Disaster Analysis Report: Tianjin Port Explosion and Response

This disaster analysis report examines the 2015 Tianjin Port explosion, a significant event causing loss of life and extensive property damage. The report begins with an introduction discussing the increasing frequency and severity of disasters globally, emphasizing the need for risk management and planning. It provides an executive summary outlining the explosion's impact, the need for preparedness, and the importance of effective response and recovery strategies. The analysis includes risk identification, focusing on financial risks associated with property damage and business interruption, as well as pre-disaster preparedness measures such as risk assessment, prevention, and communication strategies. The report details disaster response protocols, including evacuation procedures and emergency contact information. Finally, it addresses post-disaster recovery activities, such as damage assessment, insurance claims, and the restoration of business operations. The report concludes by emphasizing the importance of a comprehensive disaster analysis plan for mitigating risks and ensuring business continuity.

Running head: DISASTER ANALYSIS REPORT 1
Disaster Analysis Report
Name:
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Table of Contents
Introduction......................................................................................................................................3
Executive Summary.........................................................................................................................3
Risk Identification and Analysis......................................................................................................4
Pre-disaster: Preparedness...............................................................................................................5
Disaster Response............................................................................................................................6
Post-Disaster: Recovery...................................................................................................................7
Summary of the Plan.......................................................................................................................8
Conclusion.......................................................................................................................................8
References......................................................................................................................................10

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Disaster Analysis Report
Introduction
Disasters are a common occurrence in the contemporary society. Baas, Ramasamy,
DePryck, and Battista (2008) document that there has been a global increase in the frequency of
the catastrophes and their severity: between the period of 2000 and 2005, an average of 240
million people were affected by natural calamities. The disasters led to demises of 80,000
individuals and resulted in damages that amounted to approximately $80 billion. Some of the
disasters are natural: they are caused by unfortunate weather conditions like floods while others
are as a result of human interference or negligence such as fires and explosions. Risk
management procedures and planning are imperative for addressing the implications of the
catastrophes. This paper is a disaster plan analysis report following the explosion that occurred at
Tianjin Port in China.
Executive Summary
This emergency preparation outline has been documented to provide the City Port
Company with a tool to effectively and efficiently respond to an explosion emergency which
might lead to loss of many lives and damage of property worth millions. The plan is necessary
for this organization considering the explosion incident that took place in Tianjin Port in China
in 2015 (Huang & Zhang, 2015). The blast led to deaths of 50 people in the area and damage of
millions of properties. In addition, 700 individuals got injured from the disaster. The explosion is
thought to have originated from a chemical warehouse located near the facility. The disaster led
to huge fires that were reported to burn for 4 days and destroyed the nearby buildings, equipment
and other properties. Effective strategies are thus necessary to better prepare for similar instances
and to reduce the impact and severity of the unfortunate calamity.

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Preparation measures include risk analysis, identification of preventive measures, the
definition of mitigation procedures, and provision of information on early warning signs and the
potential losses that might arise from the occurrence of the catastrophe. It also entails
identification of the most effective and efficient communication strategy that would immediately
support emergency aid. In addition, the company should incorporate vigilant evacuation policies
in case of fires. The report also contains the necessary measures to respond to the disaster in
order to reduce the severity of the calamity. Finally, an effective strategy to recover from such a
disaster is critical for the organization (Aldrich, Meyer, 2015). The activities involved in
recovering from a disaster include the following: performing ongoing assistance, actions to
restore services and infrastructure, measures to relocate, resettle and reconstruct the facility,
measures to support both social and economic recovery, and risk assessment (Waugh, 2015).
Risk Identification and Analysis
Defining and analyzing threats is essential for creating a plan that would achieve the
solutions to a disaster. For the explosion catastrophe, the financial risk is that the fires will lead
to massive destruction of expensive property and buildings. Restoring the business activities will
thus imply additional investment in the port equipment like cranes, containers and the products
inside. The resulting loss will be million if not billions worth of property. Monitoring and
measuring performance will be in accordance to the following plan; experts will be hired to
assess the amount of losses incurred and communicate the threats in a timely fashion, a financial
risk system will be installed in the company. Analyzing strategies is also imperative. The cost of
business should not exceed the benefits. Therefore, the premium paid to insure the company’s
assets should be in proportion to the return on investments.

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Pre-disaster: Preparedness
Preparation for a calamity is imperative to all organizations because it helps to predict the
likelihood of the occurrence and estimate the possible damage it may cause (Masten &
Obradović, 2008). Comfort, Boin, and Demchak (2010) also emphasize on preparation for a
disaster to guarantee resilience. Pre-disaster issues include risk assessment, identifying
prevention measures, defining mitigation procedures, and provision of information on early
warning signs and the potential losses that might arise from the occurrence of the catastrophe.
For the case of the explosion in Tianjin Port, the organization will require supplies like first aid
kits and an easier access to ambulatory and fire-fighting services to better prepare for such a
situation. In addition, the company will need an effective communication strategy to facilitate
instant reports to the necessary authorities in case the disaster occurs again. For example, the
number of emergency services should be kept close to the telephones to ensure that reports are
made as soon as people. During an explosion, the industry should have its departments send
emergency reports to the emergency response teams in the city. The flow chart below documents
the flow of information in preparation for a disaster.
Next, the organization needs an effective plan for evacuation of people from the burning
building. The company policy should mandate all employees to immediately vacate the facility
Department A
Tianjin Port
Center
Emergency
Management
Team near the
CityDepartment B
Department C

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after hearing a fire alarm (Murali & Chinchamalatpure, 2018). Vigilant measures should be taken
by the administration to ensure that all workers comply with this policy.
A cost benefits analysis is imperative for this section to ensure its suitability. The
following process for conducting the benefit cost analysis will be key: definition of the goals and
objectives, listing alternative methods of action, listing stakeholders, measuring all benefit/cost
elements, applying discounts, calculate the current net value of the options. The goals of this
strategy is to prepare for a probable occurrence of an explosion by identifying the best solutions.
The objectives are: to evacuate all people from burning building, to minimize damages caused by
fires, and to make a policy for faster response to emergency care providers. The insurance
agencies require annual premiums that would help in restoring the damaged assets. The cost total
loss of assets is more compared to the amount of premiums paid. Hence insurance against fire is
the best solution.
Disaster Response
All workers and other stakeholders of the company should react accordingly to
catastrophe. The decisive administration is key to taking appropriate actions in response to a
disaster (Wex, Schryen, Feuerriegel & Neumann, 2014). The response criteria are divided into
the following sub-categories; evacuation of people, saving livelihood and people, immediate
assistance, and assessment of the losses incurred from the catastrophe. In case of an explosion,
every person in the building should comply with the following steps (Balasubramanian,
Massaguer, Mehrotra, & Venkatasubramanian, 2006). The first step should be to confirm and
review the conditions. The second step should be to report the incident to the relevant authority.
The next act should be to keenly follow the directives given by the emergency response
personnel. These professionals provide people in imminent danger with the best approach to save

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their lives and further damage to property. Reducing the severity of the losses should be
prioritized if it is possible. During a fire incident that has been caused by an explosion, the
workers are obligated to use all the available tools of emergency to contact the emergency
response team. This is an effective strategy because it guarantees that all the teams, from the
medics, ambulatory services providers, firefighters etcetera are reached in time to save many
lives and property. Finally, the people should evacuate the facility through the nearest exit and
meet at the fire assembly place. The proper response to a disaster may save many lives and
millions worth of property (Abir, Bell, Puppala, Awad & Moore, 2017).
A cost benefit analysis is appropriate for reducing severity of losses. The company should
invest in fire-fighting equipment and train employees on how to use the facilities. Training for
proper evacuation during disasters is also essential. However, it takes a lot of time and resources
to achieve these objectives. The benefits outweigh the cost of putting up these preventive
solutions.
Post-Disaster: Recovery
Post-disaster activities are critical in making sure that an organization bounces back from
losses caused by unfortunate catastrophes (Cretney, 2016). The activities involved in recovering
from a disaster include the following: performing ongoing assistance, actions to restore services
and infrastructure, measures to relocate, resettle and reconstruct the facility, measures to support
both social and economic recovery, and risk assessment. Once the health and safety of
employees are achieved and confirmed, the company should form a team to assess the damages
caused by the disaster and suggest the necessary recommendations to return to business
activities. The team should be composed of risk management experts that well qualified to
review the impact of the calamity and suggest the appropriate solutions. The recovery procedures

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should commence immediately after reviewing the report on the losses and inventory of the
damaged assets. The report should contain an extensive research of where to purchase the
replacements, what was covered by the insurance plan before the fire, the expected budget
etcetera. Recovery from an unfortunate occurrence is critical to a business’ success. Companies
that are well equipped to recuperate from losses due to disasters achieve business success in a
shorter time span (Mannakkara & Wilkinson, 2014).
Summary of the Plan
Conclusion
In conclusion, disaster analysis plan should be conducted in three stages, namely pre-
disaster measures, disaster response, and post-disaster procedures. The three processes ensure
proper analysis, evaluation, and mitigation of risks associated with the catastrophes. Analyzing
the possibility of an occurrence of the calamity and its expected impact prepares an organization
Pre-
Disaster
Disaster
Response
Post-
Disaster

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to plan better for the problem. Similarly, evaluating the disaster is imperative to identify the
financial position of the business as at the moment for the purpose of making effective economic
decisions.

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References
Abir, M., Bell, S. A., Puppala, N., Awad, O., & Moore, M. (2017). Setting foundations for
developing disaster response metrics. Disaster medicine and public health preparedness,
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Aldrich, D. P., & Meyer, M. A. (2015). Social capital and community resilience. American
Behavioral Scientist, 59(2), 254-269.
Baas, S., Ramasamy, S., DePryck, J. D., & Battista, F. (2008). Disaster risk management
systems analysis: A guidebook (Vol. 3). Rome, Italy: Food and Agriculture Organization
of the United Nations.
Balasubramanian, V., Massaguer, D., Mehrotra, S., & Venkatasubramanian, N. (2006, May).
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Conference on Intelligence and Security Informatics (pp. 237-248). Springer, Berlin,
Heidelberg.
Cao, X., & Lam, J. S. L. (2018). Simulation-based catastrophe-induced port loss estimation.
Reliability Engineering & System Safety, 175, 1-12.
Chakravarty, A. K. (2016). Humanitarian response in a disaster relief chain: integrating risk
mitigation with procurement and funding.
Comfort, L. K., Boin, A., & Demchak, C. C. (Eds.). (2010). Designing Resilience: Preparing for
extreme events. The University of Pittsburgh Pre.
Cretney, R. M. (2016). Local responses to disaster: The value of community-led post-disaster
response action in a resilience framework. Disaster Prevention and Management, 25(1),
27-40.

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Huang, P., & Zhang, J. (2015). Facts related to August 12, 2015 explosion accident in Tianjin,
China. Process Safety Progress, 34(4), 313-314.
Mannakkara, S., & Wilkinson, S. (2014). Re-conceptualising “Building Back Better” to improve
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327-341.
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on resilience in human development. Ecology and society, 13(1).
Murali, R., & Chinchamalatpure, P. A. (2018). U.S. Patent No. 9,860,723. Washington, DC: U.S.
Patent and Trademark Office.
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