A Template-based Methodology for Large-Scale HA/DR involving Ephemeral Groups - A Workflow Perspective

Large-scale HA/DR typically requires massive rescue operations from many organizations. Among the involved parties, ephemeral groups - those volunteers that happen to be readily available for help - are critical to a timely and massive rescue effort. Timely and accurate processing of crisis information and effective communication have been documented as critical elements of disaster relief operations. Despite the lessons learned from previous crises, preparing information for HA/DR and ineffective information sharing remain a recurring and almost unattainable task for relief agencies, especially in situations involving numerous ad-hoc groups. The purpose of this paper is to extend our earlier work that uses a template-based methodology to archive past disaster relief operations and communications, create "descriptive" templates for advanced preparedness, and design "normative" templates for fast execution of operations, while reducing miscommunications among aid agencies and ephemeral groups