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  • ShakeAlert's big test in Santa Rosa earthquake

    The ShakeAlert system uses buried sensors to detect initial earthquake waves and warn residents of the West Coast of the United States to seek cover through cellphone apps.

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  • Pace of Harris County home buyouts slower than hoped for after Hurricane Harvey

    Harris County Flood Control District voluntary buyout program, funded by FEMA, allowed the local government to purchase entire clusters of homes in floodplains that they will repurpose for public projects that will also mitigate flood damage in the future. The district has completed almost 750 buyouts, far below buyouts in previous years, but 5,000 properties are still on the buyout list. Residents receive payments for their homes and coverage of fees like closing costs, moving costs and a variety of bonuses. Some homeowners can also receive down payment assistance and closing costs on a new home.

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  • How a high-risk California town learned to live with fire

    Residents of a California town with a high fire risk collectively increased the fire resistance of their homes through actions like brush removal, landscaping, and renovations.

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  • The country trailblazing the fight against disasters

    Bangladesh has developed a multi-layered early warning system for disasters that includes good weather monitoring equipment, communication systems to broadcast warnings, and importantly, a network of trusted volunteers – half of which are women – who go out into communities to share information and urge people to evacuate to shelters. The opportunity has also empowered women, both as volunteers and with the ability to make the decision to evacuate during a natural disaster.

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  • Fire Returned: Putting fire on the ground with the Butte Prescribed Burn Association

    Volunteers from the Butte Prescribed Burn Association trains landowners to conduct controlled burns on their properties, which reduces vegetation that fuels intense wildfires and opens up space to bring back native plant species. The trainings have made residents in high fire-risk areas feel more secure and the association has also helped them with things like applying for grants to fund prescribed fires.

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  • How Hong Kong protects people from dangerous landslides

    After deadly landslides in the 1970s, Hong Kong has pioneered a successful landslide risk mitigation approach. Geotechnical engineers have cataloged over 60,000 slopes and upgraded those that needed it. The most successful aspect of the mitigation approach has been an early warning system that uses a combination of data sources to determine the risk of landslides and broadcasts warnings over TV, radio, and other public sources. Deaths from landslides have dropped substantially and it has inspired similar early warning systems around the world.

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  • They Said the Tornado Would Hit at 9:30. It Hit at 9:30.

    Advances in meteorological technology have helped drive down the fatality rate from tornadoes in the U.S. to a fraction of what it was a century ago. Violent tornadoes rarely evade advance detection, thanks to weather satellites, advances in radar, and a communication system to announce warnings. The deadly tornadoes that struck Kentucky and other states in December 2021 illustrate the ways in which even this system – one scientist called it "one of the most incredible success stories in applied science" – can fail, including when people ignore warnings or buildings cannot withstand the high winds.

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  • Climate resilience hubs finding a foothold on Detroit's East Side, helping residents face disasters

    In Detroit, a coalition of nonprofits and organizations are coming together to transform buildings into resilience centers. A resilience center is a hub that people can go to for help, especially in moments of a natural emergency. In Detroit, the hubs are part of a response to the effects of climate change, which can leave people displaced. Some of the things people can find in a hub include emergency services, internet access, and workforce development.

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  • How Bangladesh is beating the odds on climate disaster deaths

    In 1970 Cyclone Bhola hit Bangladesh. It killed up to 500,000 people. Since then, the country has revamped its emergency disaster preparedness through a multipronged process, reducing its cyclone-related deaths by 100 fold. Now, the country collects weather data from more than 50 weather stations. The data is sent to mitigation committees which dispense the info to people through various methods: radio, text messages, and even doorknocking. The country also has a volunteer program with 76,000 volunteers and increased the number of multi-purpose shelters from 44 in 1970 to 512 in 1991.

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  • Technology gives critical assist to firefighting efforts

    In California, first responders have implemented technology to assist with wildfires and evacuations. The two tools are ALERTWildfire and Zonehaven. ALERTWildfire is a system of cameras that help firefighters locate, confirm, and detect the size of the wildfire before they even leave the station. There are 900 cameras installed throughout the state. Zonehaven is a tool that allows first responders to communicate evacuation plans to residents. The program has been used in multiple counties and jurisdictions.

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