Page 18 - DIVA_No.18_2005

World Meteorological

Organization

Weather • Climate • Water

Working Together

For a Safer World

Reducing the Risk

of Natural

Disasters Through

Early Warnings

Michel Jarraud
WMO Secretary General
5 January 2005

We are all grieved by the images caused by these hazards. It is
of despair and suffering from The international community has WMO's ambition to halve the
countries devastated by the tsuna- launched the largest coordinated number of deaths due to natural
mi which hit south Asia on efforts to bring most needed emer- disasters of meteorological,
December 26. Before this event, gency response and relief to hard hydrological and climatic origin
2004 had already been marked as hit Asian countries. As many over the next 15 years.
a very severe year for natural dis- United Nations agencies are
asters. Many countries worldwide working at the front line to bring A fundamental precondition for
were inflicted with considerable humanitarian relief to the region, disaster preparedness is well-
loss of life and socio-economic we must accelerate our efforts to functioning early warning systems
impact as a result of natural haz- learn from this experience and see that deliver accurate information
ards. These ranged from one of how we can prevent such a disas- dependably and in a timely man-
the most severe tropical cyclone ter in the future. ner to the population at risk. It
seasons in the Atlantic and the therefore must rely on:
Pacific, to severe floods in east While natural hazards may not be (a) Timely, reliable and
and southeast Asia. However, the avoided, integration of risk assess- understandable forecasts of haz-
Asian tsunami disaster's impact ment and early warnings, with ardous conditions;
and devastation has reached an prevention and mitigation meas- (b) Rapid, dependable, and
exceptional level in terms of the ures, can prevent them from authoritative distribution system
scale of human loss, associated becoming natural disasters. That for warnings to all interested par-
damage, number of countries means that we can take action to ties;
effective
affected and related response and reduce considerably the loss of (c) Prompt,
recovery efforts. life and socio-economic damage response to warnings at the
20 Diva 1.2005