Open space suitability analysis for emergency shelter after an earthquake

Abstract

Abstract.In an emergency situation shelter space is crucial for people affected by natural hazards. Emergency planners in disaster relief and mass care can greatly benefit from a sound methodology that identifies suitable shelter areas and sites where shelter services need to be improved. A methodology to rank suitability of open spaces for contingency planning and placement of shelter in the immediate aftermath of a disaster is introduced. The Open Space Suitability Index uses the combination of two different measures: a qualitative evaluation criterion for the suitability and manageability of open spaces to be used as shelter sites and another quantitative criterion using a capacitated accessibility analysis based on network analysis. For the qualitative assessment implementation issues, environmental considerations and basic utility supply are the main categories to rank candidate shelter sites. A geographic information system is used to reveal spatial patterns of shelter demand. Advantages and limitations of this method are discussed on the basis of an earthquake hazard case study in the Kathmandu Metropolitan City. According to the results, out of 410 open spaces under investigation, 12.2 % have to be considered not suitable (Category D and E) while 10.7 % are Category A and 17.6 % are Category B. Almost two-thirds (59.55 %) are fairly suitable (Category C).

Suitability Analysis for the Emergency Shelters Allocation after an Earthquake in Japan

“…In other countries, Kar et al (2008) [33] developed a GIS-based model to determine the site suitability of emergency shelters for hurricane events, and proposed the candidate places to arrange new ones in the U.S. Alçada-Almeida et al (2009) [34] incorporated multi-objective model into a GIS-based decision support system to locate emergency shelters during major fires in Portugal. Park et al (2012) [35] developed a method that applied genetic optimization to determine optimal tsunami shelter locations with the goal of reducing evacuation time, thereby maximizing the probability of survival for the population in a coastal community in the U.S. Li et al (2012) [36] developed a scenario-based bi-level programming model to optimize the selection of shelter locations, with explicit consideration of a range of possible hurricane events and the evacuation needs under each of those events in the U.S. Anhorn et al (2015) [37] proposed a methodology to rank the suitability of open spaces for contingency planning and the placement of emergency shelter while using GIS in the immediate aftermath of a disaster in Turkey. Bayram et al (2018) [38] proposed a scenario-based two-stage stochastic evacuation planning model that optimally locates shelter sites and assigns evacuees to nearest shelters and to shortest paths within a tolerance degree to minimize the expected total evacuation time in Turkey.…”

Optimal Location Selection of Temporary Accommodation Sites in Iran via a Hybrid Fuzzy Multiple-Criteria Decision Making Approach

“…• Distance to fault lines and landslide or seismic areas: temporary shelters should be far away from zones with geotechnical risks Su 2011, 2012;Wei et al 2012;Omidvar et al 2013;Anhorn and Khazai 2015;Amiri and Asvadi 2015;Çetinkaya et al 2016). • Suitable distance from sources of danger: factors such as high voltage transmission lines, gas transfer lines, gas and fuel stations, refineries, poisonous gases, inflammable, explosive or radioactive substances would affect the safety of shelter Su 2011, 2012;Wei et al 2012;Omidvar et al 2013;Kılcı et al 2015).…”

“…Proximity to affected areas is an important factor for selection of appropriate temporary shelter locations Su 2011, 2012;Wei et al 2012;Omidvar et al 2013;Kılcı et al 2015;Çetinkaya et al 2016 and Souza 2015). Also, proximity of shelter locations to other service and logistics centers such as hospital and medical care institutions Su 2011, 2012;Omidvar et al 2013;Kılcı et al 2015;Anhorn and Khazai 2015;Amiri and Asvadi 2015;Hosseini et al 2016), fire stations, and police stations make the shelters more effective.…”

“…b 4 : Access to Energy Resources Shelters must have access to suitable water supply, power stations, and fuel/coal resources to meet their energy demands (Omidvar et al 2013;Anhorn and Khazai 2015). Although, location decision makers have concentrated on the economic aspects of facility location problems, location decisions also contain environmental and social consequences as a result of the incremental interest in sustainable development.…”

“…Especially in urban contexts, there is a limitation in availability of such areas and at the same time a growing demand for risk-sensitive land use planning. Because earthquakes have the nature of quick onset, relatively short duration, and unpredictable occurrence, thus emergency shelter placement becomes a critical predisaster issue to ensure a coordinated and effective response after a major earthquake (Anhorn and Khazai 2015).…”