PROPOSED STRATEGIES FOR DISASTER PREPAREDNESS:DARB-E-ASTANEH SILAKHOR EARTHQUAKE, IRAN

Iran is located in one of the most active tectonic regions of the world and has suffered large and destructive earthquakes in the past few decades. Therefore, earthquake preparedness can be regarded as one of the factors which can contribute to the safety of citizens during natural disasters such as earthquakes in this country. In this regard, several measures have been undertaken in Iran to improve the public knowledge on risk and disaster mitigation and management since the last two decades. The aim of this paper is to review disaster preparedness in one of Iran's earthquakes, Silakhor, occurred in March 2006. The earthquake followed the occurrence of a pre-shock which resulted in 63 fatalities and 1418 injuries. Moreover, 330 villages were damaged in Silakhor plain. Challenges and lessons learned are addressed in this paper briefly. At the end, few recommended strategies towards promoting public awareness and education as well as earthquake training are presented for the next probable earthquakes in the region.It was concluded that a comprehensive plan needs to be prepared in order to address the necessary activities for promoting public awareness among different groups of people from ordinary residents to all related stakeholders. In addition, proper methods as well as means of specific training for providing different types of education and promoting culture of safety against earthquakes should be adopted based on the socioeconomic and cultural situations of the local communities. Also, necessary educational initiatives for local residents and professionals as well as regular drills should cover the subjects related to risk mitigation, with the hope that it results in disaster reduction in the country as well as other similar developing countries in the world.