Introduction

A large number of people is affected by disasters and other occurring emergencies. These events include heatwaves, spillage from chemicals, attacks by terrorists, avalanches, storms, fires, floods, mudslides, and thunderstorms amongst other events. These events can take place without or with a warning. During times of disasters and emergencies occurrence, societies and people mostly depend on proper communication to make contact with emergency service providers such as ambulance services, fire extinguishers, and the policemen. First, these individuals need to receive information on the severity, the location and about the emergency nature. Second, these individuals have the right to access information about what action one should engage in like evacuating the place. Finally, society or individuals need to share information such as their personal and family safety and whereabouts. Therefore, in preparation for emergencies and disasters, people and communities also need to receive information such as a notification to evacuate center places and information on fire preparedness. Deaf individuals who make five percent of the world population, and who make use of signed language need to access similar communications on disaster and emergency crisis management. The problem discussed in this document is the lack of access to telecommunications, well-trained, and emergency workers, and the existence of constraints in reaching the emergency assistance centers physically and geographically. Deaf individuals should be made aware of the centers’ locations and existence, including directions.

Many countries have enacted laws to remove discrimination practices against individuals who are disabled including the deaf individuals who make use of a signed language. The United Nations is an international body that protects disabled individuals’ rights. The United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (UNCRPD) which swung into action in the year 2008, has been legally accepted and put into practice by one hundred and fifty-one member countries. The convention recognizes individual safety and communications access as human rights. Its seven chapters’ address matters accessibility, health, purpose, information access, freedom of opinion and expression, non-discrimination and equality, humanitarian emergencies and risk situations acknowledgment for the deaf individuals. These chapters require the deaf to access communications relating to emergencies and disasters.

In meeting the UNCRPD duties, the nations that have ratified the convention should implement these recommendations. Countries that have not yet confirmed the convention recommendations can improve the deaf citizenry safety by putting the proposals into practice. Lastly, the national governments should ensure that the administrative authorities both tertiary and secondary, and any non-governmental institutions offering emergency services are aware of their duty to deliver humanitarian aid to deaf people in disaster and emergencies areas.

First, I would recommend having deaf access emergency telecommunications. The deaf people should be capable of using their national signed language or languages to contact emergency service providers, to be called back by the emergency services if needed, and be contacted by and contact family and friends in an emergency. These communications should be made accessible through direct emergency operators call or through a video relay service. The operators should be fluent and familiar with the national signed language — technologies such as videophones, applications on smartphones, and webcams on laptops or desktops. Text-based services should also be capable of offering these communications like messaging that is instant, messaging using the short text messages, and applications on smartphones. A relay service could be used to communicate the messages or direct communications with emergency call services. Additionally, the national government can have deaf access these communications free of charge without paying. Again, these communications should enjoy equal protection rights as the broader society corresponding services such as location communications, reliability, regulatory and legal protection, funding, roaming between telecommunication providers and speed.

Second, the deaf should have access to disasters and emergencies preparedness data. Emergency minimization or preparation data should be accessed easily by deaf people using the signed language. For example, such data include an online video clip that describes what to include in the kit for an emergency.  A DVD explaining how one can mitigate the effect of a bushfire on a person’s house is helpful. Additionally, a brochure can be used to show centers to be used during evacuation, and directions in the event of disaster such as flood, and a practice session, seminar, a workshop on recovery or preparation from disaster such as what a person should do when a thunderstorm or earthquake strikes, once in the cyclone path or once surrounded by fire.  The information on disasters and emergencies preparedness should be made readily accessible to deaf people. For example, the national government can have professional interpreters to interpret live events such as workshops.

Similarly, any video material can be accompanied by open captioning or have it translated the national signed language. The online videos can be free for downloading or stored in DVDs. Outreach initiatives to deaf societies should get established. The overall goal is to offer deaf people with particular data on how to use a relay service to make an emergency call.

Third, information is essential to any person to assist in decision making about the risk of personal or family safety and health, the steps to use when evacuating and the risk to material property. In most cases, the non-government institutions and government often use radio as a method of mass communication in disasters events. This event is always inaccessible to deaf persons. Therefore, other kinds of social and mass media should be used to offer deaf people with information on emergencies. This emergency information at the same time should be available to the deaf community as it is accessible to the larger society. The access should be made available in the following ways: the use of public alerts like the automated cellphones calls sent to people within a community should be accessible to deaf people through instant messaging, and or text messages. The radio stations who are mandated to broadcast information on the emergency should make sure that the information is readily available and published on their website. YouTube, Twitter, and Facebook which are part of the social media should be used to allow the deaf people to access emergency data and help in disseminating this data to the other deaf society members. Materials that are published online and broadcasted on national televisions such as media conferences should be open captioned and interpreted into national signed languages. The recommendation here is to have access to emergency data during disasters and emergencies.

Emergency laborers such as the policemen, fire extinguishers or ambulance officers, are in most cases the first to respond to emergencies and disasters. The team often interact with the public including the individuals who are members of the deaf society during such incidents. Therefore, the emergency workers where possible, they should carry noticeable signs and symbols written on them and easily understandable language. The emergency workers should be equipped with primary deaf awareness training while addressing the citizenry. They should be able to identify an individual may be deaf, in a situation where the individual does not respond to verbal command or question. They should be potentials of using necessary procedures to communicate with deaf persons and use proper ways to gain visual attention. The emergency workers should be able to understand the differences in communication between the individuals who are deaf and individuals who are difficult of hearing. They should also recognize different forms of communication with the deaf including the accents of the deaf, are normal and valid, and not as a result of distress, injury or intoxication. The crew should understand that the deaf community members could not portray fluency in spoken or written national languages, as the signed language is their first language. It is inherently useful to recognize that deaf individuals can face more inconveniences and stresses in emergency times due to communication difficulties with persons who cannot use signed languages. The emergency workers must recognize that the deaf community members who are not capable of using their hands due to restraints or injury may not be able to communicate essential information and could face more distress. Therefore, I recommend proper communication between deaf society and emergency workers.

Lastly, the deaf should be able to access recovery communications with ease. Both non-government institutions, government, and emergency recovery institutions should offer assistance to deaf people the same way they provide to members who belong to the broader society. The deaf individuals’ assistance requests must be available in convenient methods such as SMS, fax, relay services or email. The help that needs personal appeal like counseling services must be available to the deaf through the use of a professional interpreter. Lastly, broadcast information must be open captioned and interpreted in real time.

In conclusion, this document’s intended audience is government policy-making agencies, deaf individuals’ national associations, the interpreters of national organizations, media institutions, and public service providers. The non-government institutions, the government and emergency institutions must consult with the institutions that offer services to the deaf individuals, as well as with institutions that represent professional interpreters for sign language. The consultation should take place in the times of preparing for the emergency as well during emergency times where needed. The emergency agencies must understand how to reach and talk to interpreter institutions and the deaf, including during disasters and emergencies. Again, after the disasters and emergencies, it is advisable to access and consult with researchers who work with society to make improvements and capture the learned lessons from the event. Community consultation is essential. If not possible to offer all these accommodations in every emergency center, then particular disaster and emergency centers may be made and declared ‘deaf-friendly.’ The staff and volunteers should train on deaf awareness including first communication with deaf people should be motivated by the government through sensible salaries and provision of better work services to avoid labor strikes, unrests, and protests. Therefore, after reading this document, the reader should be able to ensure that the deaf has equitable and equal access to communication during emergencies and disasters.

References

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