Abstract:

Disaster-generated damage and disruption to lifeline systems produce a variety of impacts, ranging from direct effects, such as physical damage and service supply interruption, to indirect impacts, such as forced relocation of community residents, threats to ongoing social and economic activity, and delays in the disaster recovery process.  Engineering studies focus primarily on the physical vulnerability of lifeline systems and on the technical aspects of mitigating disaster damage.  Few studies have addressed the organizational properties of lifeline systems, their interrelationships, or their linkages to broader community disaster preparedness and response efforts.  This paper highlights lessons learned in a recent Disaster Research Center project focusing on the performance of lifeline organizations in major community disasters.  The paper discusses disaster management strategies at the organizational level as the outcome of three sets of factors: the structural features of the organizations that provide lifeline services; the institutional environment in which lifeline systems operate; and the task-related demands faced by lifeline organizations.

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