SPOT DATA APPLIED TO DISASTER PREVENTION AND DAMAGE ASSESSMENT

Spot can efficiently contribute to the gathering of valuable information in disaster prevention and preparedness, damage assessment and disaster relief in disaster prevention, risk analysis requires the compilation of a wealth of information extracted from Spot data: land use, infrastructures, topography and morphology (DEM), hydrography, geology, soil types. This information is introduced into geographic information systems to establish hazard maps and risk potentialities. Vulnerability maps and contingency plans are thus derived by adding socio-economic factors. In case of disaster, the assessment of damage is vital to undertake relief measures and for long-term recovery and rehabilitation planning. In remote areas, Spot images are often the only means of investigation if timely data can be obtained. For immediate disaster assistance purposes, the use of Spot is hampered by the difficulty of acquiring good data in a very short period of time. But preparedness and disaster mitigation is strongly improved in hazard prone areas by establishing, well in advance, contingency studies to plan prevention means and measures. These documents are particularly useful to authorities to anticipate and plan emergency actions according to actual situation and prevailing conditions. Finally, in the long term, Spot data efficiently contribute to reconstruction and rehabilitation planning.