A Missed Window of Opportunity

Abstract

In October 2010 a rainstorm hit some municipalities in Liguria (NW Italy) resulting in flash floods and debris floods. Rescue operations were carried out without situational awareness due to phone and cellular line failure and civil protection plan deficiency. Relief operations were carried out to recover to previous state with no lesson learned analysis nor legislative upgrade. A window of opportunity opened to fulfill the disaster management cycle theory. On October/November 2011, when a wider event struck both Tuscany and Liguria regions causing 12 fatalities, the situation was, more or less, the same as the past year: the window of opportunity closed without a reduction in risk exposure. After this last event Ligurian Region administration started to re-evaluate hazard mapping and risk assessment methodologies, since debris floods were not considered in official hazard maps and urban planning regulations. But a month later, the temporary building restrictions were reformed to low strict level. Different to Northwest Italy extensive floods of 1994, that led Italy to a new approach to hazard planning and risk evaluation, Liguria 2010/2011 events did not to seemingly involve, bureaucracy and civil society on the new resilience concept and on the use of the emerging technologies and social media.