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GIESED 2020 IOP Publishing
IOP Conf. Series: Earth and Environmental Science 921 (2021) 012056 doi:10.1088/1755-1315/921/1/012056

Multi-Disaster Management Strategy in Indonesia

A Maulana1,2
1
Head of Center for Disaster Studies, Hasanuddin University, Makassar, Indonesia
2
Geological Engineering Department, Hasanuddin University, Makassar, Indonesia

corresponding author: [email protected]

Abstract. Managing natural disasters amid the Covid-19 pandemic needs a special strategic
approach. Indonesia, as a natural disaster-prone country, is now facing a problem due to areas
with high vulnerability and a lack of disaster literacy. A multi-disaster e.g., the occurrence of
natural disasters in the middle of Covid-19) management strategy is badly needed to face up to
this situation. This paper offers a multi-disaster management strategy based on empirical
experience as a reference for stakeholders, especially government at all levels. Five strategies
are offered to overcome the impacts of a multi-disaster event, especially in natural disaster-prone
areas with high Covid-19 case rates. Strengthening government institutions is the first priority to
be addressed as coordination among government at all levels (from central to regency and city
governments) will minimize the casualties. Logistic and infrastructure arrangements should be
well managed to avoid any panic and chaos during multi-disasters. Recruitment of volunteers
could be very helpful during the emergency response stage. Provision of evacuation sites and
temporary shelters that meet the Covid-19 requirements is a must to prevent virus spread during
evacuation and emergency response stages. Last but not least, increasing individual disaster
literacy should be considered an essential component of a multi-disaster management strategy.
Finally, well-managed coordination between all stakeholders is paramount, especially in natural
disaster-prone areas with a high level of Covid-19 spread.

1. Introduction
The Indonesian archipelago is a tectonically complex area due to interaction at least three major
plates namely India-Australian, Pacific and Eurasian Plates [1-3] (Figure 1). The area has been well
known as a super market for natural disasters as evidenced by the occurrence of some major natural
disasters. The complexity in tectonic setting has formed complex geological conditions which are the
root cause as to why Indonesia often experiences powerful earthquakes, also known as megathrust
events, which can be accompanied by tsunamis. The Aceh megathrust event remains a recent memory,
causing an earthquake with a magnitude up to 9 and a tsunami that reached 30 m with a total death toll
of around 150,000 people. Indonesia also has a zone of active volcanoes commonly known as the Pacific
ring of fire, consisting of up to 129 active volcanoes that can erupt at any time [4-6]. In addition,
ndonesia also has a typical tropical climate with alternating wet and dry seasons and extreme climate
fluctuation triggering floods, hurricanes, drought, and forest fires. The tropical climate with
predominantly high rainfall promotes relatively fast weathering, producing unstable soils which can lead
to landslides. Based on a report from the National Agency for Disaster Management or Badan Nasional
Penanggulangan Bencana (BNPB) around 60% of Indonesia's territory has a high potential for natural

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GIESED 2020 IOP Publishing
IOP Conf. Series: Earth and Environmental Science 921 (2021) 012056 doi:10.1088/1755-1315/921/1/012056

disasters and nearly 120 million people living in these areas are said to be vulnerable to becoming
victims of natural disasters. This places Indonesia as one of the countries in the world with a very high
level of vulnerability to natural disasters. The occurrence of natural disasters has intensified with an
upwards trend from year to year [6-7]. Simultaneously, Indonesia is facing a hard time battling against
the spread of Covid-19. The number of reported Covid-19 cases is steadily increasing nationwide. The
combination of the occurrence of any natural disasters and the Covid-19 pandemic will result in a multi-
disaster situation and is likely to generate complex problems, especially in areas which are prone to
natural disasters and also have a high Covid-19 infection rate. Therefore, it is important to prepare
special strategies to confront such a multi-disaster situation.

Figure 1. Tectonic setting of Indonesia Region [3]

2. Covid-19 and natural disasters

Based on the notes from the Covid-19 task force, the first positive case was detected in early March
2020. Data obtained from the Covid-19 task force state that, as of December 11 2020, there were 593,000
people who had been confirmed positive for Covid-19, while 487,000 people had recovered and 18,171
people had died [8]. Centres of transmission, which used to be concentrated in the Jakarta area, have
now spread throughout much of Indonesia. It was previously predicted that Covid-19 would peak at the
end of May or early June 2020 with an estimated 90 thousand positive cases. However, since then the
situation has worsened, with the number of cases increasing steadily day by day. The government has
appealed to the people for co-operation in the form of social distancing, the wearing of masks and staying
at home; if these measures are not adopted consistently and effectively, the peak cannot be predicted.
Nevertheless, it is anticipated that the implementation of the Large-Scale Social Restriction (PSBB)
policy by the government, together with the 3M policy (mask usage, hand washing, physical distancing)
and the 3T policy (tracing, testing, treatment), should be effective in reducing the rate of Covid-19
spread.
At the same time, data from the BNPB shows that there have been around 2787 natural disasters up to
December 11, 2020 [9]. The disasters which have occurred in several regions across Indonesia were

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IOP Conf. Series: Earth and Environmental Science 921 (2021) 012056 doi:10.1088/1755-1315/921/1/012056

dominated by floods (1005 events), followed by tornadoes (837 events) and landslides (535 events).
Other recorded disasters include 325 forest and land fires, 15 large earthquakes, 7 volcanic eruptions,
and 33 tidal waves and abrasion events, as well as one drought. As a result, 357 people have died and
40 people have been reported missing. These disasters also displaced more than 6 million people and
injured 531 more. In addition, these disasters damaged 41,855 houses, and 1,540 public facilities,
including 670 educational facilities, 726 religious’ facilities, and 142 healthcare facilities. The
disasters also damaged 58 office complexes and 161 bridges. These data show that the losses caused
by natural disasters are very significant. One could imagine what would happen if an earthquake
accompanied by tsunami, volcanic eruptions, floods, forest fires, and landslides occurred
simultaneously during this pandemic. It is shown from Indonesia Disaster Risk map index (Figure 2)
that almost 60% of Indonesian region is categorized as high risk. In fact, almost all areas are included
as natural disaster-prone areas (from medium – high risk) in which more than 240 million people live
in the area.

Figure 2. Indonesia Disaster Risk Index Map [9].

3. Multi-disaster management strategy

It must be admitted that no country was or is ready to face the Covid-19 disaster due to the lack of
scientific knowledge about this virus. Almost all major countries have experienced problems in handling
this pandemic. Indonesia, with all its limitations, is no exception. Some observers and experts consider
that Indonesia is in an exponential growth phase of the pandemic, marked by a rapid growth in positive
cases and the number of local transmission cases in several regions. During the implementation of the
PSBB (Pembatasan Sosial Berskala Besar or large-scale social restriction) policy it has been seen that
the high number of violations has led to a lack of effectiveness. Similarly, natural disaster management
still remains fraught with several problems. The lack of mitigation efforts makes the handling of these
two types of disasters seem very sporadic or reactive. The threat of large casualties due to multi-disasters
(the occurrence of natural disasters in the middle of Covid-19) is in sight if the government does not
have a strategy to deal with such a situation.
It is certain that the concentration of disaster management, budgets, human resources, and policies
during this pandemic are focused on Covid-19. We certainly continue to hope that major natural disasters
such as earthquakes, floods and volcanic eruptions will not occur, at least in the near future. However,
this is of course not a guarantee, since there is no single mechanism that would put a stop to the
occurrence of natural disasters, especially earthquakes, tsunamis, volcanic eruptions and forest fires that

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IOP Conf. Series: Earth and Environmental Science 921 (2021) 012056 doi:10.1088/1755-1315/921/1/012056

have a massive potential to occur in several regions across Indonesia (see Fig. 2). The minimal level of
disaster understanding within our society increases the level of vulnerability and could multiply the
impacts of such multi-disasters.
Based on scenarios for the worst conditions for a multi-disaster event, there are several strategies that
could be implemented to overcome multi-disaster impacts, especially in areas that are both at the
epicentre of Covid-19 outbreaks and intrinsically prone to natural disasters. Five such strategies are
briefly outlined below.

3.1. Strengthening government institutions

The national and local governments have announced that they will refocus all available resources to deal
with Covid-19. However, the national government must continue to coordinate with local governments
and other government agencies to prepare for natural disasters. The BNPB and Badan Penanggulangan
Bencana Daerah (BPBD) or Local Agency for Disaster Management must continue to coordinate
with other government agencies that have facilities for disaster early warning systems such as Badan
Meteorologi, Klimatologi dan Geofisika or BMKG (Geophysical, Climatology and Meteorological
Agency), Badan Informasi Geospasial or BIG (Geospatial Information Agency) and Badan Geologi
(BG) or Geological Agency. Research institutes and higher education institutions are also parties that
must be involved in strengthening government institutions with respect to multi-disaster management.
The coordination mechanisms must be improved so that early warnings can be relied on for mitigation
purposes, especially in areas prone to natural disasters, such as floods, earthquakes, volcanic eruptions
and tsunamis. Flexibility in the use of village funds in multi-disaster situations must be enabled while
upholding transparency and supervision. The functions and roles of the institutions at the neighbourhood
(RT and RW) and village (desa) or urban equivalent (kelurahan) levels are vital in facing multi-disaster
conditions. It can be anticipated that with stronger coordination, the managing of multiple disasters can
be faster and more precise, so that even if a natural disaster occurs, casualties can be minimized because
mitigation efforts will have been made.

3.2. Logistics and infrastructure arrangements

One of the characteristics of a natural disaster is that it destroys infrastructure, especially transportation
and/or communication infrastructure. As a result, there is often a logistical scarcity in every disaster
caused by the disruption of the transportation and communication network which can result in a lack of
food supplies as well as logistics and petroleum-based fuels. This condition results in suffering
experienced by the victims and generally results in panic, looting, and even the emergence of other
criminal acts. Therefore, in disaster-prone areas it is especially important to ensure that the supply chain
logistics and infrastructure are well organized and resilient.

3.3. Recruitment of volunteers

It can be understood that, amidst this pandemic situation, the recruitment or deployment of volunteers
will be severely limited. Each individual must think hard before volunteering in the midst of a pandemic.
However, this condition can be shifted by recruiting through online recruitment systems. These
volunteers can then be given free online training with certificates in how to handle multi-disasters, from
pre-disaster and emergency response to post-disaster materials. It can be expected that this training will
improve their competence and readiness when a multi-disaster event does occur. Volunteers will then
be able to play a role in communicating important matters related to disasters such as evacuation
procedures, the existence of public kitchens and others. This step of recruiting and training volunteers
is very important, especially in disaster-prone areas.

3.4. Provision of evacuation sites and temporary shelters

This step will be very important for areas prone to disasters, such as earthquakes, tsunamis and volcanic
eruptions as well as hydro-meteorological disasters such as floods and forest fires. To stop the spread of

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GIESED 2020 IOP Publishing
IOP Conf. Series: Earth and Environmental Science 921 (2021) 012056 doi:10.1088/1755-1315/921/1/012056

Covid-19, one effective step is by means of social distancing or maintaining a certain distance between
individuals. In the event of a natural disaster, providing evacuation sites and shelters in accordance with
the Covid-19 protocol is very important. Hotels, schools, guest house and dormitories owned by the
government and the private sector which are empty during the pandemic must be prepared to function
as evacuation sites for victims of natural disasters. Government facilities that are able to accommodate
large numbers of people while adhering to the Covid-19 protocol, e.g., social distancing, need to be
prepared immediately.

3.5. Increasing individual preparations

In time of the Covid-19 pandemic which limits social movements to a large extent, it is very important
to emphasize and increase individual preparedness. One way of doing this is to keep up to date with
important information through communication devices by monitoring information provided through
reputable news sites from trusted sources. It is important to continue to monitor information from
institutions authorized by the government to disseminate information about disasters in order to avoid
hoaxes and fake news. In addition, information can also be obtained from local neighbourhood officials,
so it is important for individuals to always coordinate with government officials at all relevant levels.

4. Conclusion
Indonesia is located in an area in which a complex tectonic process occurred. It is one of the most natural
disaster-prone countries in the world. Type of natural disasters including earthquake, tsunami, volcano
eruption, flood and landslide. The pandemic situation made the disaster management more difficult,
hence a multi-disaster strategy is urgently needed. Improvement cooperation between all stakeholders
in disaster management is a must, especially in areas with a high level of natural disaster
vulnerability and a high rate of Covid-19 spread. Multi-disaster management strategy including
strengthening government institutions, logistics and infrastructures arrangements, recruitment of
volunteers, provision of evacuation sites and temporary shelters and increasing individual preparations.
All parties are asked to help each other according to their respective situations and competencies.

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