143 / 288
[
] 144
D
isaster
R
isk
R
eduction
The sequence of the storm event and actions taken were:
Day 1, Thursday 30 May
– DMC concluded that an important
precipitation event would occur in central Chile during 3 and 4
June. A watch was sent to ONEMI.
Day 2, Friday 31 May
– DMC confirmed its prediction. A warning
was issued to ONEMI, which informed the Minister of Internal
Affairs about the imminent hazardous weather event. The National
Committee for Emergency (NCE) was called to meet the next day.
Day 3, Saturday 1 June
–The NCEmet at the National Governmental
Palace. The director of DMC informed the authorities about the
extreme precipitation event that would affect the central part of
Chile. First actions to face the event were taken by the Minister of
Internal Affairs.
Day 4, Sunday 2 June
– Precipitation began late in the afternoon.
With updated information, DMC forecasted that the event could be
worst than was first thought. A new warning was issued to ONEMI
and the general public.
Day 5, Monday 3 June
– At 12.00 Coordinated Universal Time
(UTC) Santiago measured 56.2 mm in 12 hours. This is almost 72
per cent of the normal precipitation for June. First consequences of
the storm were seen on the TV in the morning news. DMC contin-
ued to issue a warning to say the precipitation was expected to
continue for two more days. The President called and presided over
the second and third NCE meeting, which took place on this day.
Day 6, Tuesday 4 June
– At 12.00 UTC Santiago measured 111.1
mm during the past 24 hours, the highest amount ever measured
by this station. The NCE met twice again on this day to evaluate the
current situation and the possible future scenario.
Day 7, Wednesday 5 June
– Precipitation had decreased in inten-
sity; at 12.00 UTC a total of 44.5 mm was measured for the past 24
hours. With updated information, DMC forecasted that the event
would end sometime in the afternoon on this day, as it did. The NCE
met twice on this day.
Day 8, Thursday 6 June
– At 12.00 UTC Santiago measured only
4 mm for the past 24 hours. The event accumulated a total of 215.8
mm; about 70 per cent of the normal annual precipitation. The
weather advices ended. The NCE met for the last time, as the emer-
gency had passed. The President thanked all participants especially
DMC through its Director.
Consequences
Damage to public and private goods totalled millions of
dollars. The cost in public infrastructure was US$650
million. The building sector lost about US$10 million
due to absenteeism and temporary stops. Around 25,000
houses were damaged and 272 destroyed, at a cost of US$29
million. Workforce absenteeism of 30 per cent on the first
day and 50 on the second day carried an implied cost of
U$176 million and 264 million, or 0.2 per cent and 0.4 per
cent of gross domestic product respectively. Early closure of
stores and malls implied an 80 per cent drop in sales. The
cost related to the population was around U$2.2 million.
Finally, seven people died due to the EWE.
Providing an accessible service
Even though EWE’s are inevitable, early detection and fore-
casting can trigger actions that, in part, avoid and mitigate
negative impacts for people and their property. DMC plays
an essential role as it is responsible for alerting people when
a weather-related disaster may occur. In this context, DMC
is first in the chain of decision makers helping to prevent
disasters in the community. The Common Alerting Protocol
between DMC and ONEMI aims to establish a two-way
communication in order to adequately inform the authori-
ties and public. This enables them to take actions that will
prevent and mitigate the threats of an extreme weather
event or any weather system that can be threat. The event
described here indicates that, because a warming was issued
by DMC, the governmental authorities took administrative
decisions that allowed them to better face the consequences
associatedwith the event. The EWEwas possible to forecast
because of the availability of numerical weather prediction
accessible through internet. In this regard, access to numeri-
cal forecast products is important for developing countries
and countries with economies in transition. Finally, visibility
of the weather service is important as the official source of
weather related alerts; this enables confusion to be avoided
and provides accurate information to authorities, private
and public organizations and the general public.
Consequences associated with the EWE of 3-5 June 2002
Source: DMC
Houses with
minor damage
People in shelters
Affected people
Region
IV
V
VI
VII
VIII
IX
Metropolitan
Total
727
24,441
24,613
1,962
820
8
133,156
185,727
57
1,793
108
16
0
8
4,278
6,260
220
9,294
1,733
226
185
1
9,965
21,624
51
1,795
164
11
0
0
1,306
3,327
0
242
5
0
0
0
25
272
Houses with major
damage
Houses destroyed