NCCEV Staff in the Media

For immediate release: March 20, 2006

A Lesson from Israel

by Melissa Bailey | March 20, 2006 04:29 PM |

Emergency management experts like John Buturla say when it comes to disasters, New Haven has a lot to learn from Israel. Seeking more sensitivity to the rush of fear and anxiety that accompany homeland attacks, emergency responders listened Monday to what Israelis have to say on "The Terror of Terrorism and Disaster."

The conference, hosted by the city Urban Area Security Initiative, the National Center for Children Exposed to Violence at the Yale Child Study Center and the Department of Psychiatry at the Yale School of Medicine, urged emergency planners to take human emotion into account when planning for hurricanes or anthrax attacks.

"The goal is to integrate fear and typical human reactions into those events," said moderator Steven Berkowitz of the Yale Child Study Center. "How do you respond to their behavior effectively, knowing that it's induced by fear and terror?" he asked. "Unfortunately, Israel does it better than anyone else."

Representatives from the Israeli Cohen-Harris Center for Trauma and Disaster Intervention in Tel Aviv flew over to outline their model, which New Haven area responders hope to emulate. The center serves as a mental health unit in times of disaster; it has set up regional infant trauma centers and community trauma units offering post-trauma treatment.

After the 1999 earthquake in Turkey, teams from Cohen-Harris set up school intervention teams to "help large numbers of children cope with the effects of trauma and ongoing stress." They did the same after an Italian earthquake in 2002, and in the West Bank and the border of the Gaza Strip, where children were "exposed to continual stress."

Other units focus on the elderly, notifying people of bad news and helping responders themselves — whose psychological state is often overlooked — process and recover from stressful situations.

Buturla, who became the city's chief administrative officer after directing the state's department of homeland security under former Gov. John Rowland, applauded the Israeli model. While direct emulation may be years to come, Buturla said the city is making some improvements.

"We recognized that we need to do a better job in educating the public," he said. If a hurricane comes this way, every household in New Haven should have a plan — how to get medicine, food and information to sustain up to 72 hours without outside help. Right now, people just aren't that prepared. He said the city will soon release a pamphlet with a checklist of emergency resources, and tips on how to take shelter and follow emerency commands. The pamphlet is being published and will be distributed through aldermen and community groups, but without any city-sponsored training, he said.

This week, responders will hone skills at roundtable discussions and a full-scale crisis drill Wednesday at the Sound School.

Credit: New Haven Independent