Emergency aid management increasingly defined by tech

NATURAL disasters had a substantial impact on the Asia-Pacific region yet again in 2015. According to the United Nations Economic and Social Commission, natural disasters in our region made up nearly half of the US$2.8 trillion in losses experienced globally over the past 40 years.

While the economic cost of disasters provides some scale of their impact, nothing can compare with the devastation for human life when natural catastrophes strike. The challenges and extreme pressures faced by aid response and public safety teams in events such as the Nepal earthquake cannot be overstated. When the magnitude 7.8 earthquake struck Nepal last April, it left more than one million people in immediate need of aid while placing significant pressure on relief efforts across the country. Responding aid agencies such as the American Red Cross faced significant challenges in rapidly scaling up its emergency services when close to 60,000 injured people required urgent medical care.

In the aftermath of an earthquake or other natural disaster, one of the greatest challenges for aid agencies and responders is gaining access to reliable communications - especially when traditional cellular networks have been destroyed. Supporting responders involved in dangerous situations require access to constant and reliable communication to allow information to be shared efficiently and effectively, from response teams on the ground to their colleagues who are coordinating operations from control rooms.