Okey Onokah
7 May 2008
Lagos — Most disasters have early warnings. Disasters are increasingly becoming a global phenomenon.
It knows no boundary, neither is it selective with countries or institutions. What matters most is that different geographical terrains have differing and peculiar situations; events or disaster scales and occurrences. May I restate that, in all considerations, disasters have early warnings.
Therefore, we must have preparatory and counteracting projections and acts to cope with it.
Preparedness means intuitiveness or pro-activities that are positioned to assuage or tone down the terminal effects of the yet unknown degree of destruction.
Readiness to combat an impending disaster goes with awareness that engenders - plans for relief measures and timely responses to foreseen, seeming, foretold and unimagined inconveniences. Readiness of action inculcates future and effective rehabilitation proviso for soothing the suffering of the affected community, groups or individuals. Without plans, it is indeed difficult to circumvent confusion, and disastrous distractions from the mainstream of national activities, in times of disaster.
Early preparedness portends hope for the down-trodden and dispirited masses.
Clear cut awareness imposes the provisioning of distinctive logistics for assistances. It also involves the use of essential tools. One of such tools is the application of telecommunication sciences. This science introduces telecomm facilities such as radio communication and radio frequency emission systems. There are couples to name here. It ranges from satellite systems, trunked radio handy talkies, remote sensors, radio frequency emission modems and so on.
Presently, everyone seems to be talking of only the Radar for aviation tracking purposes. That is inclusive, but more prominent is another major facility called L-band on the Nigeria Communication Satellite- NIGCOMSAT system. This opinion is personal. Now, let us share some views. The L-band radio transponder facility on a few satellite transponders in space is my preferred option.
Wait. I will explain! An airplane just disappeared without a trace in the Nigerian airspace. In fact, this is the third of its kind after the African Continent, after the mystery of the Bermuda triangle of known history. When an aircraft takes off, or is in flight; the Air Traffic Controller equipment registers its presence in space with its allocated ICAO identity from its mother country. In Nigeria, it is 5N plus adjoining ownership figures and alphabets. The controller further allocates critical cruising height. Having cognizance and fore knowledge of its flight plan, it can monitor its flight operation from point A to destination B.
This is made possible because the airplane has on board a radio emission modem that radiates a particular kind of signal, which gets picked up by the ground cooperating radar Graphical User Interface (GUI) stations. This is further enhanced by the coverage power of each radar system, as an airplane commences and progresses in flight. The coverage of particular radar can be limited by the coverage radiation powers of ground component. This limitation introduces the use of many enroute radar systems and beacons for enroute airports, and for airport handover purposes; as it over flies one airport and the others.
The reader can better see why when an airplane is lost from the video screen, it means that the plane is out of range or a particular radar, or the power of the radar is limited such that it could not cover the aircraft any more or that an airfield is incapable of covering an over flying airplane. In this regard, the coverage is lost; hence the monitoring chain is broken. In the event, there is a disaster; there will be no trace within that blind spot or region. Radar does not show what is lost on ground or beneath the sea depths, excepting it is undersea radar from the submarines. It is an opinion. There are other needed and complimenting systems, however.
Global Positioning Systems-GPS, are also radio devices deployed on board the airplanes and responsible for providing bits-for-bits flying distances, latitude and longitude of places with insignificant meters of inaccuracies. They can be aided by the orbiting low orbit satellite systems. The GPS facility combines the powers of the L-band footprint from the Satellite transponders, to deliver the location of most metallic objects with pin-point accuracies. Availability of GSM handset at the site of disaster is also a plus point. Sincerely, this is the best systems to be deployed to view the places of disaster and for disaster events coverage.
What is Nigeria doing about the several of nasty situations arising from ineptitudes and inability to provide these instruments before foretold and unfortunate incidents strike our terrain again? The gulf wars and coverage pictures got to us because of L-band satellite cameras and pictures. No body wants to know that this facility is with us here in Nigeria. The Senate or is it NEMA, are pretending to be unaware of the existence of the powers of our space communication bird at the NIGCOMSAT facility. We need a unifying security and disaster coverage network in Nigeria now.
We need a disaster management legislative policy to be enforced through the Senate. The regulation modals should be handed over to chosen telecom experts, and not, politicians. Technically, and naturally, they are better informed on the appropriate tools to deploy for critical searches, even to the last miles.
There lies the great potential for using telecommunication to save lives.
We need a good pool of finances. This can come from national vote plus, others taken from the State votes; but withdrawn from the national treasury source. Evidence has shown that our Governors have too much money to embezzle. We can divert the Governor excesses to humanitarian jobs. I am not forgetting the dire need for every state Governor generating dictated quotas of the national energy resources. Neither are my averse to removing funds from them for enshrining better national agricultural pursuits. All of these products are also crucial to the planning and survival of any disaster-stricken people of Nigeria.
The government agencies appointed to disaster management need to be sensitized. Disaster relief and humanitarian groups should always be on standby. Victims of disaster are always on the look out for succor and ready-made relief packages or activities. If you place yourself inside a disaster, you will no doubt read a better meaning to my foregoing statements. If you have been besieged by armed robbers before now or fallen from a tree when no one was around, you will appreciate it better.
The writer thinks of ready, lightweight, collapsible and easily transportable earth station terminal satellite and even trunked Walky talky systems, which effectively, can provide the 'reach' framework for coping with emergencies. The availability of telecom resources when an emergency calls the government agencies responsible for disaster relief is very essential. Systems must be deployed in a timely manner whenever and wherever. There must be available finance, for logistics. It could be lodged with the central bank, into an account that reaps gains in non-usage periods. The truth is that we are not doing enough; and each of us needs to do more. Where also are the humanitarian billionaires of our times?
The International Telecommunication Union-ITU has earmarked some subtle solutions. We like to envision that volunteers should be raised by each government, in wait for emergencies. These volunteers should be trained ahead to cope with emergencies, like the fire fighters. Training should include the knowledge of the relevant tools for use, if we are to cope appropriately with natural and man-made disasters.
The "Bank of Industry" building edifice, which stands in-between some gigantic buildings in the heart of Lagos is collapsing. It is a form of manmade disaster. How have we coped in nearly one year?
Julius Berger, a construction giant in Nigeria has done us proud, in times of emergencies.
What can the GSM and others Private Telecommunication Organizations "PTOs, do to contribute to that effort? We need free airtime, call minutes, voice and data services including services from international cooperators.
The world should be one and frontal to disasters controls. Who knows whose child, father, mother, or relations will be involved next. Remember 911! Now is the time to think proactively.
Dr. Onokah, a telecoms consultant sent in this piece from Lagos
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