Are we prepared to meet the growing challenges of disasters?

South Asian countries are the lands of great topographic and climatic contrasts. Floods, cyclones, earthquakes, droughts and heavy rainfalls are some major natural threats that this region faces. The tsunami of December 26, 2004 that stuck the coasts of most landmasses bordering the Indian Ocean killed more than 225,000 and many more became homeless in eleven countries of Asia. This was followed by the most devastating earthquake in the history of Pakistan which stuck the region on 8 October 2005 and killed about 75,000 people, injured more than 100,000 and affected an overall population of more than 3 million. Apart from this, Pakistan witnesses on an average one flood every year. The occurrence of man made disasters including the terrorist bombings, fire engulfing buildings and collapse of multistory residential buildings is not uncommon in Pakistan. The Emergency Relief Cell (ERC), Federal Flood Commission (FFC) and meteorological department are the key agencies for the management of disasters in our country. The relief work that is usually carried out in case of an emergency is on ad hoc basis and there is no significant prior groundwork. It is well established that if the natural disasters cannot be prevented they can be predicted and contained on a large extent if taken as an important and serious national agenda. The death and disability from disasters can be reduced through a coordinated and institutional effort. The public health mechanisms that involve the management of any disasters include disaster response, disaster preparedness and disaster mitigation.