The latest figures from the Red Cross Society of China (RCSC) should prompt us to be better prepared for emergencies and natural disasters.

According to the RCSC, more than 8 million people die of non-natural causes every year, and 80 percent of these deaths could be prevented.

But as the RCSC also pointed out, China had only 10 million people qualified to give first-aid as of 2010, accounting for less than 1 percent of the country's population. In other words, many of the people that died, died of ignorance.

Natural disasters are not in short supply in this country. Last year started off with the devastating droughts in Southwest China; this year saw an earthquake in Southwest China's Yunnan province.

Though acts of nature are unavoidable and inevitable, preparedness will make a difference.

But, a lack of preparedness is present at every level in the country and the agencies responsible for disaster prevention and relief fail to offer citizens enough training and information.

The fact of the matter is, we never seem to be sufficiently prepared for the consequences that come with extreme weather conditions and other acts of Nature.

China published a map of disaster-prone areas last week to make people throughout the country more prepared in the event of a sudden catastrophe. The eastern and central parts of the country are highly prone to earthquakes, floods, landslides, typhoons and droughts. But these areas have also grown and developed into densely populated areas.

The development of disaster responsive urban areas is very important, as our cities are densely populated so that even a small event can cause a loss of life and property.

Pre-emptive measures might be an unfamiliar concept in some communities that haven't experienced the extreme affects of a natural disaster. But no community can be complacent and expect it will be safe forever.

In many cases, governments cannot be counted on to cope with the immediate effects of a disaster.

So disaster awareness should also be developed through disaster management on the curriculum from the primary to the university level, while disaster management procedures should be disseminated throughout all levels of society.

Alert systems should be put in place. This is essential because most of the time, those who are most affected by disasters are those who are least equipped to deal with them.

More lives can be saved if people are armed with more knowledge of emergency response strategies and first-aid techniques.

(China Daily 05/16/2011 page8)