucu, N. (2008), "Early warning systems and disaster preparedness and response in local government", Disaster Prevention and Management, Vol. 17 No. 5, pp. 587-600. https://doi.org/10.1108/09653560810918621